game installs are corrupting BTRFS on Fedora 40

steamopen Distro Family: Fedora

ValveSoftware/steam-for-linux#10903 · opened 2024-05-18 by jorp · updated 2026-08-02 · 15 comments · github

Jjorp 2024-05-18 github

Your system information

Steam client version:

Steam Beta Branch:  Stable Client
Steam Version:  1715891371
Steam Client Build Date:  Thu, May 16 4:11 PM UTC -08:00
Steam Web Build Date:  Thu, May 16 3:36 PM UTC -08:00
Steam API Version:  SteamClient021

Distribution: Fedora 40
Opted into Steam client beta?: No
Have you checked for system updates?: Yes
Steam Logs: steam-logs.tar.gz
GPU: AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT

Please describe your issue in as much detail as possible:

Whenever installing a new game, BTRFS becomes corrupted and is not correctable. The game will start installing as normal, and sometime into downloading, it will stop and state it is corrupted and move on to the next game.

I have even done a fresh install of Fedora 40 on a brand new SSD and received the same result.

Steps for reproducing this issue:

Install Fedora 40
Make no changes to default filesystems or parititoning, choose to encrypt installation with LUKS
Install steam from rpmfusion repository
Begin installing a game
Watch for errors in the steam client or in dmesg (below)

[ 2479.397510] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): csum failed root 256 ino 188739 off 147456 csum 0x355bd35c expected csum 0x36d69a3a mirror 1
[ 2479.397537] BTRFS error (device dm-0): bdev /dev/mapper/luks-ffffffffffffff errs: wr 0, rd 0, flush 0, corrupt 1, gen 0
[ 2479.438946] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): csum failed root 256 ino 188739 off 147456 csum 0xb9577995 expected csum 0x36d69a3a mirror 1
[ 2479.438968] BTRFS error (device dm-0): bdev /dev/mapper/luks-ffffffffffffff errs: wr 0, rd 0, flush 0, corrupt 2, gen 0
[ 2479.453308] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): csum failed root 256 ino 188739 off 147456 csum 0xb9577995 expected csum 0x36d69a3a mirror 1
[ 2479.453333] BTRFS error (device dm-0): bdev /dev/mapper/luks-ffffffffffffff errs: wr 0, rd 0, flush 0, corrupt 3, gen 0
[ 2488.515036] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): csum failed root 256 ino 188739 off 147456 csum 0xb9577995 expected csum 0x36d69a3a mirror 1
[ 2488.515052] BTRFS error (device dm-0): bdev /dev/mapper/luks-ffffffffffffff errs: wr 0, rd 0, flush 0, corrupt 4, gen 0
[ 2488.515308] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): csum failed root 256 ino 188739 off 147456 csum 0xb9577995 expected csum 0x36d69a3a mirror 1
[ 2488.515323] BTRFS error (device dm-0): bdev /dev/mapper/luks-ffffffffffffff errs: wr 0, rd 0, flush 0, corrupt 5, gen 0
[ 2488.515436] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): csum failed root 256 ino 188739 off 147456 csum 0xb9577995 expected csum 0x36d69a3a mirror 1
[ 2488.515446] BTRFS error (device dm-0): bdev /dev/mapper/luks-ffffffffffffff errs: wr 0, rd 0, flush 0, corrupt 6, gen 0

Jjorp 2024-05-18 github

So I switched to beta, and the problem held off for a lot longer than it did last time. Now, where the games were nearly done, I received 'corrupt update files' for one game, and 'disk read error' for the other. dmesg is full of BTRFS errors again.

Here is a particular path included this time:

[ 5224.858741] BTRFS warning (device dm-0): checksum error at logical 152508235776 on dev /dev/mapper/luks-87b10272-c9ac-4365-8e90-a82ab75f77f3, physical 153623920640, root 256, inode 214119, offset 150450176, l
ength 4096, links 1 (path: jorp/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/downloading/2328760/PinballFX/Content/Paks/pakchunk2166-WindowsNoEditor.pak)

Here are the games in question:
Screenshot from 2024-05-17 22-05-54

Jjorp 2024-05-18 github

Also made a post on the Fedora forums here

Gg572staem 2024-05-19 github

That's a filesystem problem, it just so happens that steam is provoking it.
I would recommend you use a different file system, ext4 is old as shit and pretty stable.

Hhifron 2024-05-20 github

check your ssd health and lifespan.

Jjorp 2024-05-20 github

check your ssd health and lifespan.

Thanks, I've already done this and haven't seen issues. I mentioned in the OP that I've also been able to reproduce this with a brand new drive.

As an update, I'm looking into RAM issues and it's possible that may be the culprit. Still researching and troubleshooting at the moment though.

Jjorp 2024-05-23 github

Hi all, I ram memtest86 and got 600+ errors.. I've since RMA'd my RAM and am using a fresh set while I await its return. I haven't run into any issues since. I am going to keep this open for another week or so to see if this comes back.

Kkisak-valve maintainer 2024-06-28 github

Closing as a hardware issue.

Ttrgeiger 2024-07-01 github

I'm also having this issue in the last couple days on a brand new machine. Seems odd for this to be popping up for multiple people. Also on Fedora using the rpmfusion packaged steam on BTRFS+LUKS.

The files at the inode from the error are:
.local/share/Steam/steamapps/common/SteamLinuxRuntime_sniper/sniper_platform_0.20240618.92328/files/lib/i386-linux-gnu/libicudata.so.67.1
.local/share/Steam/steamapps/common/SteamLinuxRuntime_sniper/var/tmp-XG8DQ2/usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/libicudata.so.67.1

I'll run memtest soon just to make sure.

Ttrgeiger 2024-07-02 github

Update: memtest86+ passed. So no memory or disk hardware issues on my end. I deleted those sniper runtime files and had steam redownload them and I haven't had the issue pop up again, yet.

DDestinyg133 2024-09-18 github

I have problem exactly like this
Using flatpak everything is fine
Or if I move game from windows to linux and redownloading last parts

Jjorp 2024-10-12 github

Sorry to bump an old issue, but looks like this problem has returned. I tested my RAM and found a bunch of errors again.. I was surprised because I just replaced it a few months ago.

I did notice that disabling XMP in my BIOS resulted in no more memtest86 errors. However, it looks like this issue with BTRFS is still persisting.

It did go away for some time after RMA-ing my RAM, and I guess it is possible that this pair somehow became faulty too.. not really sure were to direct tickets and information. My issue here was (understandably) closed, and I am still seeing others that are loosely related here.

Jjorp 2024-10-12 github

@kisak-valve could you reopen this?

Sspikhoff 2024-12-25 github

Same thing happens for me (Fedora 41 Kinoite). Memtest is OK, Samsung 990 PRO 2TB.
Edit: I suspect my SSD may have failed. I tried Ubuntu 20.04 with ext4 and encountered similar problems.

Hhifron 2026-07-21 · hidden on GitHub github

server ram on desktop(with vendor(asus) ram shield tape labels from space radiation coverage and protection, but inner damage could happen even on cables still when shielded, smd resistors could have their own specific freq operation status(02,01),(04,02),(06,03),(08,05),(12,06)...), that could cause some trouble if that server ness is not so friendly speaking to error checking standards of ddr4 ness, from ddr5 mandatory if there is not some trouble, like dual channels and speedness with a lot of happening and protocols, with buffers and kernel trouble. Including VRAM sharing between PC, GPU and maybe disk, peripherials and cache-types. Now with direct loading of assets into games or containers, machines between PCs.

A lot of traffic there and no policement to check if loading outer rim files is on earth or in pluto department of xr or virtuals, today a cache or containers or buffers or vram.

If disabling virtuals(in uefi), xmp profiles gone and similar adjustment and testing could make check where is problem(automated testing tools, facilities and companies there - including user and gamer tests, semi-automated way if possible), but today a lot of boot process is different and raid complicate things, grub and uefi on rise(heads safetiness loader, go php servers strictness and wasm runtimes on the rise also, intermediate langs on mesa or in langs theory communications between - not only rest, grpc, graphql, but also ffi hooks and its chaoss since .h headers in c++, remote invocation still since ages when gpu over ssh rule the world - today client or server side rendering strictness or chrome usb or serial port access). And we live in the world of usb-c protocols tunneling... With wasm server runtimes. Games and webGPU there.

__
maybe then btrfs could improve their developer intro time when only some trees and kernel structures hire developer interest how to lost into kernel and dev chaos.

Bbrendon-r 2026-08-02 github

I'm also seeing this on NixOS. I disabled BTRFS CoW for the downloading and temp directories (Claude's direction), which seemed to reduce the frequency of seeing this but have started seeing it again in the last few days.

Nothing extracted yet.