Possibly intentional to mitigate https://github.com/ValveSoftware/Proton/issues/428.
[Feature Request] Feature to clear proton compatdata for uninstalled apps
Issue transferred from https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-for-linux/issues/7815.
@xDShot posted on 2021-05-26T09:49:15:
Was cleaning disk space when I noticed that I had leftover compat datas from removed games in steam/steamapps/compatdata. Medium size of these is around 500Mb, some of them even took 20Gbs, and there are plenty of them.
Would like to see an option for Steam client to purge chosen data of willing app, including for removed apps, instead of manually removing them. Optional as they might contain save data for games without Steam Cloud or have some prefix workaround applied to make them work.
The other issue with this is that for non-steam games. When a non-steam game is removed, the proton prefix still exists, and there is no longer a breadcrumb that can be followed to figure out what the proton prefix belonged to.
I'm running into this issue right now on my Steam Deck. I have 5 prefix folders that I believe are orphaned, but I don't know if they are safe to delete.
I'm kind of embarrassed to post this but I made a BASH script quite some time ago for my own personal usage. It was originally designed to solve a slightly different problem, but I've been adding to it over time and it has come to address this exact issue.
https://github.com/techmouse/steam-compatdata-symlinker-thing
Let me know if you get some use out of it.
I'm kind of embarrassed to post this but I made a BASH script quite some time ago for my own personal usage. It was originally designed to solve a slightly different problem, but I've been adding to it over time and it has come to address this exact issue.
https://github.com/techmouse/steam-compatdata-symlinker-thing
Let me know if you get some use out of it.
It's very good, but it has some issues on the Steam Deck. I'll file an issue against it.
[Feature Request] While uninstalling a SteamPlay/Proton game, add a checkbox asking "Do you want to delete all user data?". If the user does not check this box, do not delete the prefix. If checked, delete the prefix.
Would be nice to have this added as a native option to Steam, though for the time being I made myself a relatively simple Bash script here that I've been using to clear away prefixes for uninstalled games. Maybe others here might find some use in it as well.
Has this been fixed now in the new Beta client update? Looks like unused prefixes no longer actually remain when uninstalling a game.
Erasing player saves when uninstalling games ? That takes us back to DOS gaming era !
Remember, Valve : not all games have cloud saves (and even with cloud saves, data loss can happen)
Seriously : it's never been recommended (euphemism) to erase user data without consent when uninstalling a program.
@MagicD3VIL is so right here : https://github.com/ValveSoftware/steam-for-linux/issues/7418#issuecomment-1247317571 it must be a choice with a big warning. And it must warn about the saves.
=> "Do you want to delete all user data (including local saves) ?"
Today I've lost my game progress (about two weeks) when I reinstalled the game (otherwise it wouldn't open) because Steam also deleted my local saves and didn't create any Cloud copies. So yeah, I think there should be choice to save local data rather than deleting it permanently. At least send it to trash.
At least send it to trash.
I completely agree with this sentiment. Always use gio trash instead of rm.
Your system information
Please describe your issue in as much detail as possible:
After remove windows game from library, proton prefix remains in ~/.local/share/Steam/steamapps/compatdata/%gameid%
Steps for reproducing this issue: