In one of Gopher's tutorial videos on modding Fallout 4 he says that the Steam folder needs to be moved somewhere other than where it is (under program files). I have a question about this, however. When I move it am I copying the folder and putting it in another place or cutting it? In other words do I need to make sure there's only one folder or will it matter if I have one Steam folder in two separate locations?

You cannot simply move an application. The registry information would conflict. You can move a game's directory by using a symbolic link command or by creating a 'Steam Library' outside of Program Files and installing it there.

Personally I would reinstall Steam outside of the Program Files directory, however if you have a lot of games already installed this will be a burden.

http://www.traynier.com/software/steammover

Well, I just copied the entire folder from inside "program files x86" and and pasted it in another location. It's taking quite a while and now I'm concerned that there will be some conflicts and/ore issues. Ugh. What should I do?

I moved the game folders found under c:\program files\steam\steamapps\common\ to another SSD drive (in my case g:\steamgames) and then use the Windows command line tool mklink to create directory symbolic links under steam\steamapps\common directory to point to the corresponding game folder in g:\steamgames.

My steam binaries are still where it was installed, just the game folders were moved and replaced by symbolic links. It's been this way for years now and it's working quite well. Lately I just tell Steam to install my new game on the other SSD.

Well, I'm a novice modder at best and I follow Gopher's videos by the book when it comes to installing mods. It worked quite well for Skyrim but this has me concerned. It's on this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKK2GsREpoE) where he says that we need to "move our Steam folder." I've done it and now I have two folders. I just have a bad feeling this is not the best thing to do.

It's easy if you want to move Steam itself. (Though the hyperlink method works too.)

Copy the 'steamapps' folder somewhere. Found "Wherever"\Steam\steamapps

Uninstall then reinstall Steam to the new HDD location.

Now copy the 'steamapps' folder to the new Steam directory.

Now in steam Library, left click a game, select Properties>Local files (Tab)>Verify integrity of game cache. It will scan for the files and update Steam.

Do that for all the games in the 'steamapps' folder.

Done.

I know that this is probably extremely simple for most of you guys but for a novice it seems a bit much for something that I really don't even know why it's necessary. I probably had 60 mods running on Skyrim. Never moved my Steam folder. I don't know why Gopher feels it is so imperative to move the Steam folder. Also, when I install a mod at this point it still goes into my Steam folder inside program files (NOT the one I copied) so really I copied and pasted that for nothing.

You are welcome to try and use it there then. In fact I'd recommend it at this stage, until an issue actually comes up. (Worth a shot.) Then apply the above method.

My understanding is it has to do with Windows permissions not playing nicely with some mods. It may never be an issue for you.

Then Steam was not uninstalled from that location. If Steam was properly uninstalled, then reinstalled to a new location that wouldn't happen. (Or shouldn't but hey, it's software. Poop happens.)

What's the best way to make sure I've not deleted any game saves prior to uninstalling and then reinstalling Steam?

Going to your Fallout 4 save folder, and making a backup of your saves. Then you will be 100% sure you will not lose your saves.

Thanks.

At some point over the next couple of days I think I'm just going to uninstall Steam and reinstall it. I actually have very few games on it, I think four in total so it's not a huge deal.

Not all game saves are in the same locations!!! Use this http://savelocations.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Games to make sure you get all your games save folders.

http://savelocations.wikia.com/wiki/The_Elder_Scrolls_V:_Skyrim is Skyrims page/location. Libraries > Documents > My Games > Skyrim > Saves (For W7 but should be the same for 8 and 10.)

P.S.

Should have done this before but I can confirm from my own installs that Skyrim, Fallout 3, 4 and NV along with Oblivion are in the above location on W10.

You can move and then some variation of Symlink. Some steam games won't accept it reliably

Or copy folder, delete original through steam, reinstall game at your copied folder. Steam may recognize the game and validate files instead of downloading

And there is the backup feature: https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=8794-yphv-2033

Oh right, the easy way!

Just call me "old school".

Is anyone just leaving the Steam folder where it is in program files?

I always put my Steam installation in a 'Games' folder (C:\Games\Steam).

Steam also lets you have multiple game folder locations. I have Steam installed on my SSD (C:) along with some of my games. I also have a second Steam library on my HDD for older games that don't really need to be taking up space on my SSD.

Just go to Steam>Settings>Downloads, and under Content Libraries, click Steam Library Folders. In the pop-up, click Add Library Folder>New Folder, and give it a name and location.

I think my best option is to simply uninstall steam completely and reinstall it in another location. However I have a couple concerns about this as well. First of all, will I lose all of my achievements or will they all come back when I log back in? Also will I need to redirect Nexus Mod Manager to tell it to go to the new file location? And if so how do I go about doing this. Sorry for the (possibly) painfully dumb questions but as I've said I'm a novice at best. I can work around a computer, install mods, etc., etc., but I like to be sure that everything is set up where it's supposed to be. This forum is usually the best place to get good, relatively quick answers.

Nope. They are stored on Steams end.

Most likely yes. Admittedly due to my terrible memory I'll have to leave that to someone else. It's been some time since using it.

Because Gopher is talking about Fallout 3 and New Vegas which were made in the days of XP before UAC. The UAC interferes with Mods. Since we are not modding the game yet, Fallout 4 can probably stay right where it is. However if your going to mod the game it is a good idea to move the game to a non UAC controlled directory.

I think the mod manager is smart enough to look in the registry and figure out where Steam is installed, then figure out where the game is. If not, it is a simple matter to point the mod manager to the installed game.

What about Nexus Mod Manager? Will I need to uninstall/re-install that as well or will I need to change anything on it in order to tell it where to put mods?

If all you play are modern games designed for Windows Vista or better, then no, you can leave it in Program Files. If you play older games, like Skyrim or Oblivion or Morrowind or Fallout 3/NV or Dues Ex or whatever, it is best to move the Steam Directory. You can also create a new folder and add that to your Steam Library, but I don't know if that gets around all the UAC issues. Really, it is best to not have Steam in Program Files and it's super easy to move.

Worst is you will have to tell the mod manager where it is installed.