Running Steam from USB 3.0 (Transfer Downloads)

[Crazyblox]

Hello, first off, i would like to clear that USB 3.0 does go UP TO 5Gbps, and the 3.0 drive im looking at is 500gb 7200rpm, so nothing bad yet.

In my new build that i've recently planned, i've chosen a 120gb SSD for my boot drive, for OS and programs i use alot (Sony vegas and what not), with my current 80gb hdd (Bad i know) it can only fit a few games onto the poor disk.

Another reason why i want to use the USB 3.0 drive is this: Portability.
I have two different internet connections at home, and my PC is on the rubbish one upstairs with a limit of 20gb per month.

The downstairs internet is unlimited though, so i thought what i could do to download new titles is grab the usb 3.0 drive and put it on my netbook just for the downloads.

I cant move my PC downstairs, due to lack of space in the living room.

Is this a good idea yes/no? tell me your thoughts and why and how i could improve this? Thanks.

[Derp-Master]

Can I just ask, how is the internet upstars/downstairs different from each other?

And yes, my brother and I run Steam games off of his External HDD all the time.

[caveman26]

buy an external hdd caddy $10-15 then buy a 1tb hdd, put the 1tb into your pc and then put the 80gb hdd into the caddy

80gb for steam downloads to transfer to your desktop should be more than enough, move a usb drive all the time upstairs and downstairs you could drop it .
in the uk i picked up a 64gb usb 3 flash drive for £20 should do the same for your needs and has no moving parts so can take a drop or knock

[Crazyblox]

The upstairs internet is 10MB per second until you hit the bandwidth limit, of which it hits 256 kilobits per second (Around 30KB) this is really harsh on being an online gamer, and the bills are high, we cant change the provider due to our area we live in.

The downstairs internet is unlimited ADSL. Faster than the Upstairs when it exceeds its limit. Really capable of intense online gaming.

If i download the games downstairs, then take it up to my PC upstairs, it doesnt affect the upstairs bandwidth apart from the occasional updates.

That's a detailed difference IMO.

[ElijahChondo43]

Originally Posted by Crazyblox

The upstairs internet is 10MB per second until you hit the bandwidth limit, of which it hits 256 kilobits per second (Around 30KB) this is really harsh on being an online gamer, and the bills are high, we cant change the provider due to our area we live in.

The downstairs internet is unlimited ADSL. Faster than the Upstairs when it exceeds its limit. Really capable of intense online gaming.

If i download the games downstairs, then take it up to my PC upstairs, it doesnt affect the upstairs bandwidth apart from the occasional updates.

That's a detailed difference IMO.

Sorry, some of us U.S. guys from the west don't really understand how you can have 2 different connections It's all the same for us, down and up stairs/basement etc. etc.

USB 3.0 is a fine choice, make sure both your Netbook and your PC has USB 3.0 ports also

You can also choose E-SATA if USB 3.0 doesn't become an option(and if you have E-SATA on a Netbook and PC )

[MalcomGTX]

I don't know how you'd download directly and steam recognize on both machines.

You may have to download then run a Steam Backup, then Restore onto the upstairs machine.

When I didn't have internet at home for a month (ISP putting in new lines) I did this with a machine at a friends house.



Would some Powerline Adapters help with your downstairs vs upstairs internet issue?

I assume you aren't using wireless due to signal issues, though I'm not sure if there are European variants to these plugs.

They work like magic in my office.

[YahooElite]

Originally Posted by ElijahChondo43

Sorry, some of us U.S. guys from the west don't really understand how you can have 2 different connections It's all the same for us, down and up stairs/basement etc. etc.

USB 3.0 is a fine choice, make sure both your Netbook and your PC has USB 3.0 ports also

You can also choose E-SATA if USB 3.0 doesn't become an option(and if you have E-SATA on a Netbook and PC )

i have 2 different connections as well, Verizon FIOS upstairs which is what i use, and Atlantic Broadband downstairs.

http://www.speedtest.net/result/2087983022.png and Atlantic has half the speed of this, but crappy upload.

Yeah nowa days you can have 2 connections in the same house in most cases.

Anyway, OP. you could always look into 16/32GB USB 3.0 Flash Drives as well, reliable and cost effective.

But anyway, yeah you could do that, but i imagine itd be a bit time consuming..