Enabling Steam Family Sharing allows authorized family members (or friends) to play games from your Steam library on their own computers, even when you are not using the library yourself. Based on common practices and information found, the process involves physically accessing the computer where you want to enable the sharing.
Here is how you can enable Family Sharing using your account on another person's computer, drawing from common methods described in online communities like Reddit:
Steps to Authorize Another Computer for Steam Family Sharing
To authorize another computer and specific accounts on that computer to access your game library, follow these steps precisely:
- Go to their computer: You need to be physically present at the computer where you wish to enable Family Sharing.
- Log into your Steam account: On their computer, open the Steam client and log in using your Steam username and password. This links your library to that specific machine.
- Navigate to Settings: Once logged in, click on "Steam" in the top-left corner of the client window, then select "Settings" (or "Preferences" on macOS).
- Access Family Settings: In the Settings window, click on the "Family" tab from the left-hand menu.
- Authorize the computer and accounts:
- Check the box that says "Authorize Library Sharing on this computer".
- Below that, you will see a list of Steam accounts that have logged into this computer. Check the box next to the account(s) that you wish to authorize to play games from your library.
- Confirm Changes: Click "OK" or "Apply" to save the settings. Steam may require you to restart the client.
- Log out: For security and privacy, log out of your Steam account on their computer. The authorized user(s) on that machine can now access your shared games from their own accounts.
Once authorized, the other user can log into their own Steam account on that computer and will see your shared games listed in their library. They can then install and play them, subject to the limitations of Family Sharing (e.g., your library cannot be used by multiple people simultaneously).
This process establishes the connection between your game library and the specific computer and user accounts you've authorized.
What Happens After Enabling?
- The authorized user will see your games in their library list, marked with a special icon indicating they are shared.
- They can download and play eligible games from your library.
- They will earn their own achievements and save their own game progress in their account.
- If you start playing a game from your library, the authorized user playing a game from the same library on another computer will receive a notification and have a few minutes to purchase the game or quit.
This method provides a convenient way for households or close friends to share access to a digital game collection.
