Use Manjaro with Two Drives for dual storage management.
Use Manjaro with Two Drives for dual storage management.
You're planning to transition from Windows 10 to Manjaro KDE, aiming to replace it with Linux. You've set up a 20GB partition for Manjaro but anticipate needing more space after customization. You're curious about syncing your Steam library across both systems—managing the Windows folder and manually locating your secondary drive in Manjaro. You successfully moved the Steam files, but you want to know if updating games is the best approach. You also want to move downloads and documents to a larger drive, similar to Windows, without being able to simply change locations. Your goal is to keep everything functional while learning how to work with your new setup. Seeking guidance on using a dedicated partition for Manjaro alongside Windows and maintaining the same Steam library would be helpful.
You can store downloads in any location you prefer by adjusting your browser settings. Be cautious as it may replace existing game files with Linux versions, so avoid overwriting important data. Set up a separate folder for Linux on your Windows drive.
What about those things? If it functions, I don’t think there’s an issue. I’m not confident about how Steam manages cross-platform titles—perhaps it simply places the Linux version in the same directory as the Windows one without modifying it.
Your folders are configured per application and can be adjusted as required. You may create symlinks using ln -s from the working folder to the actual location or mount it in a directory like /home via fstab. When adding a second partition, auto-mounting it with fstab is advisable. Sharing drives between Windows and Linux isn't recommended, while Linux supports mounting Windows partitions. Certain apps, such as Wine, may behave unpredictably with file systems. You might encounter situations where Windows rejects the drive after mounting in Linux, often due to formatting attempts. If a Linux version of the game exists, Steam tends to overwrite it, assuming corruption. The overwritten content varies by game. Since most Linux ports lag behind Windows counterparts like Proton, I usually manually transfer known Linux games to Proton before setting up the Steam directory.
Sure, that sounds like a solid plan. Setting up a dedicated partition for Steam on your secondary drive could be a great way to organize your gaming setup.