Steam downloads updates at normal speed, but applying the update can take nearly an hour. For example, a roughly 500 MB update finished downloading quickly, then spent almost an hour patching. The game is installed on an older 1 TB Crucial BX500 SATA SSD. During patching, Task Manager reports 100% active time, but only about 1 MB/s read and 5 MB/s write, with average response times reaching around 8,500 ms. Steam reports only about 1.8 MB/s of disk usage. Windows is installed on a separate NVMe drive and the rest of the system is mostly idle. The problem is much worse with some games and updates than others. CrystalDiskInfo reports 97% health, around 5,200 hours of use, about 4.8 TB written, and no reallocated or uncorrectable sectors. The drive is nearly full, with only about 79 GB free out of 931 GB. Could this simply be the BX500 struggling with Steam's patching process, or is the SSD failing? What checks would help determine the cause?
3 Answers
Check the drive's full SMART data with CrystalDiskInfo or Hard Disk Sentinel, and also look for a newer firmware version. The current health reading and lack of reallocated or uncorrectable errors are reassuring, but SMART health alone does not prove the drive will maintain good performance.
The drive being nearly full is a likely contributor. SATA SSDs need free space for garbage collection, wear leveling, and their write cache. With only around 8% free, sustained patching can exhaust the cache and make the drive appear stuck at 100% active time while transferring very little data. Freeing substantially more space and retesting would be a good first step.
This behavior can be typical of older or lower-end SATA SSDs rather than an imminent failure. Steam often has to read, modify, and rewrite large packed game files, so a small update can generate a lot more internal I/O than its download size suggests. Some BX500-era drives lose most of their write performance once the cache is exhausted, especially when nearly full. If SMART remains clean, firmware is current, temperatures are normal, and performance improves after freeing space, the drive is probably just struggling with the workload. Still, keep backups and consider replacing it if the slowdowns continue.
CrystalDiskInfo shows 97% health, about 5,200 hours, 4.8 TB written, and no reallocated or uncorrectable errors. The drive is definitely quite full, with only about 79 GB free, so I’ll clear space and see whether patching improves.