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Moving Origin Games from Your C Drive to Your D Drive: A Comprehensive Guide

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So, you’re running out of space on your C drive and want to move your beloved Origin games to the spacious D drive? Smart move! It’s a common problem, especially with today’s games requiring ever-increasing storage. This guide will walk you through the process, ensuring a smooth transition without losing any game progress.

The quickest way to move your Origin games from your C drive to your D drive is to use the built-in feature within the Origin client. Open Origin, navigate to your Game Library, right-click on the game you wish to move, and select “Move Game“. Then, select your D drive (or a specific folder on your D drive) as the destination. Origin will handle the rest, relocating the game files and updating its internal pointers.

Step-by-Step Guide: Relocating Your Origin Games

Here’s a detailed breakdown of the process, covering different scenarios and potential hiccups.

Backup Your Game Saves (Optional but Recommended): Before making any changes, it’s always a good idea to back up your game saves. These are usually located in your Documents folder, often under a subfolder specific to the game publisher (like Electronic Arts for The Sims 4). Copying these folders to a safe location ensures you won’t lose any progress.
Locate Your Origin Game Library: Open the Origin client. On the top menu, navigate to “My Game Library“. This is where all your installed Origin games reside.
Identify the Game to Move: Scroll through your library and find the game you want to relocate to your D drive.
Initiate the Move: Right-click on the game tile (the rectangular image representing the game) and select “Move Game” from the context menu.
Choose the Destination Folder: A dialog box will appear asking you to select the new location for the game. This is where you’ll specify your D drive. It’s often best practice to create a dedicated folder on your D drive for your Origin games, for example, “D:Origin Games“. If you don’t have a folder, create one. Navigate to your D drive, select the newly created folder (or choose to create one right there), and click “Select Folder“.
Let Origin Do Its Thing: Origin will now begin the process of moving the game files from your C drive to your D drive. This can take some time, depending on the size of the game and the speed of your drives. A progress bar will be displayed, indicating the progress of the move. Do not interrupt the process. Closing Origin or shutting down your computer during the move can corrupt the game files.
Verify the Move: Once the move is complete, launch the game to ensure everything is working correctly. If the game launches and runs without any errors, congratulations! You’ve successfully moved your Origin game to your D drive.

Alternate Method: Moving the Entire Origin Games Folder (Advanced Users)

This method involves manually moving the Origin Games folder and then telling Origin about the new location. This is generally not recommended unless you’re comfortable with file management and potential troubleshooting.

Exit the Origin Client: Make sure Origin is completely closed. Check the system tray (the area near the clock) to ensure it’s not running in the background.
Locate the Origin Games Folder: By default, this is located at “C:Program Files (x86)Origin Games“.
Cut and Paste the Folder: Right-click on the “Origin Games” folder, select “Cut“, then navigate to your D drive and paste the folder there. This will physically move all your game files to the new location.
Update the Origin Game Library Location: Open Origin. Go to “Origin > Application Settings“. Select the “Installs & Saves” tab. Under “Game library location“, click “Change folder…” and navigate to the new location of your “Origin Games” folder on the D drive.
Verify Game Installation: Origin might take some time to verify the installation of each game. It might even appear as if the games need to be downloaded again. Don’t panic! Origin is simply checking the files against its database. This process should be much faster than a full download.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

“Invalid Location” Error: This usually means you’re trying to move the game to a location that Origin doesn’t recognize as a valid game library. Ensure you’re moving it to a regular folder on your D drive, not a system folder.
Games Appear to Need Redownloading: As mentioned earlier, this is often just Origin verifying the existing files. Let it complete the process.
Game Fails to Launch After Move: Try repairing the game installation within Origin. Right-click on the game tile and select “Repair“.
Insufficient Disk Space Error: Make sure you have enough free space on both your C drive (temporarily) and your D drive to accommodate the game files during the move.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can I move the entire Origin installation to my D drive?

No, you can’t directly move the Origin program itself from the C drive to the D drive after installation. Origin is deeply integrated with the operating system and relies on specific system paths. You can only move the games. To change the Origin program directory you must unistall Origin and reinstall to your D drive.

2. Will moving games affect my saved progress?

Generally, no. Most games store save data in the “Documents” folder, which is separate from the game installation directory. However, as a precaution, it’s always best to back up your save games before moving them, as mentioned earlier.

3. Can I move multiple games at once?

Unfortunately, Origin doesn’t support moving multiple games simultaneously using the “Move Game” feature. You’ll need to move each game individually.

4. What if the “Move Game” option is grayed out?

This usually indicates that the game files are currently in use, or Origin might have an issue accessing the necessary files. Close any programs that might be using the game files (including Origin itself) and try again. Restarting your computer can also help.

5. How much free space should I have on my D drive before moving games?

You should have at least as much free space as the size of the game you’re moving. It’s always a good idea to have a little extra space for temporary files during the move process.

6. Can I move games to an external hard drive?

Yes, you can move Origin games to an external hard drive. Simply follow the same steps as moving to the D drive, but select your external hard drive as the destination. Be sure to keep in mind that an external hard drive’s speed may impact game performance.

7. Does moving games to a different drive affect game performance?

It can, depending on the speed of the D drive. If your D drive is a faster SSD (Solid State Drive) than your C drive, moving the games to the D drive might actually improve loading times. However, if your D drive is a slower traditional HDD (Hard Disk Drive), you might experience slightly longer loading times.

8. What happens if I unplug my external hard drive while a game is running from it?

This will likely cause the game to crash and potentially corrupt game files. Always exit the game properly before unplugging the external hard drive.

9. Can I share my Origin games with a friend by moving the game files?

While you can technically copy the game files to your friend’s computer, they won’t be able to play the game without a valid Origin account and license. Origin requires users to be logged in to play their games.

10. I have multiple partitions on my hard drive. Can I move games between them?

Yes, you can move Origin games between different partitions on the same hard drive. Treat each partition as a separate drive for the purpose of moving games.

11. What about game mods? Will they still work after moving the game?

If your mods are installed within the game’s installation directory (which is common), they should move along with the game and continue to work. However, some mods might require you to update their paths or reinstall them after the move.

12. My antivirus software is interfering with the game move. What should I do?

Temporarily disable your antivirus software during the game move. Sometimes, antivirus programs can mistakenly flag game files as suspicious and interfere with the process. Remember to re-enable your antivirus software after the move is complete.

13. Can I use this method to move games from other platforms like Steam or Epic Games?

No, this method is specific to Origin games. Other platforms like Steam and Epic Games have their own methods for moving game installations.

14. I’m getting a “Missing DLL” error after moving the game. What does this mean?

A “Missing DLL” error indicates that a required Dynamic Link Library file is missing or corrupted. Try repairing the game installation within Origin. If that doesn’t work, you might need to reinstall the game.

15. Where can I learn more about the educational aspects of games?

You can explore the Games Learning Society website to discover how games can be used for educational purposes and to learn more about the research in this area. Visit GamesLearningSociety.org to learn more.

Moving your Origin games from your C drive to your D drive is a relatively straightforward process. By following these steps and troubleshooting tips, you can free up valuable space on your C drive and enjoy your games without any performance issues. Remember to always back up your data before making any major changes to your system!