What Is Steamworks Common Redistributables?

Recently gamers have seen Steamworks Common Redistributables appearing in their Steam library. Learn what it’s and if you can get rid of it! Gaming on Windows is different from gaming on any other platform; when you’re gaming on Windows, your game needs to optimize its settings for fitting that particular PC.

Steamworks Common Redistributables:

Contents

Numerous files are downloaded and installed to assist the game in running smoothly without any issues.

What Are Steamworks Common Redistributables?

Games need certain components that have to be installed on the PC to run, such as Microsoft Visual C++, DirectX, .NET, and so on. Furthermore, numerous games need such components for successfully running on the PC. Not so long ago, while installing different games, users had to run installers for such components (or redistributables) each time they downloaded and installed the new game.

Now, as you can see, this created duplicacy and appended extra work for both the users and the developers. For example, each game developer had to comprise installers for all such redistributables in the games, and while installing several games, users had to run such installers every time.

However, now with Steamworks Common Redistributables, all the shared and significant redistributables will be installed whenever the game needing them is installed for the first time. Hence, the Steamworks Common Redistributables are nothing but a lot of one-time-install tools that are needed by different games to run correctly.

The install scripts for such redistributables are developed and maintained by Valve, which updates them frequently. Steam games and apps can opt into different common redistributables, so the user does not have to install them over and over again. The Steamworks Common Redistributables are accessible for both x32 and x64 PCs and comprise the following programs:

Microsoft Visual C++
DirectX 9
XNA
.NET Framework
PhysX
OpenAL

How Does It Really Work?

Before Steamworks Common Redistributables came about, you’re being asked to install the redistributables, let’s say DirectX, every time you installed a different game that needed DirectX for running. If you installed three diverse games that needed DirectX, you might even have finished up with three same DirectX files on the PC.

But now, when you download one game through Steam that needs the common redistributables, all such files will get downloaded at once. So the next time you download any game that needs the same redistributables, they will not be downloaded again.

Your new game will easily know that you’ve already installed the required redistributables files and would not ask for them to be installed over again.

It really saves disk space, CPU usage, internet data, as well as time. Note that you do not have to be anxious about updating or otherwise tinkering with your Steamworks Common Redistributables files.

Steam automatically updates and optimizes them while also saving disk space. The common redistributables folder ought not to be removed. It has files that are important for running games, and without such files, the games could cease to open or end up crashing.

Should I Delete Steamworks Common Redistributables?

Simple Answer: No, don’t remove the Steamworks Common Redistributables.

Without such files, all your downloaded games would crash during the game startup. If anything, common redistributables save time and space when you download any game. When you download a different game, your game will glance at the accessible common redistributables files and discover what it has to integrate with your game files to get it to work.

Deleting such common redistributables files could trigger issues down the line. In the majority of situations, even after you remove the common redistributables files, your game can still download them on your Steam in the background so that it can really work.

So, in essence, you cannot permanently remove the common redistributables files from the PC; unless, of course, you are no longer involved in gaming. Steam has made certain that they optimize different common redistributables files and any following updates for all the games on Windows PCs. You would not need to be anxious about space or updating such files manually.

How Can You Hide Steamworks Common Redistributables?

We admit that seeing such common redistributables folder can be a little frustrating. At first, Steam used to hide this folder, and it’d work very well and update in the background. After the recent update, however, they began showing this folder, and a lot of people weren’t amused.

However, there’s a workaround for hiding this folder so that you do not see it in the Steam library. Below is an easy way for you to hide this Steamworks Common Redistributables folder from the Steam Library. Follow these simple steps:

First of all, navigate to the Library Tab.

After that, right-click on the Steamworks Common Redistributables option.
Then, click on Manage > click on the Hide this game option.

If for some reason, you decide you desire to see it again, you can locate the folder under Library > go to Hidden.

How Can You Make Use Of Steamworks Common Redistributables If You Are A Developer?

If you are a developer and desire to opt into some common redistributables, follow the below steps:

First of all, launch the Steamworks App Admin panel
Then, navigate to the Installation tab > choose Redistributables.
After that, simply check the checkboxes for the redistributables that the app or game needs and publish the changes.

Conclusion:

That is it about what Steamworks Common Redistributables are and their use on the PC. If you’re a Steam user, then you’ll absolutely locate this folder in your Steam library. At first, Steam used to hide this folder from your library section. But now, with the new updates, Steam began showing the same on your library section.

Soon after seeing it for the very first time, many Steam users began searching online for what Steamworks Common Redistributables really is, and we thought about providing you some information regarding the same. Simply, it’s a package that has things such as graphics tools, DirectX, .NET Framework, and PhysX, etc.