Steam Machine repair guides expose tricky RAM upgrade

Valve’s Steam Machine now has 18 official iFixit repair guides covering maintenance and replacement of parts including the chassis, fan, RAM, SSD and motherboard. The guides also explain how to clean the compact PC.

TechPowerUp, via VideoCardz, reported on the guides. Valve has a similar partnership with iFixit for Steam Deck, for which iFixit sells replacement parts. Replacement parts for Steam Machine are reportedly planned, but are not on sale yet.

The guides also show that some procedures are complicated. Reaching the system RAM takes 49 steps, followed by reversing those steps to reassemble the computer. The article says this could be risky for people who are less experienced with hardware.

Removing the fan is another awkward part of the process. One method involves heating glue with a hair dryer or iFixit’s iOpener heat pad so two attached antennas can be detached. The article notes that this and other fiddly steps could cause damage, including to the Wi-Fi antennas.

Despite those difficulties, the article praises the guides’ diagrams, step-by-step instructions and orientation details. It also says replacement parts are currently limited because Valve needs them for manufacturing, although that situation is expected to change.