[Question] New steam accounts and trade holds

[spock]

I'm new to bot development and steam trading and I have a few questions.

 

What are the limitations of creating a new steam account and trading right away with said account?

 

Is it possible to bypass steams (15 day trade hold, and 15item hold? do I have this correct?)

 

What is a sentry file and how does this affect steam bot trading?

 

Any resources would be greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers.

[Dr. McKay]

Any new Steam account will be unable to trade entirely for 15 days, since you need SG enabled for 15 days in order to trade.

 

A sentry file is how Steam remembers a "device" for Steam Guard. You'll get sent one when you login without one, and you should save it and use it for subsequent logins. node-steam-user does this for you.

 

You can't bypass the 15-day waiting period for Steam Guard. Trade holds (which last for 15 days) can be disabled by enabling the mobile authenticator. Once the mobile authenticator is enabled, after you wait 7 days, trade holds go away. You can wait out the 7 days at the same time as the 15 days.

 

So the quickest way to get a new Steam account tradable is to verify its email and immediately enable the mobile authenticator. Once done, it will be able to trade in 15 days.

[spock]

Much appreciated.

 

Also, is it true I need to pay $5 for my steam wallet?

Edited March 22, 2016 by spock

[Dr. McKay]

Yes, you need to spend $5 in order to remove limitations on the account. This is necessary if you plan to add friends or use the WebAPI (e.g. for trade offers) on the account.