Are the Program Files and Program Files (x86) folders important?

Hi,

I was wondering how important the two mentioned folders are when installing a software. I know most programs suggest being installed to one of them, but it is really necessary? What happens if I choose another folder?

I use the game client Steam for example. It wants to go into C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam

Does it matter if I place it in C:\Another Folder\Steam?

Are there any programs that MUST be installed in either Program Files or Program Files (x86) to work properly?

On my desktop computer I have one SSD disk (C) and one regular hard disk (D). Here I have always installed software to D:\Program Files and never seen any issues with that (note that this Program Files folder was made by me and not by Windows. Those folders are located on the C drive but never used by me).

The reason I'm asking is because I'd like to sync a few folders from a software located in \Program Files\ using Synology Cloud Station. For some reason it does not have access to the Program Files folders on the C drive (but it can access the one on D drive).

Thank you for the quick reply TairikuOkami!

I have to disagree with installing programs to a second HDD instead of the SSD, especially games. The whole reason why I have an SSD is to increase performance. If I am running my games from the slower HDD rather than the SSD, then I am not taking advantage of the full performance increase offered by the SSD. I want all my programs to load faster from the SSD, not just Windows.

I tend to agree, yes, but still my SSD does not have much storage and quickly fills up when I have Steam (or other games) installed on it rather than the HDD.
And regarding the computer related to the topic issue, it only has one HDD, no SSD.