Game servers have become incredibly popular owing to their ability to provide an engaging and interactive multiplayer mode. It allows players to join each other and compete or cooperate more effectively in real time creating a social aspect to gaming.
Moreover, player-hosted game servers provide greater efficiency, reliability and flexibility making it easy for the users to enjoy their games the way they want.
As online gaming’s popularity grows, there has been an increase in the use of reliable and high-quality servers for both casual and competitive gaming. In addition, most of the game servers tend to organise events and tournaments as well as promote interaction among players which significantly contributes to improving and sustaining their gaming experience.
When it comes to setting up a game server, the process may appear daunting especially for beginners. Nonetheless, anyone can build a robust and reliable server to play their favourite games provided they have the right resources and follow the right procedures.
Here is a step-by-step guide to understanding the basics of game servers and how to get yours up and running smoothly.
What Are Game Servers?
A game server refers to a server that is specifically designed for supporting multi-player games. It allows players to interact with each other, manage the game status and offers real-time engagement for all players. Gamers can host the games either on a personal computer, a dedicated server or opt for cloud based hosting services.
There are three main types of servers:
Virtual Private Servers (VPS): a server which acts like a dedicated server but exists as a part of a larger physical server. A VPS strikes a good compromise between performance and cost thanks to the ability to share one server among a number of users while still offering them dedicated resources.
Dedicated Servers: these servers can only host a single game at a time. They are highly effective and dependable but can also be expensive.
Home Servers: this server can be set up on your PC for very small games or personal purposes. However, doing so may affect performance and accessibility.
How To Set Up Your Game Server
With a basic understanding of what a game server is and the different types, let’s take a look at a step-by-step process on how you can set yours up.
Choose Your Game And Server Type
The first step is deciding which game you want to host. Each game has varying requirements and instructions for setup so this needs to be taken into consideration when choosing.
Moreover, keep in mind which server type best suits your requirement based on the anticipated player count and resources that are at your disposal.
There are a few popular games that have dedicated server support such as Minecraft, Valheim and Rust.
Check Hardware Requirements
Your game server will have hardware requirements that are necessary for correct setup and use.
A multi-core processor is required to be able to support multiple connections simultaneously. If you intend on hosting several players, you will need more RAM. For a small server, around 8GB should be suitable. Keep in mind that you will also need enough storage space to cater for backups and game updates.
Another aspect to consider is your Internet connection. This needs to be both stable and high-speed. The ideal upload speed should be at least 5 Mbps.
Install The Server Software
To download the server files of your desired game, you can visit the official website of the game. Once this has been downloaded, you can follow the set-up instructions based on your operating system. For example, if you use Windows, you will need to run an installer.
Configuration Of The Server
Firstly, you will need to find the server configuration files. These are usually in the installation directory. Once you have found the files, you can edit the settings. You can choose your server’s name and number of players based on your preferences. Lastly, you will need to save the settings before closing the file.
Launching The Server
After you have changed your settings and saved them, you can run the server application that was installed. It is recommended to test the connection by connecting to your server from the game to make sure that it works correctly and that the game experience will be a smooth one.
Managing Your Server
It is advisable to regularly back up the server files to avoid the loss of the data. This should be done before continuing with updates or changes to settings.
The server software should be updated as new updates become available. This is to make sure that your version supports the latest security features and is performing optimally.
