Anyone who’s spent hours grinding ARK with a friend group knows how frustrating public servers can be. You deal with constant lag, unfair admin bans, mod lists you don’t care about, and resets that wipe all your hard-earned tames and bases. If you want full control over your play experience, learning how 2 make a online ark server is one of the best moves you can make as a fan of the game. This guide skips the overly technical jargon and walks you through every step, from prepping your hardware to tweaking settings that fit exactly what your group wants out of the game.
Pre-Requisites You Need Before You Start Setup
You don’t need a fancy high-end rig to run a small ARK server for 10 or fewer players, but you do need to meet a few basic requirements to avoid constant crashes and lag. If you don’t want to run the server on your home PC, you can also use a cheap dedicated server host, which takes most of the hardware stress off your own device. Before you dive into setup, make sure you have all of the following:
- Minimum 8GB of RAM for a vanilla server with up to 10 players, 16GB if you plan to run modded content or host more than 15 people
- 10GB of free storage space (20GB if you plan to add mods) – ARK’s base files are large, and mod packs can easily double the required storage over time
- Stable upload speed of at least 10Mbps – each connected player uses roughly 1Mbps of upload speed, so plan for more if you have a larger group
- A valid, legal copy of ARK: Survival Evolved on the platform you’re using to host the server
- Admin access to your home network if you’re self-hosting, so you can adjust port forwarding settings
If you’re on the fence about self-hosting vs using a third-party host, weigh the pros and cons first. Self-hosting is free, but it means your PC has to be on any time someone wants to play, and you’ll be responsible for all security and troubleshooting. Third-party hosts cost a few dollars a month, but they handle backups, updates, and network security for you, so you don’t have to worry about technical issues ruining play sessions. For most casual groups with less than 10 players, self-hosting works perfectly fine as long as you meet the base hardware requirements.
Step-by-Step Walkthrough to How 2 Make a Online ARK Server
Once you have all your pre-requisites sorted, the actual setup process takes less than 30 minutes for most users. We’re covering the SteamCMD setup method here, since it’s the most reliable and works for both vanilla and modded servers. First, download SteamCMD from the official Steam developer site, and extract the files to a dedicated folder on your hard drive specifically for your ARK server files. Don’t put it in your regular Steam folder, as that can cause conflicts with your personal game files.
Next, run SteamCMD and log in with your Steam account, or use the anonymous login option if you don’t want to use your personal account. Enter the command to download the latest ARK dedicated server files, and wait for the download to complete – this can take 10 to 20 minutes depending on your internet speed. Once the files are downloaded, navigate to the server configuration folder, and open the GameUserSettings.ini file with a text editor like Notepad. This is where you’ll set basic rules like server name, maximum player count, PVP or PVE mode, taming speed multipliers, and more.
Once you’ve adjusted your base settings, you need to set up port forwarding on your home router if you’re self-hosting. The default ports for ARK are 27015 for game traffic, 27020 for query traffic, and 7777 for RCON access if you want to manage the server remotely. Add these ports to your router’s port forwarding list, pointing to the local IP address of the device you’re using to host the server. Always double check your port forwarding settings – most failed server connections happen because these settings are entered incorrectly.
Finally, run the server executable file to launch your server, and test connecting to it from your own ARK game first. Ask a friend outside your home network to try connecting too, to make sure your port forwarding is working correctly. If they can’t connect, double check your firewall settings to make sure ARK server traffic isn’t being blocked. You can also use free online port checking tools to confirm your ports are open and accessible to outside connections.
Key Customizations to Make Your Server Stand Out for Players
The best part of running your own ARK server is that you can tweak every single setting to match exactly what your play group enjoys. You don’t have to stick to the default slow taming speeds or harsh death penalties if you don’t want to. For casual groups, most server owners bump taming speed by 2x to 5x, and increase resource gather rates so players don’t have to spend hours grinding for basic materials just to build a small base. You can also adjust experience gain rates, baby dinosaur maturation speeds, and even disable specific mechanics like flying creature nerfs if that’s what your group prefers.
If you want to add mods, you can easily add them through the Steam Workshop. Popular mod options include new creature packs, quality of life improvements like automated storage, and total conversion mods that turn the entire game into a completely different experience. Cross-play support is another popular customization if your group plays on a mix of PC, Xbox, and PlayStation – just make sure you enable that setting in your config file before launching the server, and note that some mods don’t work with console cross-play.
You can also add custom rules like no offline raiding, protected starter bases for new players, and scheduled events like weekend taming bonuses or boss fights for all players to join. Many small servers build really tight communities because the admin can adjust rules based on what the player base asks for, which is something you’ll never get on a large public server. Even small touches like a custom welcome message for new players can make your server feel way more welcoming than random public lobbies.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Running Your ARK Server
Even if you follow all the setup steps perfectly, it’s easy to run into small issues that ruin the play experience for you and your players. The biggest mistake new server owners make is forgetting to back up their server files regularly. If your hard drive crashes or a mod update corrupts your save, you could lose months of progress for everyone on the server. Regular automatic backups are non-negotiable, even if you’re using a third-party host that claims to handle backups for you – save an extra copy to a cloud drive once a week just to be safe.
Another common mistake is adding too many mods at once. Mods can conflict with each other, cause lag, or break completely when the main game gets an update. Start with 3 to 5 core mods that your group actually wants, and add more one at a time, testing after each addition to make sure nothing breaks. Don’t download mods from untrusted sources, either – stick to the official Steam Workshop to avoid malware or corrupted files that could break your server or compromise your device.
Don’t overpromise features you can’t deliver, either. If you’re self-hosting on an old PC, don’t advertise that you can host 30 players with 100 mods, because the server will just crash constantly. Be upfront about your server’s limits, and communicate with your player base if you need to take the server down for maintenance or updates. You don’t have to be a perfect admin, but being transparent goes a long way to keeping players happy. If you notice consistent lag during peak play times, consider upgrading your RAM or switching to a dedicated host before players get frustrated and leave for other servers.
At the end of the day, running your own ARK server is all about getting the exact play experience you want, without the annoyances of public servers. Whether you’re hosting for 2 close friends or building a larger community of 50+ players, the process to how 2 make a online ark server is far simpler than most people assume. Start small, test as you go, and adjust your settings and mods based on what you and your players enjoy most. Before you know it, you’ll have a server that feels tailor-made for the exact kind of ARK fun you want to have.