How to set up an ARK server from scratch

What you need first

Get these in order before deploying:

• An active ARK plan on Fatality Servers. See our ARK hosting plans if you haven't signed up yet.
• A Steam copy of ARK for each player — the server is separate from the game client, but clients still need the game to connect.
• Enough RAM — ARK is notoriously memory-hungry. For ASA, plan 16 GB minimum for a small PvE map, 24-32 GB for a populated 70-slot server, 48+ GB if you're running a cluster of multiple maps on one box. ASE is lighter but still wants 12+ GB.
• A basic SFTP client (FileZilla, WinSCP) — you'll edit GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini directly. The panel's file manager works too.
• A decision on which map to run first — The Island is the canonical starter; Scorched Earth / Aberration / Extinction / Ragnarok / The Center all need their own map identifier in the launch line.

ASE vs ASA — which one am I setting up?

The two games share most concepts but are separate products with separate server binaries. Quick reference:

Thing	ARK: Survival Evolved (ASE)	ARK: Survival Ascended (ASA)
Steam App ID (server)	376030	2430930
Default game port (UDP)	7777	7777
Default query port (UDP)	27015	27015
Default RCON port (TCP)	32330	27020
Mods	Steam Workshop	CurseForge (Overwolf)
Typical RAM per map	12-16 GB	16-24 GB
Crossplay	PC-only	PC + Xbox + PS5 (optional)

This guide covers both — where they differ, the ASA instructions come first and any ASE-specific notes are called out inline. Our 1-click template asks you which one you want on first deploy.

Deploy the server (1-click)

Our ARK template runs SteamCMD to pull the selected server binary (ASA App ID 2430930 or ASE App ID 376030), generates the default config files, sets up RCON, and opens the UDP game/query ports on your plan's IP.

1. Pick the ARK template at checkout

   On the ARK hosting page, pick a plan sized for your slot count and map count. Pick the location closest to your playerbase — ARK is UDP-based and meaningfully sensitive to latency for PvP and boss fights.

2. Choose ASA or ASE on first boot

   The template wizard asks which game you're running. Pick one. Switching later wipes the world — make the call up front.

3. Wait for SteamCMD to finish

   The panel triggers SteamCMD to download the server files. ASA is ~20 GB, ASE is ~14 GB. First install takes 5-15 minutes depending on source speed. When the console shows the map name loading and the server binding to port 7777, you're up.

4. Confirm the server is listening

   Console should show something like:

   [2026.04.17-12:34:56] Log file open, 04/17/26 12:34:56
   LogShooterGameMode: NotifyPlayerJoinedOwningTeam ...
   Setting breakpad minidump AppID = 2430930
   Server: "My ARK Server" has successfully started!
   Full Server update will be performed in 86400 seconds.

   Master-server registration takes another 1-3 minutes — your server will show in the unofficial list after that.

Where the config files live

ARK uses two config files, both living under the same directory tree:

• GameUserSettings.ini — the file you'll edit most. Server name, rates, passwords, slot count, PvP/PvE, difficulty.
• Game.ini — advanced overrides. Engram points, per-resource harvest multipliers, custom loot tables, taming food values.

Paths differ slightly between the two games:

• ASA on Linux: ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/ (yes, "WindowsServer" even on Linux — that's the engine's folder name, not the host OS)
• ASA on Windows: ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/
• ASE on Linux: ShooterGame/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/
• ASE on Windows: ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/

Launch parameters (? and - flags)

ARK is unusual: some settings must go on the launch command line, not in the INI files. There are two flavors:

• Question-mark options — appended to the map URL, separated by ?. Example: TheIsland_WP?listen?Port=7777?QueryPort=27015
• Dash options — standard CLI flags. Example: -server -log -EnableIdlePlayerKick

Our panel exposes these as editable fields in the Startup tab — you don't need to touch the raw command line unless you want to. A typical ASA launch line looks like this:

ArkAscendedServer.exe TheIsland_WP?listen
  ?SessionName="My ARK Server"
  ?Port=7777
  ?QueryPort=27015
  ?RCONEnabled=True
  ?RCONPort=27020
  ?ServerAdminPassword=change-me
  ?MaxPlayers=70
  -server -log -NoBattlEye
  -mods=12345,67890

Most common flags worth knowing about:

• ?listen — required. Tells the server to listen for connections.
• ?SessionName — the name in the server browser. Must be in quotes if it contains spaces.
• ?MaxPlayers — slot count. Match your plan.
• ?ServerPassword — password players need to join (leave off for public).
• ?ServerAdminPassword — required for admin commands and RCON.
• -server / -log — server mode + verbose logging. Always include both.
• -NoBattlEye — disables anti-cheat. Fine for private/PvE servers, some modded servers require it.
• -mods=id1,id2 — comma-separated mod IDs (ASE: Workshop IDs, ASA: CurseForge project IDs).
• -ClusterId=mycluster — groups this map into a cluster (see cluster section below).
• -crossplay / -epiconly (ASA only) — toggle console/Epic crossplay.

Core GameUserSettings.ini settings

Open GameUserSettings.ini. It's a normal INI file split into sections like [ServerSettings], [SessionSettings], and [/Script/Engine.GameSession]. The values that actually matter for most servers:

[ServerSettings]
ServerPassword=
ServerAdminPassword=change-me-to-something-strong
SpectatorPassword=
DifficultyOffset=1.0
OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0

XPMultiplier=1.0
TamingSpeedMultiplier=1.0
HarvestAmountMultiplier=1.0
HarvestHealthMultiplier=1.0
ResourcesRespawnPeriodMultiplier=1.0
DayCycleSpeedScale=1.0
DayTimeSpeedScale=1.0
NightTimeSpeedScale=1.0

MatingIntervalMultiplier=1.0
EggHatchSpeedMultiplier=1.0
BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier=1.0
BabyImprintingStatScaleMultiplier=1.0
BabyCuddleIntervalMultiplier=1.0

DinoDamageMultiplier=1.0
TamedDinoDamageMultiplier=1.0
PlayerDamageMultiplier=1.0
StructureDamageMultiplier=1.0

PlayerCharacterWaterDrainMultiplier=1.0
PlayerCharacterFoodDrainMultiplier=1.0
DinoCharacterFoodDrainMultiplier=1.0

AllowThirdPersonPlayer=True
ShowMapPlayerLocation=True
ServerPVE=False
ServerHardcore=False
ServerCrosshair=True
GlobalVoiceChat=False
ProximityChat=False
NoTributeDownloads=False
PreventDownloadSurvivors=False
PreventDownloadItems=False
PreventDownloadDinos=False

[SessionSettings]
SessionName=My ARK Server

[/Script/Engine.GameSession]
MaxPlayers=70

What each group controls:

• Passwords — ServerPassword makes the server private, ServerAdminPassword unlocks admin commands + RCON, SpectatorPassword enables spectator mode.
• Difficulty — OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0 is what you want for max-level wild dinos (150). Without it, levels cap much lower.
• Rates — XPMultiplier, TamingSpeedMultiplier, HarvestAmountMultiplier are the three most-changed values. 2-5x is the standard "boosted" range; 10x+ starts to trivialise progression.
• Breeding — the five *Multiplier values under breeding are all reductions when higher (faster mating, faster hatching, faster maturation). BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier=10.0 turns a 3-day rex into a 7-hour rex.
• Damage — four global damage scalars. Keep them at 1.0 unless you want an arcade feel.
• PvE toggle — ServerPVE=True disables player-vs-player combat and structure damage from other tribes.
• Transfer toggles — if you're not clustering, leave NoTributeDownloads=False so players can use obelisks normally. If you don't want cross-server transfers on a standalone server, set the three PreventDownload* flags to True.

Advanced tuning in Game.ini

Game.ini is where you do the deeper overrides — per-resource harvest amounts, per-level engram point awards, custom max-level curves, loot drop replacements. It's blank by default. Everything goes under one section header:

[/Script/ShooterGame.ShooterGameMode]

; --- Max player level + engram points per level ---
LevelExperienceRampOverrides=(ExperiencePointsForLevel[0]=5,ExperiencePointsForLevel[1]=15, ... ExperiencePointsForLevel[104]=785000)
OverrideMaxExperiencePointsPlayer=785000
OverridePlayerLevelEngramPoints=8
OverridePlayerLevelEngramPoints=8
; (one line per level — 105 lines for a 105-level cap)

; --- Per-resource harvest multipliers ---
HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers=(ClassName="PrimalItemResource_Wood_C",Multiplier=2.0)
HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers=(ClassName="PrimalItemResource_Stone_C",Multiplier=2.0)
HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers=(ClassName="PrimalItemResource_Metal_C",Multiplier=3.0)

; --- Taming food values ---
bDisableDinoTaming=False
bPvEDisableFriendlyFire=False
bDisableFriendlyFire=False
bAutoPvETimer=False
bIncreasePvPRespawnInterval=True
IncreasePvPRespawnIntervalCheckPeriod=300
IncreasePvPRespawnIntervalMultiplier=2.0
IncreasePvPRespawnIntervalBaseAmount=60

; --- Structure limits ---
StructureResistanceMultiplier=1.0
StructureDamageRepairCooldown=180

The two sections most admins actually care about:

• Level curves — LevelExperienceRampOverrides and OverridePlayerLevelEngramPoints set the max player level and how many engram points each level awards. Very fiddly to write by hand — use an online generator (search "ark level generator") to paste in values for 105, 135, or 180-level caps.
• Per-resource rates — HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers lets you boost only metal without boosting wood/stone. Useful when the global HarvestAmountMultiplier bucket is too blunt.

Admin password & RCON

RCON lets you send admin commands from outside the game — broadcast, kick, save, shutdown, dino wipe.

Enable RCON in GameUserSettings.ini

[ServerSettings]
RCONEnabled=True
RCONPort=27020
ServerAdminPassword=your-strong-admin-password

Or equivalently in the launch line: ?RCONEnabled=True?RCONPort=27020?ServerAdminPassword=your-strong-admin-password. For ASE the default port is 32330.

Connect with an RCON client

ARK uses the standard Source RCON protocol. Popular clients:

• mcrcon — minimal CLI tool, great for scripts: github.com/Tiiffi/mcrcon
• ARK Server Manager (Windows) — full GUI with RCON built in: arkservermanager.freeforums.net
• ark-rcon (Node.js) — for writing Discord bots that proxy RCON

Connect command (mcrcon):

mcrcon -H your-server-ip -P 27020 -p "your-admin-password" -t

Admin commands you'll actually use

Broadcast <message>               — Yellow banner to all players
ServerChat <message>              — Send as [SERVER] chat
SaveWorld                          — Force a world save
DoExit                             — Immediate shutdown
DestroyWildDinos                   — Wipe & respawn all wild dinos
KickPlayer <EOS-ID>                — Boot a player (temporary)
BanPlayer <EOS-ID>                 — Ban permanently
ListPlayers                        — List online players
GetGameLog                         — Dump the in-game log buffer
SetTimeOfDay 06:00                 — Jump to a specific time
GiveExpToPlayer <PlayerID> <amt> 0 1  — Grant XP
EnableCheats <password>            — In-game only: unlock cheat commands

Installing mods

Mod loading is the single biggest workflow difference between ASE and ASA.

ASE — Steam Workshop mods

ASE mods live on the Steam Workshop. SteamCMD downloads them automatically when you add their IDs to the launch line.

1. Find the Workshop ID

   On the mod's Steam Workshop page, the URL ends with a number (e.g. ?id=731604991 for Structures Plus). That number is the mod ID.

2. Add IDs to your launch line

   Append ?GameModIds=731604991,889745138 to your ?-style options, or -automanagedmods -mods=731604991,889745138 to your dash-style flags. Our panel has a dedicated Mods field under Startup — paste the IDs there.

3. Restart — SteamCMD downloads the mods

   First boot after adding mods takes longer (SteamCMD fetches each .mod file). The server logs a Load Package ... Success line per successful mod.

ASA — CurseForge mods

ASA switched to CurseForge (via Overwolf) — Steam Workshop isn't used. Our template ships with CurseForge CLI pre-configured.

1. Find the CurseForge project ID

   On the mod page at curseforge.com/ark-survival-ascended, look at the URL or the mod's "Project ID" field on the right sidebar.

2. Add IDs to your launch line

   ASA uses: -mods=ProjectId1,ProjectId2,ProjectId3. Paste into the Mods field under Startup.

3. Restart — CurseForge CLI pulls the mods

   First boot downloads each mod's .pak files into ShooterGame/Binaries/Win64/ShooterGame/Mods/. Look for Mods loaded successfully in the log.

Mod load order matters

The order you list mods in -mods= is the load order. Put stack mods and UI replacements first, map mods (if any) near the end, and content mods (new dinos, new structures) in between. A wrong order usually manifests as "mod X loaded but its recipes/engrams aren't showing".

Linking maps into a cluster

A cluster is a group of servers that share player data — transfer a dino from The Island to Scorched Earth, character + inventory follow. This is how you run a multi-map community.

1. Provision each map as its own server

   Each cluster node is a separate server instance. Our panel lets you spawn siblings under a single subscription — one click in the plan view adds The Center next to your Island. Each uses a unique port pair (7777/27015, 7778/27016, and so on).

2. Give every node the same Cluster ID

   Add these flags to each server's launch line:

   -ClusterId=mycommunity
   -ClusterDirOverride=/home/container/ark-cluster
   -NoTransferFromFiltering

   Point -ClusterDirOverride at a shared directory that all cluster nodes can read and write. On a single-VPS multi-instance setup this is just a folder on disk. Across multiple machines, it needs to be a shared NFS/SMB mount — open a support ticket and we'll wire it up for you.

3. Allow cross-server downloads

   In each server's GameUserSettings.ini:

   [ServerSettings]
   NoTributeDownloads=False
   PreventDownloadSurvivors=False
   PreventDownloadItems=False
   PreventDownloadDinos=False
   MinimumDinoReuploadInterval=0
   CrossARKAllowForeignDinoDownloads=True

   Restart all nodes. In-game, players use any obelisk or supply crate → Transmit Ark Data → the other maps in the cluster appear in the travel list.

Connect and test

1. Launch ARK on your PC

   From the main menu, click Join ARK.

2. Filter to Unofficial

   Set the session filter to Unofficial + your region, uncheck "Show Official", and type your server name in the search box. Refresh — your server appears within 1-3 minutes of first boot.

3. Or use direct connect

   If the master-list is slow, bring down the console with the tilde key from the main menu and run:

   open YOUR-SERVER-IP:7777

   (Port is the game port, not the query port.)

4. Elevate yourself as admin

   In-game, press Tab to open the console, type:

   EnableCheats <your-admin-password>

   No visible response = success. Now commands like GiveItemNum, Fly, DestroyMyTarget work for your player.

Common errors and fixes

Server doesn't show in the browser

• Wait 3-5 minutes — ARK's master-list indexing is slow, especially after a cold boot
• Make sure the query port (default 27015) is open, not just the game port
• Search with SessionName exactly; partial matches sometimes miss on the unofficial list
• Use direct connect (open IP:7777) to confirm the server itself is reachable

"Connection timeout" when joining

• UDP port 7777 blocked somewhere — check that your panel's firewall is green
• Player's router has strict NAT — ask them to enable UPnP or try a different network
• Mod mismatch — player has an outdated or missing mod. Have them re-subscribe / let the auto-download finish.

All my settings reverted on restart

Three common causes:

• You edited DefaultGameUserSettings.ini instead of Saved/Config/{Platform}/GameUserSettings.ini
• You edited the right file but a launch-line ? option is overriding it (launch line wins)
• You restarted with -ClearWipedConfig or similar reset flag still lingering in the command line

Check the Startup tab's final assembled command line — the panel shows exactly what gets run. Remove anything unexpected.

Server crashes after a few hours / out-of-memory

ARK (especially ASA) has well-documented memory leaks. Mitigations:

• Schedule a daily restart (panel → Scheduled Tasks → Restart at 06:00)
• Upgrade RAM if crashes happen under 12 hours — 16 GB is the floor for ASA, not the recommended
• Trim your mod list — individual buggy mods often leak memory faster than the base game
• Update regularly — Wildcard ships leak fixes in most patches

Mods aren't loading

• ASE: check ShooterGame/Content/Mods/<id>/ exists and has files — if not, SteamCMD failed to download. Try adding -automanagedmods to force retry on next boot.
• ASA: check ShooterGame/Binaries/Win64/ShooterGame/Mods/. Missing = CurseForge CLI couldn't auth; open a ticket.
• Both: if the mod is in the folder but not loading, check the log for LoadPackage errors — mod may be broken on current game version.

"Unknown PalItem" / missing dino / missing engram after a mod change

You removed a mod that players had items or tames from. Those objects get orphaned and throw errors. Options:

• Re-add the mod, have players dispose of the items, then remove it again on next restart
• Rollback to a snapshot from before the mod was removed
• Accept the errors — they're cosmetic log spam; affected items quietly disappear

Cluster transfers fail silently

• Both servers must have the exact same -ClusterId string
• -ClusterDirOverride must point to a path that both server processes can read AND write — check permissions
• NoTributeDownloads=False must be set on both the source and destination map
• If the destination map shows "no download slots available", the player has too many items/dinos on the source obelisk — they need to collect first

World save corrupted

Rollback from the panel's backup tab. All managed ARK plans ship with daily auto-snapshots + 30-day retention; manual snapshots are unlimited. If the latest snapshot is too old, open a ticket — our team can often repair the .ark save directly by rolling back just the corrupted tribe or base.

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Stuck on something specific? Email support with your server IP, the last 100 lines of console, and your GameUserSettings.ini — we'll usually have an answer within the hour. For broader ARK questions, see the FAQ's Games section.