An ARK: Survival Evolved server listens on four ports: the game port players connect to, a peer port right above it, a Steam query port that puts the server in the server lists, and an RCON port for admin tools. On PlayNHost the game, query and RCON ports are assigned to your server and open for you. Players find the server by its Server Name, and the Server Address on the Overview page holds the game port.
Which ports does an ARK: Survival Evolved server use?
| Port | Protocol | Usual default | On your PlayNHost server | Where you see it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game port: players connect here | UDP | 7777 | The Primary port | Server Address on Overview, and Ports & Network |
| Query port: Steam's server browser asks it about your server | UDP | 27015 | A port of its own | A row under All ports |
| RCON port: admin tools connect here | TCP | 27020 | A port of its own | A row under All ports, and the Console line Waiting commands for 127.0.0.1: |
| Peer port: Steam uses it to advertise the server in the in-game list | UDP | The game port + 1 (7778) | No port of its own | Not listed under All ports |
These usual numbers come from the ARK Official Community Wiki's dedicated server page, not from a Studio Wildcard port list. Steam's server queries run over UDP, as Valve documents, and the panel itself talks to your server's RCON port over TCP.
Your server is started with its three port numbers every time: ?Port= gets the game port, ?QueryPort= the query port and ?RCONPort= the RCON port, with RCON switched on. The query and RCON ports are not shown in Game Settings and cannot be changed.
What about the raw UDP port, 7778?
Older guides list a "raw UDP port" at the game port plus one. Studio Wildcard's Community Crunch 228 patch notes (3 July 2020) say: "Disabled bRawSockets as they no longer function with the new game networking code." The community wiki now calls the game port plus one a peer port, "used by Steam P2P protocol for in-game browser advertising". Players never type it, and the panel does not give your server a port of its own for it, so it is not one of the rows under All ports.
Why is my ARK port usually not 7777?
Each PlayNHost server gets its own ports from the machine it runs on, so many servers can share one IP address. 7777, 27015 and 27020 are the numbers for a server you run yourself. Your server's numbers are usually different, so always use the Server Address the panel shows, never a number from a guide for home servers.
Where do I find the address and ports in the panel?
- Open your server in the panel. On the Overview page, find the Server Address row on the server card and click the copy icon next to it. It is the IP and the game port, for example
203.0.113.10:25600. - Click Ports & Network in the left menu and look under All ports. You see three rows. The one with the Primary badge, described as The port players connect to, is the game port.
- To tell the other two apart, open the Console and find the line
Waiting commands for 127.0.0.1:followed by a number. That number is the RCON port. The remaining row is the query port. - To label a row, open the ... menu at the end of it, choose Rename, type a Description such as
RCON, and click Save Changes. The row now shows your description instead of No description.
ARK: Survival Evolved servers have no Play with friends card, so the Server Address row is where you copy the address from.
How do players connect to an ARK: Survival Evolved server on PlayNHost?
Players open the server list in ARK: Survival Evolved, set it to show unofficial servers, search for your Server Name and click Join. They never type the query port or the RCON port in the game. The community wiki adds that Steam's own game server browser can add a server to favorites with the IP and the query port. The full steps are in How to join your ARK: Survival Evolved server.
How do Epic Games players connect?
Turn on Crossplay With Epic Games in Game Settings and restart. The panel then starts the server with -crossplay and with -PublicIPForEpic set to your server's public IP, the option Studio Wildcard added so Epic players know which IP to connect to. You do not type either option yourself. As the setting says, Epic players cannot join a server that runs mods.
Do I need to open ports on my router or firewall?
No. The machine your ARK server runs on accepts connections from the internet on the ports the panel gives to servers, for both TCP and UDP, and your game, query and RCON ports are among them. The panel says so under All ports: Every port accepts TCP and UDP. Your players' home routers let outgoing connections through, so they do not open anything either.
The port forwarding and firewall rules on the community wiki are for a server you run at home. With a hosted server they are not your job.
What does the firewall not allow?
Only the ports listed under All ports reach your server from outside. A tool that listens on a port of its own cannot be reached unless it uses one of them. If your plan includes extra ports, All ports shows Add a port, and the machine picks the number. If the button is not there, your plan includes no extra ports: open a ticket and say what needs one.
Can I change which port is the primary, or remove one?
Keep the game port as Primary, and leave all three rows in place. Make primary in a row's ... menu moves only the game port, while the query and RCON ports stay where they are, so the game would then be started on the same number as one of them.
The menu can also offer Remove port on the query and RCON rows. Do not use it: ARK would still be started on that number, and a removed port goes back to the machine, where another server can get it.
What is the RCON port for on ARK: Survival Evolved?
RCON is ARK's remote console. Its password is your Admin Password from Game Settings: a new server starts with a random one of its own. The panel uses it all the time: the Console sends what you type over RCON from inside your server, Stop saves the world through it, and the Active players card asks it who is on when the query port does not answer. That is why the server only shows Online once the Console prints Waiting commands for 127.0.0.1:.
Outside RCON tools connect with your server's IP, the RCON port and the Admin Password. If the Console ever prints [PlayNHost] The default admin password is never used: this server's is in the file .pnh-ark-admin (Files). Set your own under Settings., the field still held the shared placeholder, so the password that works is the one in the file .pnh-ark-admin under Files. Set your own Admin Password to end that. Admin commands in the game are in How to become admin on your ARK: Survival Evolved server.
Common ARK: Survival Evolved port problems and fixes
My ARK server is not in the server list
The query port is already set up, so there is nothing to open. Wait until the badge says Online, set the list to show unofficial servers, refresh it, and search for your exact Server Name. The community wiki notes that the in-game list can only search so many servers a minute, so finding a server can take a good while, especially for Steam players. More causes are in ARK: Survival Evolved server problems and fixes.
A friend cannot join
- Check that the badge says Online and that the Console shows
Waiting commands for 127.0.0.1:. - Check that the friend's game is the same version as the server, with the same mods.
- An Epic Games player needs Crossplay With Epic Games on, and a server without mods.
- School, work and public networks can block game ports. Ask the player to try another network.
My RCON tool cannot connect
- Use the RCON port from the
Waiting commands for 127.0.0.1:line, not the game port and not the query port. - Use the Admin Password shown in Game Settings. Only if the Console printed the
.pnh-ark-adminline above, use the password in that file instead. - If you changed the Admin Password while the server was running, restart it: the panel gives ARK the password when it starts.
Good to know
- Every setting is listed in ARK: Survival Evolved server settings: every option explained.
- Moving from another host changes the address and ports: How to move your existing server to PlayNHost.
- The Ports & Network page itself is explained in How to find your server's ports and IP address.
