How to host a Colony Survival server (2026)

Short answer. You can host a Colony Survival server yourself for free: install the dedicated server, Steam app 748090, with SteamCMD and an anonymous login, then start colonyserver.x86_64 in headless mode with a world name, a server name, a player cap and a game port. Or rent a Colony Survival server and skip the install and the networking.

Since version 0.17 the developers say servers connect to the server browser automatically, with no port forwarding needed. Players find your server by its name in the game's server browser.

Checked on 5 November 2026 against version 0.18.0.9, the newest version the developers had announced on Steam.

This guide uses the developers' Steam announcements and the setup our panel installs on every Colony Survival server. To go straight to the rental route, see Option 2.

What you need

• The server software: "Colony Survival Dedicated Server", Steam app 748090. It is a separate download from the game itself (app 366090) and installs with an anonymous Steam login, so no Steam account is needed to download it.
• A machine that stays on: a spare PC, a home server or a cloud virtual machine. This guide uses 64-bit Linux, which is what we run. We have not tested a Windows server.
• RAM and CPU: the developers do not publish server requirements, so treat any figure you read elsewhere as an estimate.
• A world name, a server name and a player cap: all three are passed on the command line.
• Network: a game port of your choice. In the 0.17 announcement the developers say servers reach the server browser without port forwarding.
• The game: every player needs Colony Survival on Steam.

Option 1: host it yourself

These steps are for Debian or Ubuntu. The install command, the start command and the file paths are the ones our servers use.

Install the server

1. Install the library SteamCMD needs.

   sudo apt-get update
   sudo apt-get install lib32gcc-s1 wget

2. Create a user for the server and switch to it.

   sudo useradd -m -s /bin/bash -U colony
   sudo su - colony

3. Install SteamCMD and let it update itself once.

   mkdir -p ~/steamcmd ~/server
   cd ~/steamcmd
   wget https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/client/installer/steamcmd_linux.tar.gz
   tar -xf steamcmd_linux.tar.gz
   ./steamcmd.sh +quit

4. Download the server.

   ~/steamcmd/steamcmd.sh +force_install_dir /home/colony/server +login anonymous +app_update 748090 validate +quit

   In our own installs, SteamCMD sometimes failed to download and still reported success. Check that steamapps/appmanifest_748090.acf exists in the server folder, and run the command again if it does not.
5. Copy the Steam client libraries into ~/.steam, as our install does:

   mkdir -p ~/.steam/sdk32 ~/.steam/sdk64
   cp ~/steamcmd/linux32/steamclient.so ~/.steam/sdk32/
   cp ~/steamcmd/linux64/steamclient.so ~/.steam/sdk64/

Start it and join

1. Start the server from the server folder:

   cd ~/server
   chmod +x colonyserver.x86_64
   ./colonyserver.x86_64 -batchmode -nographics +server.world "MyColony" +server.networktype SteamOnline +server.name "My Colony Server" +server.maxplayers 10 +server.gameport 27004 +server.ip 0.0.0.0 +server.steamport 27005

   This is the command our servers run, with our values replaced by yours. Our panel counts the server as started when the log prints Starting networking type. The first start creates the world. Run it under a service manager such as systemd so it restarts after a crash.
2. If players cannot connect, check that the machine's firewall lets the game port through. The port number is the +server.gameport value. The developers say port forwarding is not needed since 0.17, so treat this as a fallback.
3. Join it. In Colony Survival, look for your server by its name in the server browser.
4. Update by stopping the server and running the download command again. Do this whenever the game updates.

Where the world is saved

The world is a folder named after +server.world inside gamedata/savegames. A different world name starts a different colony, so you can keep several side by side. Mods go in gamedata/mods, one folder per mod with its own modInfo.json.

Turning a mod on

This is what we found setting up our own servers, and the trap our install script exists for. Putting a mod in gamedata/mods is not enough: a mod is switched on per world, in gamedata/savegames/<world>/worldconfig.json, in an array called ModConfigEntries that the server writes empty and does not fill in. Each entry must match the name inside that mod's modInfo.json, not the folder name, and a typo leaves the mod installed and silently off. The world file also only exists after the server has created the world, so start once, stop, then edit.

Option 2: host it on PlayNHost

Renting removes the install, the ports and the update routine. You still choose a server name, a world name and your mods.

1. Pick a plan. Open the Colony Survival server hosting page and compare the plans: BOW (10 players), CROSSBOW (16) and MUSKET (24) at the time of writing. Press Create Server (Customize Plan on MUSKET) and finish the order. Prices change, so check them on that page.
2. Wait for the install. The server appears in the panel. Its Console prints Starting networking type when it has started.
3. Name it. Open the Settings page and set Server name and World name (each up to 32 characters, no double quotes or backslashes), then restart. A new world name starts a new colony and leaves the old one on disk.
4. Find your colony. It lives under Files in gamedata/savegames, in a folder named after the world.
5. Add mods. The file manager does not upload folders, so zip each mod folder on your computer, open gamedata/mods under Files, press Upload, then choose Unzip file from the zip's menu so the mod ends up as its own folder with its modInfo.json inside. Restart. A world that does not exist yet gets its mods switched on at the restart after its first start.
6. Invite your players. Give them your server name to search for in the server browser, and see How to connect to your Colony Survival server.

What the panel does for you:

• The game port is assigned to your server and passed on the start command with the Steam port, so there is nothing to open or forward.
• With Auto update on (the default, under Show advanced on the Settings page), the server checks Steam for the newest server build each time it starts, so a restart is an update.
• Mods are switched on for you once the world exists. At every start a script reads the real name out of each mod's own modInfo.json and writes the ModConfigEntries list to match, so a mod in gamedata/mods is on after a restart and a deleted one is off. A mod whose name holds anything other than letters, digits, spaces, dots, dashes and underscores is skipped, and the Console says so. Only that list is replaced, and the rest of worldconfig.json is left as it was.
• The install tries SteamCMD up to three times and stops with an error if the files did not arrive, instead of leaving an empty server that fails at first boot.

See also How to change your Colony Survival server name, password and world and Colony Survival server world or colonists are missing.

Self-hosting or renting: an honest comparison

• Cost: the server software is free. Self-hosting costs power, hardware and bandwidth, or a cloud machine. Renting is a fee set by the plan and the billing period you choose.
• Uptime: a home server is only up while your PC, power and internet are. A rented server runs on the host's hardware.
• Exposure: at home, players connect to your own internet connection and you look after the firewall and router. A rented server keeps your home connection out of it.
• Setup: self-hosting needs the command line, SteamCMD and a service manager. Renting needs a server name and a world name.
• Mods: self-hosting means editing worldconfig.json yourself. On our servers a script makes that edit for you at each restart.
• Control: self-hosting gives you every file and every start option. On our servers you change the names in the panel and still have the Files tab for the rest.

Ready to skip the setup? See the Colony Survival server plans. Already have a server? Start with How to connect to your Colony Survival server.