How to host a Necesse server (2026)

Short answer. You can host a Necesse server yourself for free: install "Necesse Dedicated Server" (Steam app 1169370) with SteamCMD using an anonymous login, start it with -nogui -world <save name>, and open UDP port 14159. Or rent a Necesse server and skip the port forwarding and manual updates.

Players join from the Multiplayer menu in Necesse by adding your server's public IP address and port, then pressing Join Server.

Checked on 5 November 2026, accurate for game version 1.3.3 (25 August 2026), the newest patch on Steam.

This guide uses the official Necesse Wiki's multiplayer pages, the developer's Steam announcements and what we run on our own Necesse servers. To go straight to the rental route, see Option 2.

What you need

• Operating system: Linux or Windows. The Necesse Wiki covers both: StartServer.bat on Windows and StartServer-nogui.sh on Linux. The official server files page also offers a macOS build and direct downloads without Steam.
• Hardware: neither the official server files page nor the official wiki lists server hardware requirements. For what we see in practice, read How much RAM does a Necesse server need?
• Network: UDP port 14159 by default, open on your firewall and forwarded on your router. You can pick another port.
• Steam account: not needed to download the server. The install uses an anonymous login.
• The game: every player needs Necesse.

The server software is free. You pay for the machine, power and bandwidth, not the software.

Option 1: host it yourself

This works on a spare PC, a home server or a cloud virtual machine.

Linux

1. Install SteamCMD from your distribution or from Valve, and use a normal user, not root.
2. Download the server.

   steamcmd +force_install_dir ~/necesse-server +login anonymous +app_update 1169370 validate +quit

   The Necesse Wiki runs the same app_update 1169370 validate from a script. SteamCMD updates itself on its first run. On our own clean installs, a download issued in that same first run failed with "Missing configuration". If that happens to you, run steamcmd +quit once, then the download again, and check that ~/necesse-server/steamapps/appmanifest_1169370.acf exists.
3. Start the server. The wiki's start script is StartServer-nogui.sh in the server folder. You can also run the server jar yourself:

   cd ~/necesse-server
   ./jre/bin/java -jar Server.jar -nogui -localdir -world MyWorld

   -world <name> lets the server start without asking questions, -nogui runs it in the terminal, and -localdir keeps its config, saves and logs in the folder you start it from (here the game folder) instead of ~/.config/Necesse. Any option you leave out is read from server.cfg.
4. Edit server.cfg. Stop the server first. The file is in the cfg folder: ~/.config/Necesse/cfg by default, or cfg/ in the game folder with -localdir. It holds the defaults for the same settings the start options set, such as the port, the slots and the password.
5. Open the port. Allow UDP 14159 on the machine's firewall (with ufw: sudo ufw allow 14159/udp) and forward UDP 14159 on your router to this machine.
6. Keep it updated. Necesse patches can require servers to update before players can join, so run the SteamCMD command again after each patch.

Windows

1. Install SteamCMD and run steamcmd +force_install_dir C:\necesse-server +login anonymous +app_update 1169370 validate +quit.
2. Double-click StartServer.bat in the server folder. A window asks for the world name, then, if you answer y to custom options, the port, slots, password and more. Type quit there to stop the server.
3. Allow UDP 14159 inbound in Windows Firewall and forward it on your router.

How players join

1. In Necesse, open Multiplayer and press Add Server.
2. Enter the server's public IPv4 address and port, then press Add.
3. Select the server and press Join Server.

Option 2: host it on PlayNHost

Renting removes the firewall, port forwarding and update routine. The port and the config file are set up for you.

1. Pick a plan. Open the Necesse server hosting page and compare the plans (NINJA STAR, BLOOD BOLT and ZEPHYR at the time of writing). Press Create Server on a plan, or Customize Plan where the page offers it, and finish the order.
2. Wait for the install. You get a "server ready" email and the server appears at panel.playnhost.com. On the Console tab, the panel counts the server as running when it prints Type help for list of commands.
3. Open Settings, then Game Settings. Here you set the Save Name (the world the server loads) and the Server Password. Player Slots comes from your plan. Steam Auto Update, under Show advanced, is on by default, and the server then checks Steam for a new build every time it starts.
4. Restart the server and wait for the ready line.
5. Join. Use the server address and port the panel shows for your server, not necessarily 14159, in Multiplayer, Add Server, then Join Server. For a step-by-step version, see How to join your Necesse server.

What our setup does for you

• The keys the panel writes. At every start the panel writes your server's port, Player Slots and Server Password into cfg/server.cfg. Hand edits to those three keys are replaced at the next start, so change them under Game Settings. The file's other settings, such as the world border and the message of the day, have their own editor: in Settings, pick cfg/server.cfg under Config files, so you do not have to edit the file by hand.
• The install retries. In our tests, Steam sometimes answered "Missing configuration" for this app even on a clean run. Our install script tries up to three times and only counts it a success when the app manifest is on disk, instead of trusting SteamCMD's exit code.
• A real console. The Console tab is the game's own console. Type help to list the commands.
• A mods folder from day one. A Necesse dedicated server loads mod .jar files from a mods folder, which a fresh install does not have. We create it, with a short MODS-README.txt beside it. Subscribing on the Steam Workshop only installs a mod in your game, so the server needs the mod's .jar file itself (many modders link a download on the Workshop page): upload it to mods under Files and restart. See How to add mods to your Necesse server.

Self-hosting or renting: an honest comparison

• Cost. Self-hosted: the software is free, and you pay for hardware, power and bandwidth, or a cloud virtual machine. Rented: a monthly fee set by plan. See the current plans.
• Availability. Self-hosted: as reliable as your machine, power and home internet, and it has to stay on when your friends play. Rented: runs on the host's hardware, not your PC.
• Network exposure. Self-hosted: players connect to your public IP, and you look after the firewall and router. Rented: your home IP is not involved.
• Skill needed. Self-hosted: command line, port forwarding and config editing. Very doable, and a good way to learn. Rented: a web panel with form fields.
• Updates. Self-hosted: stop, run SteamCMD again, start. Rented: Steam Auto Update installs a new build when the server starts, so restart after a patch. If players still cannot join afterwards, read Players cannot join your Necesse server after a game update.

Self-hosting suits you if a machine already runs all day and you are comfortable with networking. Renting suits you if you would rather not look after hardware. Ready to play? Compare the Necesse server plans.