How to host a Sons of the Forest server (2026)

Short answer. You can host a Sons of the Forest server yourself for free: install the dedicated server, Steam app 2465200, with SteamCMD, then open three UDP ports (game 8766, query 27016, BlobSync 9700) and start it. Or rent a Sons of the Forest server and skip the ports and the config files.

Players join from the multiplayer menu, either through the game's dedicated server browser by your server's name or directly by typing <ip>:<game port>. A server holds at most 8 players.

Checked on 5 November 2026 against the newest Steam announcement for the game, Endnight's Unity security update of 3 October 2025 (the last content patch was 15 January 2025).

This guide uses two sources: Endnight Games' own Dedicated Server Guide on Steam, and what we run on every Sons of the Forest server we host. Where the two differ, it says so. To skip to the rental route, go to Option 2.

What you need

• The server software: the Sons of the Forest Dedicated Server, Steam app 2465200. It is free. Endnight's guide installs it with SteamCMD and an anonymous login, no Steam account needed, or from the Tools section of your Steam library.
• A machine that stays on: a spare PC, a home server or a cloud virtual machine. Endnight's guide is written for Windows and starts the server with StartSOTFDedicated.bat. We run the same Windows build on Linux under Wine, which this guide does not cover step by step.
• RAM and CPU: Endnight does not publish server requirements in its guide. Treat any figure you read elsewhere as an estimate.
• Network: a public IPv4 address and three UDP ports reachable from the internet: GamePort 8766, QueryPort 27016 and BlobSyncPort 9700 by default. Endnight says only IPv4 is officially supported.
• Your SteamID: to make yourself server owner, so you get the in-game admin tools.

Option 1: host it yourself

Install the server

1. Install SteamCMD from Valve's page and start it.
2. Download the server with these commands, changing the folder if you like:

   force_install_dir c:\sons-dedicated\
   login anonymous
   app_update 2465200 validate

   Or in one line: steamcmd.exe +force_install_dir "c:/sons-dedicated/" +login anonymous +app_update 2465200 validate +quit
3. Start it once with StartSOTFDedicated.bat. The default files do not exist after the install. The first start creates them, and the self-test then stops the boot with Server configuration doesn't exist. A default one has been created automatically. Edit the files if you need to, then start it again. They are in the user data folder, which by default is C:\Users\<user>\AppData\LocalLow\Endnight\SonsOfTheForestDS. You can choose another folder with -userdatapath "c:/path/to/directory".

Write the settings

1. Edit dedicatedserver.cfg in the user data folder, with the server stopped. It is JSON. Endnight's default file looks like this (shortened):

   {
     "IpAddress": "0.0.0.0",
     "GamePort": 8766,
     "QueryPort": 27016,
     "BlobSyncPort": 9700,
     "ServerName": "Sons Of The Forest Server (dedicated)",
     "MaxPlayers": 8,
     "Password": "",
     "LanOnly": false,
     "SaveSlot": 1,
     "SaveMode": "Continue",
     "GameMode": "Normal",
     "SaveInterval": 600
   }

   MaxPlayers takes 1 to 8. GameMode takes normal, hard, hardsurvival, peaceful, creative or custom, and is only read when a new save is created. SaveMode "new" overwrites the save in that slot at every restart for as long as it stays set, so leave it on "Continue".
2. Make yourself owner. Put your SteamID in ownerswhitelist.txt in the same folder, one ID per line. Owners can open the in-game administration panel from the pause menu, promote players to administrators, and kick or ban guests. Only add people you trust.

Open the ports and start

1. Forward and allow UDP 8766, 27016 and 9700 on your router and on the machine's firewall, or whichever ports you set in the file.
2. Start the server. It runs a self-test first and does not start if a test fails. The failure reason is printed in the console or the logs, for example UDP <PortName> <PortNumber> is closed. or Failed to get public ip from Steam. Fix it and start again.
3. If your router has no NAT loopback (hairpin NAT), the self-test cannot reach your own public address. Endnight lists three ways out: fix the network, set LanOnly to true, which removes the server from the public list, or set SkipNetworkAccessibilityTest to true. Endnight calls the last one expert only, and says a server that fails the test is very likely not reachable anyway.
4. Join it. Open the multiplayer menu and look for your ServerName in the dedicated server browser, or connect directly with <ip>:<game port>. Endnight added direct connection in Patch 09, in August 2023.
5. Update by stopping the server and running the download command again.

One more first-start stop we saw

Endnight's guide does not list this one; we saw it on our own installs, made with SteamCMD. When the server folder has no steam_appid.txt, the self-test writes the file and then stops:

#DSW [Self-Tests] [AppId] steam_appid.txt does not exist. Creating it now.
#DSE [Self-Tests] Please restart the server.

If you see these lines, start the server again. The file the game writes contains 1326470, the Steam app id of the game itself, not the dedicated server's 2465200.

Option 2: host it on PlayNHost

Renting removes the install, the ports, the self-test and the update routine. You still choose a name, a password and your difficulty.

1. Pick the plan. Open the Sons of the Forest server hosting page. There is one plan, VIRGINIA, for 8 players, the most the game allows. Press Customize Plan on it and finish the order. Check the price on that page.
2. Wait for the install. The server appears in the panel. Its Console prints #DSL Dedicated server loaded. when it is ready.
3. Name it and set a password. On the Settings tab, under Game Settings, set the Server Name and the Server Password. The password accepts up to 32 letters, numbers, dots, dashes and underscores; share it only with your players. Then restart.
4. Choose the difficulty before the island is created. In Game Settings, set Difficulty to Normal, Hard, Hard Survival, Peaceful or Custom rules. It is only read when a brand new world is created, so changing it later leaves an existing world as it was.
5. Join. Copy the Server Address from Overview, paste it into the direct connection in the game's multiplayer menu and type the password. See How to join your Sons of the Forest server.
6. Mods (optional). Turn on RedLoader mod loader in Game Settings and upload each mod DLL into the Mods folder. The first start after turning it on rebuilds the game's interop assemblies and takes a couple of minutes. See How to add mods to your Sons of the Forest server.

What the panel does for you:

• The three ports are assigned and passed to the server at every start, and the game's own port test is skipped, so a missing NAT loopback never blocks the start.
• steam_appid.txt is written at install, so the first start boots normally instead of asking for a restart.
• Your server name and save slot are written into dedicatedserver.cfg at every start, so you change them in the panel, not in the file. With Auto Update on (the default; it is under Show advanced in Game Settings), the newest build is downloaded each time the server starts. See How to update your Sons of the Forest server.
• The Save Slot setting chooses which saved world loads, so you can keep a world you uploaded. See How to upload your own Sons of the Forest world.

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 recurring 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 public IP address and you look after the firewall and router. A rented server keeps your home IP out of it.
• Setup: self-hosting means three forwarded ports, a public IPv4 address, a self-test that can fail and JSON files. Renting means a name, a password and a difficulty.
• Control: self-hosting gives you every file. On our servers you change settings in the panel and can still open your files in the Files tab.
• Players: either way the game caps a server at 8.

Ready to skip the setup? See the Sons of the Forest server plans. Already have a server? Start with How to set up your Sons of the Forest server: key settings.