How to host a Vintage Story server (2026)

Short answer. You can host a Vintage Story server yourself at no extra cost: log in to the developer's client area with your game account, download the "Linux tar.gz Archive (server only)", run it with the .NET runtime the version needs and open TCP and UDP port 42420. Or rent a Vintage Story server and skip the install and the networking.

Players open Multiplayer in the game, choose Add new server and enter your address. The port is only needed if it is not 42420.

Checked on 5 November 2026 against Vintage Story 1.22.7, the newest stable release on the developer's download feed.

This guide uses three sources: the developer's self-hosting page, the dedicated server guide on the official Vintage Story wiki, and what we run on every Vintage Story server we host. To skip to the rental route, go to Option 2.

What you need

• The server software: the server-only archive of Vintage Story. It is on the developer's download page, which you reach by logging in with your game account, and the developer charges nothing extra for hosting your own server.
• 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.
• The right .NET runtime: the wiki lists .NET 10 for 1.22.0 and later, .NET 8 for 1.21.0 and later, and .NET 7 for older versions.
• RAM and CPU: the developer's self-hosting page gives only a rough, conservative estimate that grows with every player, and says tuning can probably lower it. Our own How much RAM does a Vintage Story server need? covers what to plan for.
• Network: port 42420 over TCP and UDP, reachable from the internet. The wiki says UDP is needed from version 1.20 onward.

Option 1: host it yourself

These steps follow the developer's Linux instructions.

1. Install the helper tools and create a user for the server, then switch to it. The included server.sh script needs pgrep (in the procps package) and screen.

   sudo apt update && sudo apt install procps screen
   sudo useradd vintagestory -m
   sudo su -l vintagestory

2. Download the server archive. On the game's download page (log in with your game account), show all downloads and copy the link of "Linux tar.gz Archive (server only)". The file name follows this pattern:

   wget https://cdn.vintagestory.at/gamefiles/stable/vs_server_linux-x64_1.22.7.tar.gz

3. Extract it.

   mkdir server && tar -C server -xzf vs_server_linux-x64_*.*.*.tar.gz
   chmod +x server/server.sh

4. Set the user and where the world is kept. In server/server.sh, set USERNAME=vintagestory, VSPATH=/home/vintagestory/server and DATAPATH=/home/vintagestory/data. The settings file is data/serverconfig.json in that folder. If you will use mods, add "/home/vintagestory/data/Mods" to ModPaths in it, after the first "Mods" entry, which must stay.
5. Open the port. Allow 42420 over TCP and UDP on the firewall, for example sudo ufw allow 42420/tcp and sudo ufw allow 42420/udp, and forward both on your router.
6. Start it, then let yourself in. Since version 1.20 a dedicated server uses a whitelist by default, so add your own game account name to it and make yourself admin:

   server/server.sh start
   server/server.sh command "/whitelist add yourname"
   server/server.sh command "/op yourname"

   Add each friend the same way, or turn the whitelist off with /serverconfig WhitelistMode off.
7. Set a password if you want one. Run /serverconfig password yourpassword in the console, or set "Password" in serverconfig.json. Config changes take effect when the server is relaunched (server/server.sh restart).
8. Join it. In the game, open Multiplayer, choose Add new server and enter your machine's IP address.

To update, repeat the download with the newer version number. Your world stays in the data folder, apart from the server files. Before a minor version jump (1.22 to 1.23), check that your mods have releases for the new version on the ModDB. If the server crashes from being out of memory on Linux, the developer suggests sudo sysctl -w vm.max_map_count=262144. The wiki marks the ARM64 server as experimental. We have not tested Windows servers, so this guide does not cover them.

Option 2: host it on PlayNHost

Renting removes the install, the .NET runtime, the ports and the patch updates. You still choose your world, your mods and who can play.

1. Pick a plan. Open the Vintage Story server hosting page and compare the plans: COMMONER (4 players) and WATCHMAKER (8) at the time of writing. Press Create Server on COMMONER or Customize Plan on WATCHMAKER 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 Dedicated Server now running on Port when it is ready.
3. Choose your world before the first start. On the Settings page you can set World play style (the same five play styles as the game's create-world screen, listed by their codes, from surviveandbuild to creativebuilding), World type, World seed, World size, World height, Temperature, Rainfall, Spawn radius and Seasons. If you leave the seed empty, a random one is drawn.
4. Add mods if you want them. Vintage Story mods come from the official ModDB, not Steam. Install them from the Mods tab on the Modding page, which offers only releases built for your game version, or name them in ModDB mods to have them fetched at the next reinstall, then see How to add mods to your Vintage Story server.
5. Make yourself admin and invite players. Type /op yourname in the Console once you have joined, then follow How to join your Vintage Story server to give friends the address.

What the panel does for you:

• Your port is assigned and open from the start, and the panel writes it and your player limit into serverconfig.json at every start.
• The whitelist starts off, once. Since version 1.20 the game's own default is a whitelist that is on for a dedicated server, which turns away everyone, the owner included. A new PlayNHost server is switched to whitelist off on its first start, so anyone with the address can join. After that the setting is yours and is never switched again. Turn it on if you want invited players only: How to turn the whitelist on or off on your Vintage Story server.
• Updates stay inside your minor version. With Auto-update server on (the default, under Show advanced on the Settings page) and Release version left on latest, each start installs the newest patch of the version you run, for example 1.22.6 to 1.22.7, but never 1.22 to 1.23. ModDB mods are released for specific game versions, so we leave a minor jump to you: reinstall when you are ready, with Release version on latest or set to the version you want. Your world and your Mods folder are not touched by the updater.
• World settings only shape a new world. Once a save exists, changing them on the Settings page does not alter it, and the Console says so at the next start.

Self-hosting or renting: an honest comparison

• Cost: the server software comes with your game account at no extra cost. Self-hosting costs power, hardware and bandwidth, or a cloud machine. Renting is a monthly fee set by the plan.
• 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 needs the command line, the correct .NET runtime, TCP and UDP forwarding and your own updates. Renting needs a world choice and your mod list.
• Control: self-hosting gives you every file. On our servers you still reach the files and the live console.

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