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04Game guides

Rent and set up an ARK server – guide (Survival Evolved)

How to set up your ARK: Survival Evolved server at Nexthosting – plans, choosing a map, joining, rates in GameUserSettings.ini, Workshop mods and admin commands.

In short

You order a plan for ARK: Survival Evolved, choose the map and player slots in the Startvariablen (startup variables) under Konfiguration → Start and add Workshop mods by their IDs. You set rates such as taming and harvesting in GameUserSettings.ini – while the server is stopped. Players find the server in the session list under “Unofficial”.

The process in four steps

Section titled “The process in four steps”
From purchase to your first game
  1. OrderChoose a plan
  2. Server startsfirst setup takes longer
  3. after payment
  4. Copy the addressIP and port in the panel
  5. Connect in the gameSession list, Unofficial

Plans and prices

Section titled “Plans and prices”

As of October 2026. Current prices: ARK in the shop.

Plan Price per month RAM vCores Storage Backups Databases Ports
Basic €16.99 8 GB 2 40 GB 2 1 4
Advanced €24.99 12 GB 3 60 GB 3 2 4
Premium €29.99 16 GB 4.5 80 GB 4 2 4
Community €37.99 20 GB 6 120 GB 5 3 5
Custom configuration freely configurable free free free – – –

Slots are not limited; you set the maximum (1 to 127) yourself. How many players can play smoothly depends on the map, mods and the number of tamed creatures. ARK is big (around 23 GB), so the first setup takes longer than with small games.

Which plan for ARK?
Small group, few or no modsBasic (8 GB)
More mods and bigger tribesAdvanced (12 GB)
Big map, lots of mods, full stablesPremium (16 GB)
Open server with many tribesCommunity (20 GB)

First steps

Section titled “First steps”
  1. Open the panel (Opening the panel) and wait for the status Läuft (running).
  2. Open Konfiguration → Start in the panel and enter in the startup variables: Karte (map), Sitzungsname (session name), Maximale Spieler (maximum players), passwords (server and admin) and your Mods.
  3. Restart the server. The first time, it downloads the game and mods.
  4. Copy the address and connect.

Maps you can enter: The Island, The Center, Ragnarok, Valguero, Crystal Isles, Fjordur, plus maps from the Scorched Earth, Aberration, Extinction and Genesis (parts 1 and 2) expansions. You will find the exact map name for the field on the ARK page in the shop, for example TheIsland. Only players who own the matching expansion can play expansion maps. Each map saves to its own file (e.g. TheIsland.ark); when you switch maps, the old map stays on disk.

How players join

Section titled “How players join”
  1. Start ARK, choose Join ARK.
  2. Choose the filter Unofficial and search for the session name.
  3. Click the server, enter the password, join.

Players from the Epic Games Store can join if you add the parameter -crossplay in the startup variables.

Setting rates: GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini

Section titled “Setting rates: GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini”

The files are in the folder ShooterGame/Saved/Config/LinuxServer. Open them in the file manager or editor (Files, editor and SFTP).

[ServerSettings]
TamingSpeedMultiplier=3.0
HarvestAmountMultiplier=2.0
XPMultiplier=2.0

In Game.ini, values such as BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier=5.0, EggHatchSpeedMultiplier and MatingIntervalMultiplier go under [/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]. The [ServerSettings] section already exists in GameUserSettings.ini – add the lines there instead of creating it twice. If Game.ini is missing, create it in the same folder. Values are multipliers: 1.0 is the game’s default.

Mods from the Steam Workshop

Section titled “Mods from the Steam Workshop”

Enter the Workshop IDs of the mods in the Mods field of the startup variables, separated by commas, for example 731604991,1404697612. The order is the load order. At startup the server downloads the mods itself and keeps them up to date. You need more RAM with many or large mods. Check compatibility with the map before you stack lots of mods. More on this: Templates, mods and modpacks.

Admin and console

Section titled “Admin and console”

In the panel console (commands go straight to the server):

Command Effect
saveworld saves the world immediately
broadcast Restart in 5 minutes message to everyone
listplayers shows who is online
kickplayer ID kicks a player
destroywilddinos makes wild creatures respawn

In the game you unlock admin commands with the admin password from the startup variables: open the console, enablecheats AdminPassword. If you stop the server in the panel, it saves the world first. Schedules for restarts and backups: Schedules and restarts.

Typical problems

Section titled “Typical problems”
Problem Solution
Server takes a very long time to start Normal on the first start or after updates. Watch the console.
Server not in the list Wait a little, use the “Unofficial” filter, or as a last resort join with open IP:Port
Mods do not load Check IDs and order; enter dependencies (mods that other mods need) first
Settings are reset Do not leave the server running while you change the file
Lag Too many creatures or mods: clean up creatures, more RAM or Boost

Frequently asked questions

Section titled “Frequently asked questions”

How many players fit on the server?

Section titled “How many players fit on the server?”

Adjustable between 1 and 127; what runs smoothly depends on the map, mods and creatures.

Can I switch maps?

Section titled “Can I switch maps?”

Yes: change the map name in the startup variables and restart. Make a backup first (Backups and databases).

Does BattlEye run?

Section titled “Does BattlEye run?”

You switch BattlEye on or off in the startup variables.

Further reading

Section titled “Further reading”