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Managing a server

Everything about a single game server is on its page: Game servers → the server. Creating the first one is covered in Your first game server.

A customer sees the same page for their servers, minus the admin actions. What co-owners can do is set by the owner on the Access tab, see Users and roles.

Header buttons

  • Start / Stop — the node applies the change within a few seconds.
  • Restart — restarts the game process. Available only while the server runs.
  • More — Open console, Copy ID, Suspend…, Reinstall…, Delete server….

Tabs

Overview — the essentials:

  • Address for connecting players — IP or domain and port;
  • In game — online, name, map, player and bot count, version and response time. The block is there when the game has server polling set up;
  • Connection — all of the server's ports and a short SFTP summary;
  • Latest tasks, Placement (node, its state, location, container), Resources and Details (owner, plan, billing ID).

Console — the server's live output and a command line: say hello, list, stop… A command goes to the game process's stdin and the result appears in the output. ↑/↓ browse the command history.

Files — the file manager and SFTP details, see Files and SFTP.

Maps and mods — installing from the catalog, see Maps and mods.

Resources — live container stats (CPU, memory, disk) every 5 seconds and load charts: a point is added every minute while the server runs. The allocated limits are shown there too: CPU, RAM and disk quota.

Launch — what the container is running with right now: image, command, ports, limits, environment variables — and how that differs from the game's current profile. Secrets aren't shown. A new game version in the catalog isn't applied to existing containers on its own — a container is recreated when the server's settings or plan change.

Backups and Schedule — see Server backups and Schedules.

Databases — MySQL databases for plugins and mods, if a database host is set up for the server.

Tasks — the history of operations: creation, start, stop, restart, backups, add-on installs — and how each ended. The first place to look when something goes wrong.

Settings — settings, owner, plan and dangerous actions (below).

Access — who else the server is open to, see Users and roles.

Server settings

Settings → Server settings → Edit: name, map, password and the game's other settings. An empty field means the default. Settings pinned by the plan can't be changed by the customer; settings with "admin only" access are changed only by an admin. Show secrets reveals passwords (only the owner and admins see them).

After saving, the container is recreated and the server's files aren't touched. A running server restarts briefly; a stopped one gets the new settings on its next start.

Admin settings

On the same Settings tab:

  • Owner → Change — hand the server to another user. The previous owner loses access at once. Backups, files and tasks stay with the server.
  • Plan — Reapply, move to another plan of the game, or pick No plan; see Plans.
  • Billing ID — the service's number in your billing system, e.g. whmcs-1001. The WHMCS module and the HTTP API set it; it's rarely needed by hand.
  • Connection address → Set a domain — your own domain instead of the node's IP. Point the domain's A record at the node's IP. If DNS doesn't point there yet, the panel saves the domain and warns you. Show node address brings the IP back. Clients see the address but can't change the domain — that is up to the hosting.

Suspension

More → Suspend… — e.g. for non-payment. Give a reason; the owner sees it. The container stops, and the owner can't start the server or use the console, files, backups and settings until the suspension is lifted. Schedules don't run. Files and settings are kept.

Unsuspend… returns the server to its previous state: if it was running, it starts. The WHMCS module suspends and unsuspends servers on its own.

Reinstall

More → Reinstall… deletes all of the server's files (maps, configs, saves, plugins) and installs the game again with the current settings. Ports, SFTP access, settings and plan are kept. It can't be undone, so take a backup first.

Deletion

More → Delete server… — the node removes the container and all of the server's data, and the ports are freed. Backups in storage stay.

If the node is offline, deletion continues when it's back. If the node is never coming back (e.g. the machine was retired), an admin can click Forget server…: the record is removed from the panel only, the ports are freed and the server's databases are deleted. The container and files, if left on the machine, have to be removed by hand.

Messages on the server page

  • Downloading the game image — the first start on the node; this can take a few minutes.
  • Installing the game server — the image is downloading the game's files. If the installation was interrupted, start the server and it continues where it left off.
  • The server is taking long to become available — check the Console: the game may have crashed or still be downloading files.
  • The reconciler couldn't bring the server to the desired state — the panel retries with a growing pause. Details are on the Tasks tab. Once you fix the cause, click the action you need again.

Players can't connect to a running server — check the firewall, see Game server ports and Troubleshooting.