How to Make a Rust Server (2026 Setup Guide)

You and four friends want to play Rust without the wipe-day stampede, without some 12-year-old blueprint-raiding your base at 3am, and without a queue just to log in. So you decide to make a Rust server of your own. Good call. A private server is the best way to play this game with people you actually like.

Here's the honest version of how to do it. I've run servers off an old desktop in my closet and I've rented them from hosts, and both work. This walks through the SteamCMD install, the config files that matter, a launch file that actually boots, plugins through Oxide, giving yourself admin, and the port forwarding step that trips up basically everyone. I'll also tell you when to skip all of it and just pay someone $15 a month.

What you actually need first

Before touching anything, know what you're getting into. A Rust dedicated server is hungry. For a small friends-only server with a 3000–3500 world size, you want at least 8GB of RAM free, ideally 16GB. Bigger maps and more players climb fast from there. The Rust server software runs on Windows and Linux; this guide uses Windows because that's what most people have lying around.

The server does not need a copy of Rust. It's a separate free download. You install it, configure it, launch it, and then connect to it from your normal Rust client like any other server.

One thing worth saying up front: the machine running the server should not be the machine you're playing on, at least not if you want a good time. Rust the game and Rust the server both eat RAM and CPU. Running both on a single 16GB PC works for a couple of players but gets rough.

Install SteamCMD

SteamCMD is Valve's command-line tool for downloading dedicated server files. It's how you get the Rust server, and it's how you'll update it every time Facepunch pushes a patch (which is a lot).

1. chevron_rightMake a folder for it, something like C:\steamcmd.
2. chevron_rightDownload SteamCMD from Valve's developer site and unzip steamcmd.exe into that folder.
3. chevron_rightRun steamcmd.exe. First launch, it updates itself. Let it finish until you see the Steam> prompt.

Download the server files

Now pull the Rust server. At the Steam> prompt, type these two lines:

login anonymous
app_update 258550 validate

The Rust dedicated server is Steam app 258550, and you download it anonymously, no account needed. The validate flag checks the files after downloading, which is worth the extra minute. The first download is several gigabytes and takes a while depending on your connection. Go make a coffee.

By default this drops the server into a folder inside your SteamCMD directory. When it's done you'll have RustDedicated.exe sitting in there. That's your server.

Keeping the server updated

To update later, you run those exact same commands again. Every forced wipe, every patch Tuesday, same two lines. I keep them in my start file so it happens automatically, which I'll show you in a second. Rust patches on the first Thursday of each month with a mandatory wipe, and Facepunch pushes smaller updates in between. Run out of date and clients simply won't connect, so updating is not optional.

Set up your server identity and server.cfg

Rust keeps your server's persistent settings in a config file tied to a "server identity." The identity is basically a named folder that holds your save, your bans, your config, everything. Pick a name and stick with it, because changing it later means starting fresh.

Your main config lives at:

server\<your-identity>\cfg\server.cfg

That folder won't exist until the server has booted once with an identity set, so either run it once or create the path by hand. Open server.cfg in a text editor and this is a solid starting point:

server.hostname "My Server Name Here"
server.description "Private server for me and the crew. No rules, don't be a muppet."
server.url "https://your-site-if-you-have-one.com"
server.headerimage "https://link-to-a-512x256-image.png"
server.maxplayers 20
server.tickrate 30
server.saveinterval 300

A few of these earn their keep. saveinterval is how often (in seconds) the server writes to disk, so if it crashes you don't lose an hour of progress. hostname is the name people see in the server browser. The description and header image are what make your server look like someone cares about it.

cfg vs launch args

Notice I'm putting player count and world settings in the launch file instead, not here. You can do it either way. I like keeping the stuff that defines the map in the launch args and the stuff that defines the vibe in server.cfg. For the full list of what you can set, the server commands reference covers every variable.

Write a start.bat to launch it

Double-clicking RustDedicated.exe technically works but gives you no control. Instead, make a start.bat in the same folder as the exe. This is where you set the map, the world, and the important switches.

@echo off
:start
C:\steamcmd\steamcmd.exe +login anonymous +app_update 258550 validate +quit

RustDedicated.exe -batchmode ^
 +server.identity "myserver" ^
 +server.hostname "My Server Name Here" ^
 +server.port 28015 ^
 +server.maxplayers 20 ^
 +server.worldsize 3500 ^
 +server.seed 1337 ^
 +server.saveinterval 300 ^
 +rcon.port 28016 ^
 +rcon.password "CHANGE_THIS_PASSWORD" ^
 +rcon.web 1

echo Server crashed or closed. Restarting in 10 seconds.
timeout /t 10
goto start

What's going on here:

• chevron_rightThe SteamCMD line at the top auto-updates the server every time you launch. Handy after a wipe.
• chevron_rightserver.worldsize sets map size. 3500 is a comfortable small-group map. 4000+ starts feeling empty with only a few players.
• chevron_rightserver.seed decides the actual map layout. Same seed plus same world size equals the same map every time. Change the seed to reroll the map on your next wipe.
• chevron_rightrcon.password is what you'll use to control the server remotely with a tool like RustAdmin. Set a real password. Never leave it blank, and never make it "password."
• chevron_rightThe :start / goto start loop restarts the server automatically if it dies. Rust servers crash sometimes. This saves you from waking up to a dead server.

Save it, run it, and watch the console. First boot generates the map, which can take a few minutes on a bigger world size. When you see it settle into a steady stream of logs, it's up.

Add Oxide/uMod for plugins

Vanilla Rust is great, but the reason most private servers exist is plugins. Oxide (now branded uMod) is the modding framework that makes gather-rate boosts, kits, teleport commands, homes, shops, and a thousand other things possible.

Here's the flow:

1. chevron_rightGrab the latest Oxide/uMod build for Rust from the uMod site. You want the Windows dedicated server package.
2. chevron_rightUnzip it straight into your Rust server root, the folder with RustDedicated.exe. It merges in a RustDedicated_Data folder and adds an oxide folder.
3. chevron_rightStart the server. If Oxide loaded, you'll see it announce itself in the console and you'll now have an oxide/plugins folder.

To install a plugin, you drop its .cs file into oxide/plugins while the server is running, and Oxide compiles and loads it on the fly. No restart needed for most. Configs for each plugin appear in oxide/config after first load, where you tweak settings.

Two warnings. First, Oxide updates lag behind Rust's forced wipes by a few hours to a day. If you update your server the second a patch drops, Oxide might not be ready yet and your plugins won't load. Sometimes waiting a day is smarter than updating immediately. Second, plugins can and do break between updates. Keep your plugin list lean. Every plugin you add is another thing that can bring the server down.

Make yourself admin

Right now nobody owns the server, including you. You fix that with your SteamID64, which is your unique 17-digit Steam number. You can find it by pasting your profile URL into a "SteamID finder" site.

Once you have it, you set yourself as owner. There are two ways.

Through RCON (using RustAdmin connected on port 28016) or in the server console directly, run:

ownerid 76561198000000000 "YourName"

That grants full admin, auth level 2, which is everything: noclip, spawning items, god mode, kick, ban, the lot. The ownerid command is the one you want for yourself. For a trusted friend who should help moderate but not have the keys to the kingdom, use moderatorid instead, which is auth level 1.

moderatorid 76561198000000001 "FriendName"

After adding people, run server.writecfg to save it so it survives a restart. Then the new admin needs to reconnect for it to take effect. Once you're in the game as admin, you unlock the full admin commands set, and the general console commands list is worth bookmarking for everything else.

Port forwarding (don't skip this)

This is the step that breaks for everyone, so pay attention. Your server is running on your PC, but nobody outside your house can reach it until your router lets them through. That's port forwarding.

You need to forward three ports to the local IP of the machine running the server:

Steps:

1. chevron_rightFind your server machine's local IP (run ipconfig in a command prompt, look for the IPv4 address, usually something like 192.168.1.x).
2. chevron_rightLog into your router (typically 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1 in a browser).
3. chevron_rightFind the Port Forwarding section (sometimes under NAT, Virtual Server, or Advanced).
4. chevron_rightAdd a rule forwarding 28015 UDP to your server's local IP. This is the critical one. Get this wrong and nobody connects.
5. chevron_rightAdd 28016 TCP and 8080 TCP the same way if you want remote admin and the web panel.

Set a static local IP for the server machine, or reserve its IP in the router's DHCP settings. Otherwise your PC might grab a new local IP after a reboot and your forwarding rules point at nothing.

How friends actually connect

Now find your public IP (search "what's my IP"). Your friends connect by opening the Rust console with F1 and typing:

client.connect YOUR_PUBLIC_IP:28015

If it doesn't work, it's almost always port forwarding or a firewall. Check Windows Firewall is allowing RustDedicated.exe. Check you forwarded UDP, not TCP, for 28015. That mix-up is the single most common reason a server "won't work."

For the server to appear in the in-game community browser rather than being connect-by-IP only, it needs to be reachable from outside and running long enough for Rust's server list to pick it up. Connecting by IP works instantly either way, so I have friends save it as a favorite and forget about the browser entirely.

Managing wipes

Rust is built around the wipe. Loot, bases, and progress reset regularly, and on a private server you control when. A map wipe clears the world but keeps blueprints; a full wipe (BP wipe) resets everything including learned blueprints.

To wipe the map, stop the server and delete the .map and .sav files inside your identity's save folder, then start it back up and it generates fresh. Change the server.seed in your start.bat at the same time if you want a genuinely new map layout instead of the same one reset. For a full BP wipe, you also clear the player blueprint data, which most admins do by deleting the relevant files or using a plugin that handles wipe scheduling cleanly. Decide a rhythm with your group, weekly or biweekly is common, and stick to it so nobody logs in to a surprise reset.

Self-host vs paid host: the honest take

I've done both, so here's the straight answer. Most people should just rent a host.

Self-hosting is genuinely satisfying. Full control, no monthly fee, and you learn how the thing actually works. But it comes with real costs that aren't money. Your home upload bandwidth gets chewed up while people play. Your electricity bill ticks up if the machine runs 24/7. Your PC is tied up. And you're exposing your home IP address to everyone who connects, which matters more than people think, because Rust servers get DDoSed and now that's your home internet going down.

A paid host solves the annoying parts. They handle DDoS protection, they give you a clean control panel to install Oxide and edit configs with a few clicks, the server runs 24/7 without your PC being on, and your home IP stays private. For a small server you're looking at roughly $10–20 a month depending on player slots and location. Pick a host with a datacenter near your players, because ping is king in Rust.

When does self-hosting actually win? If you've got a spare machine, decent upload bandwidth, and you genuinely want to tinker and learn, do it. It's a great project. It's also fine for a short-lived server you spin up for a weekend with friends and then shut down.

But if you just want a stable private server that's up when your friends want to play and doesn't put your home network on the line, pay for a host. The $15 a month buys you not thinking about any of this. I run my long-term servers on rented boxes and self-host only when I'm messing around with plugin development. That split has served me well.