How to make a Rust server: Step-by-step guide for hosting your own games

Playing Rust with friends can be extremely fun despite the trouble of setting up a personal server.

There are multiple ways for players to get their own server in the game. Since its breakout as a popular game on streaming platforms, Rust has witnessed a massive surge in players.

While many are perfectly satisfied with spending time on public servers, some want to create their own servers. Although there are multiple ways to do so, the one that players can execute for free requires a little bit of work.

Those looking to avoid the trouble can invest in a third-party server-hosting service such as:

• GTX Gaming
• Citadel Servers
• Host Havoc

Investing in a third-party server-hosting service is a lot easier for players. However, it will require them to shell out a few bucks for the service.

Here's a detailed guide to build and host servers for those who do not want to invest in a service.

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Creating a server in Rust

To continue with the process, players need to ensure that their PC meets the minimum requirements for hosting a server, which are:

• Operating System: 64-bit Windows 7, 8.1, 10
• RAM: 4 GB (8 GB highly recommended on standalone server devices)
• Disk Space: 6 GB

Additionally, they will also need to download and install the SteamCMD, a command prompt application dedicated to Steam, here.

Once the download is complete, here are the steps to follow:

• Players need to create two specific folders, for SteamCMD and the server, respectively.
• Players need to extract the download SteamCMD contents into the respective folder and execute the steamcmd.exe file.
• Upon launching, steamcmd will update to the latest version. This might take a while, depending on the user's internet speed.

After steamcmd has finished updating, players will need to execute two commands, one after the other. Their exact order is:

1. login anonymous
2. force_install_dir "(drive location of the folder created for the server, e.g., c:\newrustserver)"

Once these two commands have been executed, players have the chance to activate beta updates for their server. Additionally, they can choose to validate their new server without activating beta updates. These commands are:

• app_update 258550 -beta staging: for the latest updates from Rust's Beta Staging
• app_update 258550 -beta prerelease: for all pre-release updates
• app_update 258550 validate: to install server without activating beta updates

After this, the player's server should be installed and ready to modify. Players can find the RustDedicated executable file in the server folder, and they can double click this icon to start their servers.