Best Game Servers to Host on a VPS: Rust, Valheim, ARK

A VPS for game servers is the sweet spot for survival and sandbox titles like Rust, Valheim, and ARK: you get dedicated CPU and RAM, full root access to install any mod loader, and a public IP you control. That combination is hard to match with shared game panels, which hide the config files and cap what you can tune.

This guide walks through what each of these three games actually needs, how to get a server running, how mods factor in, and how to size your plan by player slots so you are not guessing. The short version: match RAM and single-thread CPU speed to the game, put it on NVMe storage, and keep DDoS protection switched on.

Resource needs for survival and sandbox titles

Survival games are memory-hungry and lean heavily on single-thread CPU performance. They simulate a persistent world, every dropped item, built structure, tamed creature, and loaded chunk, which means the main simulation loop runs on one busy thread. A VPS with a fast Xeon core and generous RAM beats one with many slow cores for this workload.

Here is a realistic starting point for each title. Treat the minimum as "it boots and a few friends can play" and the recommended figure as "a populated server with mods."

ARK is the most demanding of the three. The official ARK community wiki recommends four logical cores and favors single-thread performance over core count, and notes that an empty server consumes roughly 7.5 to 12 GiB of RAM per map depending on which map you load, climbing from there as players build. You can read the full breakdown in the ARK dedicated server setup docs. Rust sits in the middle, comfortable around 12 to 16 GB once a map is generated. Valheim is the friendliest to a small budget and runs well for a handful of players on 4 GB.

Matching the right RAM and CPU tier to your game is worth thinking through before you commit to a plan.

Setting up Rust, Valheim, and ARK servers

All three follow the same broad pattern on a Linux VPS: install SteamCMD, download the dedicated server files, open the right ports, and launch with a startup script. You will SSH in as root and work from the command line. The specifics differ, so here is the shape of each.

Rust

1. Create a non-root user and install dependencies, then install SteamCMD.
2. Download the Rust server with SteamCMD using app ID 258550.
3. Open the default ports: 28015/udp for game traffic and 28016/tcp for RCON.
4. Launch with a startup script that sets your server name, map size, and max players.

Rust regenerates its procedural map on first boot, which is CPU and RAM intensive, so give the first launch a few minutes before expecting a connection.

Valheim

1. Install SteamCMD and pull the Valheim server with app ID 896660.
2. Open ports 2456 to 2458 on UDP.
3. Run the included start_server.sh, setting a server name, world name, and a password of at least five characters.

Valheim is the quickest of the three to get online and the lightest on resources.

ARK: Survival Ascended

1. Install SteamCMD and download the ARK server files.
2. Open the query and game ports (defaults are 7777/udp and 27015/udp).
3. Launch with the map you want, for example TheIsland_WP, and expect a longer first-boot while assets load.

Each map you run is a separate server process with its own memory footprint, which is why ARK's requirements scale so fast when you host a cluster. Once your server is live, set up a backup routine straight away so a crash or a bad mod update does not wipe weeks of progress. Our walkthrough on automated VPS backups shows a simple cron-based approach that works for save files.

Mod and plugin support considerations

Mods are where a VPS earns its keep. Because you have root access and the raw server files, you can install any mod framework the community supports, something shared panels often restrict.

• Rust uses Oxide/uMod or Carbon for plugins. Both hook into the server to add events, shops, and admin tools. Plugins run in-process, so a heavy plugin set increases CPU and RAM use noticeably.
• Valheim supports BepInEx-based mods. Many are client-side, but server-side mods like Valheim Plus change world rules and must match the version your players run.
• ARK loads mods directly from the Steam Workshop through its mod ID list. Mods download on server start, so a large list lengthens boot time and adds to the per-map memory baseline.

The practical rule: every mod you add eats into your headroom. A Rust server that idles at 8 GB can easily cross 16 GB once a full plugin suite and 100 players are active. Plan your RAM around the modded, populated state, not the empty one.

Keeping servers lag-free with NVMe and DDoS protection

Two things quietly make or break a survival server: disk speed and network resilience.

Survival worlds constantly read and write save data, stream chunks, and flush player inventories. On slow SATA storage, those operations stall the simulation thread and show up to players as rubber-banding or stutter during autosaves. NVMe SSDs cut that latency sharply, which keeps the tick rate steady when the world grows. If you want the numbers behind the difference, see our comparison of NVMe vs SATA SSD for VPS.

The second factor is attacks. Public game servers, especially competitive ones, are routine targets for DDoS floods, often launched by a salty player trying to crash a raid. Without filtering, a single attack takes your server offline and your community scatters. Always-on protection absorbs the flood upstream so legitimate players stay connected. Every ByteHosty plan ships with AS203446 SmartMitigate DDoS protection and runs on NVMe storage, so both of these bases are covered without a separate add-on.

Sizing a VPS for game servers by player slots

The cleanest way to size a VPS for game servers is to start from your target player count and the game, then add headroom for mods. These tiers assume a moderately modded server:

A few sizing habits that save money and headaches:

• Buy for peak, not average. Your Friday-night population, not your Tuesday-afternoon one, sets the requirement.
• Leave 20 to 30 percent RAM free. The OS, backups, and sudden player surges all need slack.
• Prefer clock speed to cores. For a single server instance, a faster core carries the simulation better than extra idle ones.
• Scale up, not out, first. One well-sized VPS is simpler to manage than several small ones until you genuinely need a cluster.

If you are weighing a VPS against a full dedicated box for a large community or an ARK cluster, the tipping point usually arrives when a single map's RAM demand outgrows the largest plan you can comfortably afford.

Getting your first server online

Pick the game, match the RAM tier above to your expected peak player count, and make sure the plan uses NVMe storage with DDoS protection built in. Valheim is the gentlest first project if you are new to self-hosting; Rust and ARK reward a larger plan and a little more Linux comfort.

When you are ready, spin up a KVM VPS with root access, follow the setup steps for your game, and set up backups on day one. Browse ByteHosty's KVM VPS plans to find a tier that fits your player count, and you will have friends connecting within the hour.