Installing Sons of the Forest via SteamCMD

Installing Sons of the Forest via SteamCMD

SteamCMD is Valve's command-line tool for downloading and updating Steam-based dedicated servers without needing a GUI Steam client. It is the standard way to install Sons of the Forest on both Linux and Windows servers, and it supports anonymous login — meaning you do not need to own the game on your server account to run the dedicated server binary.

Step 1: Install SteamCMD

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian):

# Add 32-bit support (required by SteamCMD):
sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
sudo apt-get update

# Install SteamCMD:
sudo apt-get install -y steamcmd

# Or install manually:
mkdir ~/steamcmd && cd ~/steamcmd
curl -sqL "https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/client/installer/steamcmd_linux.tar.gz" | tar zxvf -

Windows:

1. Download steamcmd.zip from Valve
2. Extract to a folder like C:\steamcmd\
3. Run steamcmd.exe once to let it self-update

Step 2: Install the SOTF Dedicated Server

Linux — one-line install:

steamcmd +login anonymous \
  +force_install_dir /home/steam/sotf \
  +app_update 2465200 validate \
  +quit

Windows — one-line install:

C:\steamcmd\steamcmd.exe +login anonymous ^
  +force_install_dir "C:\servers\sotf" ^
  +app_update 2465200 validate ^
  +quit

The download is approximately 12–15 GB. Once complete, the server directory will contain SonsOfTheForestDS.exe (Windows) or SonsOfTheForestDS (Linux).

Step 3: Create an Update Script

Running updates manually is error-prone. Create a reusable script:

Linux (update-sotf.sh):

#!/bin/bash
/usr/games/steamcmd \
  +login anonymous \
  +force_install_dir /home/steam/sotf \
  +app_update 2465200 validate \
  +quit
echo "SOTF server updated successfully."

chmod +x update-sotf.sh

Windows (update-sotf.bat):

@echo off
C:\steamcmd\steamcmd.exe +login anonymous ^
  +force_install_dir "C:\servers\sotf" ^
  +app_update 2465200 validate ^
  +quit
echo Update complete.
pause

Step 4: Validate the Installation

The validate flag in the command checksums all server files and re-downloads any that are missing or corrupted. Always use it when troubleshooting a server that crashes on startup.

Step 5: Keeping the Server Updated

Sons of the Forest releases updates frequently. When a new patch drops:

1. Stop the server gracefully first (systemctl stop sotf.service or RCON /shutdown)
2. Run your update script
3. Start the server again

You can automate this entire sequence with a pre-restart update hook in your systemd service using ExecStartPre:

# In /etc/systemd/system/sotf.service:
[Service]
ExecStartPre=/home/steam/update-sotf.sh
ExecStart=/home/steam/sotf/SonsOfTheForestDS

Troubleshooting SteamCMD Issues

• Error 0x202 / Login failure: SteamCMD's anonymous cap is sometimes hit — wait a few minutes and retry
• Missing 32-bit libraries (Linux): Run sudo apt-get install lib32gcc-s1
• Server binary not found after install: Confirm force_install_dir path is writable and has sufficient disk space
• Validate keeps re-downloading: Check for disk I/O errors — a failing drive can corrupt files faster than SteamCMD can fix them

Professional Hosting

Skip SteamCMD entirely. Host your Sons of the Forest server with Supercraft — server installation and updates are handled automatically from your control panel.