How to Host a Vintage Story Dedicated Server

Vintage Story's deep survival mechanics are best enjoyed in a persistent multiplayer environment. This guide covers the installation of the specialized Vintage Story dedicated server software on Windows and Linux.

Requirements

• Runtime: .NET 7.0 (Desktop Runtime or ASP.NET Core Runtime).
• RAM: 4GB for vanilla, 8GB+ for heavily modded worlds.
• Storage: SSD highly recommended for chunk generation speed.

Installation (Windows)

1. Download Server Files

Log in to the Vintage Story downloads page (requires game purchase). Download the "VsServer" package (not the full game client).

2. Install .NET 7

Ensure you have the .NET 7.0 Runtime installed. Without it, the server will crash instantly on launch.

3. Launch

Extract the files and run VintagestoryServer.exe. A console window will appear and begin generating the world.

Installation (Linux)

Vintage Story runs natively on Linux using the dotnet runtime.

# Install Dotnet 7 (Ubuntu example)
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y dotnet-sdk-7.0

# Download VS Server (Check version!)
wget https://cdn.vintagestory.at/gamefiles/vs_server_linux-x64_1.18.8.tar.gz

# Extract and Run
tar -xzf vs_server_linux*.tar.gz
dotnet VintagestoryServer.dll

Port Forwarding

To allow players to connect, forward the following port on your router:

• Port: 42420
• Protocol: TCP and UDP (Dual protocol is required for v1.18+)

Next Steps

Once your server is running, proceed to our Optimization Guide to configure RAM limits, view distance, and admin permissions.

No time for Linux terminals? Rent a Vintage Story server and start playing in minutes.