How to Set Up a Sons of the Forest Dedicated Server

Sons of the Forest throws you and up to seven friends onto a cannibal-infested island with nothing but a GPS tracker and a survival instinct. The multiplayer experience is where this game really shines, but relying on one player to host means the server dies when they log off. A dedicated server on a VPS keeps the world running around the clock so anyone in your group can jump in whenever they want.

The dedicated server tool for Sons of the Forest runs on Windows. Unlike many game servers that have Linux builds, Endnight Games only provides a Windows server binary. That means you need a Windows VPS or a Windows machine to host it. The good news is the requirements are modest and the setup is straightforward.

Server Requirements

Sons of the Forest is not a demanding game on the server side. The server handles world state, player positions, enemy AI, and building synchronization. For a group of 2 to 4 players, the load is light. Larger groups of 6 to 8 players increase the AI calculations and network traffic but still stay within reasonable bounds.

2 to 4 players: 2 CPU cores, 4 GB RAM, 15 GB storage. A basic Windows VPS plan handles this without breaking a sweat. Budget around 15 to 20 dollars per month.

5 to 8 players: 4 CPU cores, 8 GB RAM, 20 GB storage. The extra headroom keeps the server smooth when multiple players are building structures and triggering enemy spawns simultaneously. Budget 25 to 40 dollars per month.

NVMe storage is preferred because the server writes save data frequently. Slow disk I/O can cause brief hitches during autosaves, especially as your base grows larger and the world accumulates more player-built structures.

Setting Up on a Windows VPS

Step 1: Connect to Your VPS

Open Remote Desktop Connection on your local computer and connect to your Windows VPS using the IP address and credentials your provider gave you.

mstsc /v:YOUR_VPS_IP

Once connected, you are looking at a standard Windows desktop. Everything from here happens inside this remote session.

Step 2: Install SteamCMD

SteamCMD is Valve's command-line tool for downloading and updating game server files. Download it and extract it to a dedicated folder. Open PowerShell and run:

mkdir C:\SteamCMD
cd C:\SteamCMD
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/client/installer/steamcmd.zip -OutFile steamcmd.zip
Expand-Archive -Path steamcmd.zip -DestinationPath .
.\steamcmd.exe +quit

SteamCMD downloads its own updates on first run. Let it finish before proceeding.

Step 3: Download the Server Files

Use SteamCMD to download the Sons of the Forest dedicated server. The app ID is 2465200. You need to log in with a Steam account that owns the game.

C:\SteamCMD\steamcmd.exe +login YOUR_STEAM_USERNAME +app_update 2465200 validate +quit

The server files download to the steamapps folder inside SteamCMD. The total download is around 3 to 4 GB. Once complete, the server executable lives here:

C:\SteamCMD\steamapps\common\Sons Of The Forest Dedicated Server\SonsOfTheForestDS.exe

Step 4: Configure the Server

Run the server once so it generates default configuration files, then close it. Open the dedicatedserver.cfg file in a text editor. You will find it in the server directory.

{
  "IpAddress": "0.0.0.0",
  "GamePort": 8766,
  "QueryPort": 27016,
  "BlobSyncPort": 9700,
  "ServerName": "Your Server Name Here",
  "MaxPlayers": 8,
  "Password": "your_server_password",
  "AdminPassword": "your_admin_password",
  "SaveSlot": 1,
  "SaveMode": "Continue",
  "GameMode": "Normal"
}

Set IpAddress to 0.0.0.0 so the server listens on all network interfaces. Change ServerName to something your friends can find in the server browser. Set a Password if you want to keep random players out. The AdminPassword gives you access to server management commands in-game.

Step 5: Open Firewall Ports

The server needs three ports open for players to connect. Open PowerShell as administrator and run these commands:

New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "SOTF Game" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 8766 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "SOTF Query" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 27016 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "SOTF Blob" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 9700 -Action Allow

If your VPS provider has an additional network firewall in their control panel, open the same ports there as well. The OS firewall and the provider firewall are separate layers that both need the ports open.

Step 6: Launch the Server

Start the server by running the executable from PowerShell:

cd 'C:\SteamCMD\steamapps\common\Sons Of The Forest Dedicated Server'
.\SonsOfTheForestDS.exe

The server console window shows startup progress. When you see a message indicating the server is ready and listening, players can connect through the in-game server browser or by direct IP.

Step 7: Set Up Auto-Start on Reboot

If your VPS restarts, you want the game server to come back automatically. Create a batch file called start_sotf.bat:

@echo off
cd "C:\SteamCMD\steamapps\common\Sons Of The Forest Dedicated Server"
start SonsOfTheForestDS.exe

Then create a scheduled task to run it at boot:

schtasks /create /tn "SOTF Server" /tr "C:\start_sotf.bat" /sc onstart /ru SYSTEM /rl HIGHEST

Connecting to Your Server

Players connect through the in-game multiplayer menu. They can either search for your server name in the browser or connect directly using your VPS IP address and the game port. Give your friends the IP and password, and they should see the server in their list within a few seconds.

If players cannot find the server in the browser, direct connect using the IP is the most reliable method. Some ISPs and network configurations interfere with the Steam server browser, but direct IP connections bypass that entirely.

Updating the Server

When Endnight Games releases a patch, the server needs to be updated to match the client version. Players running a newer version cannot connect to an older server. Stop the server process first, then run the update:

C:\SteamCMD\steamcmd.exe +login YOUR_STEAM_USERNAME +app_update 2465200 validate +quit

Then restart the server. The update process only downloads changed files, so patches are usually quick. You can create an update-and-restart batch script:

@echo off
echo Stopping server... Close the server window manually first.
timeout /t 15
echo Updating...
C:\SteamCMD\steamcmd.exe +login YOUR_STEAM_USERNAME +app_update 2465200 validate +quit
echo Starting server...
cd "C:\SteamCMD\steamapps\common\Sons Of The Forest Dedicated Server"
start SonsOfTheForestDS.exe
echo Done.

Save Management and Backups

Server saves are stored in the server's application data directory. The save files contain the entire world state including terrain modifications, built structures, inventory contents, and enemy positions. Back these up regularly.

Create a simple backup script. Save this as backup_sotf.bat:

@echo off
set BACKUP_DIR=C:\SOTF_Backups\%date:~-4,4%-%date:~-10,2%-%date:~-7,2%_%time:~0,2%-%time:~3,2%
mkdir "%BACKUP_DIR%"
xcopy /E /I /Y "%LOCALAPPDATA%\Sons Of The Forest\Saves" "%BACKUP_DIR%"
echo Backup complete: %BACKUP_DIR%

Run this manually before major play sessions or set it up as a scheduled task to run every few hours. If something goes wrong you can restore from a backup instead of starting over.

Performance Tuning

Sons of the Forest servers are generally well-optimized, but a few things can cause performance issues as your world ages.

Large bases with many structures: Every wall, floor, log, and decoration is tracked by the server. Massive bases with hundreds of building pieces increase the server's memory usage and the amount of data synchronized to connecting players.

Enemy accumulation: The island spawns enemies based on player activity and game progression. In long-running worlds, the number of active enemies can grow large enough to impact server performance. If you notice increasing lag over time, this is often the cause.

Autosave frequency: The default autosave interval works well for most setups. On slower storage, you might notice a brief stutter during saves. NVMe storage eliminates this entirely.

BlastVPS offers Windows VPS plans with the NVMe storage and network performance that game servers demand. Get your Sons of the Forest server running in minutes with full RDP access to manage everything.

A 2-core, 4 GB plan is the sweet spot for most groups. You get a full Windows environment to manage the server, run updates, and monitor performance, all accessible from anywhere through Remote Desktop.