Set up an Enshrouded dedicated server: host it yourself or rentSteamCMD, configuration, port and hardware - and when your own computer is worth it

Published on November 3, 2026

What a dedicated server is

Without a dedicated server, an Enshrouded world runs on the computer of the player who opened it. If they are offline, the world is closed to everyone else. A dedicated server is a separate program that keeps the world available independently of any player - on a computer that keeps running.

Keen Games provides the application Enshrouded Dedicated Server for this, on Steam under app ID 2278520. It costs nothing extra. Officially, Keen only supports Windows; according to the developer, a Linux version is planned for later. Linux servers exist anyway - they run the Windows program through the compatibility layer Wine.

The hardware according to Keen Games

The 16 GB apply to a complete computer with an operating system. According to Keen, the server process itself uses around 4.4 GB when idle and at most about 6 GB with a full server. The server files are around 13 GB; Steam needs the 30 GB of free space to stage updates before they replace the old files. More on how CPU and RAM interact is in Enshrouded server lagging?.

Self-hosting: step by step

1. Install the server files. On a Windows PC with Steam: switch on the Tools filter in your library, install Enshrouded Dedicated Server and open the folder via Properties, Installed Files. On a server without the Steam client, use SteamCMD with an anonymous login:

steamcmd +force_install_dir C:\enshrouded-server +login anonymous +app_update 2278520 validate +quit

Run the same command again after every patch to update. On Linux, SteamCMD only downloads the Windows version if you add +@sSteamCmdForcePlatformType windows before +app_update; it is then started via Wine.

2. Start it once. Run enshrouded_server.exe. On first start, the program creates the configuration file enshrouded_server.json next to itself, plus the folders savegame for the world and logs.

3. Configure. Stop the server, open the file and set the name, player count, difficulty and the passwords of the user groups. What each value means is in Server settings, and how the groups work in User groups and password.

4. Open the port. Since Content Update #2, Enshrouded only uses one port, the queryPort, 15637 over UDP by default. Open this port in the Windows firewall and forward it in your router. Older guides still mention a second gamePort - it no longer exists. Enshrouded only connects via IPv4.

5. Join. In the game, switch on the dedicated server filter under Join and search for the name, or add the server as a Steam favourite - details in Join an Enshrouded server.

What often goes wrong at home

• No public IPv4 address. Many fibre, cable and mobile connections share an IPv4 address with other customers (DS-Lite, CGNAT). Then no port can be opened, and friends can't reach the server - Enshrouded can't fall back to IPv6.
• Too little upload. At around 2 Mbit/⁠s per player, a group of eight needs 16 Mbit/⁠s of upload while the rest of the household streams.
• The computer has to keep running. The server is only reachable while the PC is on. Power, noise and heat run around the clock.
• Server and game on the same PC. Then both share the processor - exactly the resource Enshrouded needs most.
• Updates and backups by hand. Run SteamCMD again after every patch and back up saves yourself.

Host it yourself or rent?

Self-hosting is worth it if a powerful computer runs anyway, the connection has its own IPv4 address and someone in the group enjoys the technology. For everyone else, a rented server is the more convenient route: it runs in the data center, updates automatically and allows all 16 slots in every one of our plans. What that costs is in How much does an Enshrouded server cost?. If you prefer your own root server, the trade-offs are in Game server or VPS?.

Frequently asked questions