Which version of Wine does this guide install?

The guide installs the latest version using the winehq-staging package with sudo apt install --install-recommends winehq-staging.

Dedicated Server: Wine Compatibility Layer Setup on Linux

Q: Which additional packages are recommended for Wine with a dedicated game server?

cabextract, winbind, screen, and xvfb. Install them with sudo apt install cabextract winbind screen xvfb.

Learn how to set up Wine on Linux to run Windows game servers smoothly on Ubuntu and similar systems → Find out more

10 November 20262 min read0 Views0 helpful

Introduction

Wine is an open-source compatibility layer for Linux that allows software originally developed for Windows to run on Linux systems. This is especially important for dedicated game servers that only offer Windows server files, and is often a prerequisite for our other Linux dedicated game server guides. In this guide, we'll show you how to install Wine on your Linux server for the first time. We use Ubuntu as an example, but the process is very similar on other distributions.

Dedicated Server: Wine Compatibility Layer Setup on Linux

Before you begin

First, connect to your Dedicated Server via SSH. If you need help, check out our SSH initial access guide.

Install Wine

Start the installation by making sure the /etc/apt/keyrings/ directory exists, as Wine requires it.

Code

sudo mkdir -pm755 /etc/apt/keyrings

Next, download the Wine GPG key and save it in this directory so the package's authenticity can be verified.

Code

sudo wget -O /etc/apt/keyrings/winehq-archive.key https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/winehq.key

You also need to save the WineHQ sources list. Use this ready-made command:

Code

sudo wget -NP /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ https://dl.winehq.org/wine-builds/$(lsb_release -is | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')/dists/$(lsb_release -cs)/winehq-$(lsb_release -cs).sources

Run an update to refresh your package sources and apply the changes.

Code

sudo apt update

Now you can start the main step and install the latest version of Wine. This may take a while.

Code

sudo apt install --install-recommends winehq-staging

Finally, install a few additional packages to help Wine work optimally with your dedicated game server:

Code

sudo apt install cabextract winbind screen xvfb

Conclusion

You've successfully set up the Wine compatibility layer, which lets you run Windows programs on your Linux server. With this important prerequisite in place, you can now install dedicated game servers, even if they were originally built for Windows.

We also recommend checking out the other guides in this section, which show you how to install specific games via SteamCMD and, where needed, Wine for Windows-based dedicated server files.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Wine is an open-source compatibility layer for Linux that lets you run software originally developed for Windows. It's important for dedicated game servers that only offer Windows server files.

Other Linux dedicated game server guides may require it when installing games via SteamCMD and, where needed, using Wine to run Windows-based dedicated server files.

cabextract, winbind, screen, and xvfb. Install them with sudo apt install cabextract winbind screen xvfb.

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Dedicated Server: Wine Compatibility Layer Setup on Linux

Introduction

Before you begin

Install Wine

Conclusion

Frequently asked questions

Software

Before you begin

Install Wine

Conclusion

Game Server

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