Which ports does a Space Engineers server need?

Only port 27016 (UDP) for the game. The installer opens it in the Windows Firewall and, if you install from the dashboard, in your VPS's Network Firewall too.

Space Engineers: Set Up a Server on Your VPS

Learn how to install a Space Engineers server with the Game Server Installer on your VPS, connect to it, and manage admins and mods → Find out more

10 November 20264 min read0 Views0 helpful

Introduction

You can host a Space Engineers server on your own VPS with ZapX. You have full control over the system, and with the Game Server Installer, you can set up the server in just a few minutes without a remote desktop connection. This guide explains what you need, how to install the server, and how to manage your Space Engineers server afterward.

Space Engineers: Set Up a Server on Your VPS

Requirements

Requirement	Space Engineers
Operating system	Windows Server 2019 or newer
RAM	at least 4 GB
Free disk space	at least 15 GB on drive C:

Info

Space Engineers is only available for Windows in the Game Server Installer. If your VPS runs Linux, install a Windows Server template via Settings > Reinstallation. This deletes all data on your VPS. For more information, see Server Reinstallation.

Install Space Engineers

Open your VPS in the ZapX dashboard and go to the Tools tab. Select the Game Server Installer.
Under Your server's operating system, select the Windows tile.
Under Choose game, search for Space Engineers and select it.
Under Set up server, configure the Server name and Player slots. You can find the Game port under Advanced settings.
Click Install on this VPS, then click Start installation.

The installer downloads the Space Engineers server via SteamCMD (around 8 GB), sets it up, and starts it. For details on the installation process, see the Game Server Installer guide.

Important

When it starts for the first time, the server creates the Star System world with planets, moons, and asteroids. This takes a few minutes. Players can connect only after it is finished.

You can also install Space Engineers yourself using a command: copy the command shown in the last step, connect via Remote Desktop, and run it in Windows PowerShell as an administrator.

After installation

When the installation is complete, the installer shows your server address under How to connect. If you install the server from the dashboard, the installer does not set a join password. To set one, install using a command; the script will prompt you for it without displaying it. To connect, open Join Game > Servers in the game and search for your server by name. Alternatively, connect directly using your VPS IP address and the port, which is 27016 by default. You can also find the IP address in the Overview of your VPS in the ZapX dashboard.

Your server files are located on the VPS under C:\ZapX-GameServers\space-engineers\:

Folder/file	Contents
`server\DedicatedServer64\`	Space Engineers server files
`data\SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg`	Server settings, admins, and mods
`data\Saves\World\`	Your world and its settings (`Sandbox.sbc`, `Sandbox_config.sbc`)
`data\SpaceEngineersDedicated_*.log`	Server log
`logs\server.log`	Server output

Start, stop, and restart the server

Your Space Engineers server starts automatically when the VPS boots and restarts after a crash. To manage it, connect via Remote Desktop and use the desktop shortcuts:

Space Engineers (space-engineers) - Start
Space Engineers (space-engineers) - Stop
Space Engineers (space-engineers) - Restart

The Stop shortcut saves the world first, then shuts down the server cleanly.

Configuration

Space Engineers settings are stored in data\SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg. For example, you can add admins (Administrators), mods (Mods), and a Steam group as a whitelist (GroupID) there. Stop the server before editing the file, then start it again afterward. For details, see Space Engineers: Become a Server Admin, Space Engineers: Install Mods, and Space Engineers: Whitelist.

The installer rewrites the server name, ports, player slots, and join password every time it runs, including when you update the server. So change these values through the installer: select Space Engineers again, adjust the settings, and click Update. The installer also adds the player slots to your existing world settings (data\Saves\World\Sandbox_config.sbc), because an existing world uses its own settings.

Info

The installer enables the game's Remote API, but only locally on the VPS. It uses the API to save the server cleanly and shut it down when stopping. Do not change the RemoteApi... and RemoteSecurityKey entries.

Update the server

Updates are not installed automatically. To update, open the Game Server Installer again and select Space Engineers. The installer detects the existing installation and displays Update. Alternatively, use the Space Engineers (space-engineers) - Update shortcut on the VPS. Your settings and world will be preserved.

Ports and firewall

Port	Protocol	Use
27016	UDP	Game

The installer opens these ports in the Windows Firewall. If you start the installation from the dashboard, it also opens them in your VPS's Network Firewall. If you installed using a command, check the ports there yourself. Space Engineers needs only this one port. The server uses the Steam port and Remote API internally, so they are intentionally not opened.

Backups

Use the Space Engineers (space-engineers) - Backup shortcut to back up your worlds and SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg as a ZIP file under C:\ZapX-GameServers\_backups\space-engineers\. Use Space Engineers (space-engineers) - Restore to restore a backup.

Your entire VPS is also backed up automatically every day. With an active ZapX Pass, you can restore these backups yourself and create your own backups. For more information, see Daily Backups, Restores, and Restricted Actions.

Summary

Your Space Engineers server is now running on your VPS. To learn how to become an admin, see Space Engineers: Become a Server Admin. If you have questions or need help, our support team is here for you every day! 🙂

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Open your VPS in the ZapX dashboard, go to the Tools tab, and select the Game Server Installer. Choose Windows and Space Engineers, adjust the settings, and click Install on this VPS.

Not with the Game Server Installer. Space Engineers is only available there for Windows Server 2019 or newer. If your VPS runs Linux, you can install a Windows Server template via Settings > Reinstallation. This deletes all data on your VPS.

In C:\ZapX-GameServers\space-engineers\data\SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg. You can add admins, mods, and a whitelist group there. Stop the server first.

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Space Engineers: Set Up a Server on Your VPS

Introduction

Requirements

Install Space Engineers

After installation

Start, stop, and restart the server

Configuration

Update the server

Ports and firewall

Backups

Summary

Frequently asked questions

Space Engineers

Install Space Engineers

Start, stop, and restart the server

Configuration

Update the server

Backups

Summary

Game Server

Servers & Hosting

ZAPX

Resources

ZAP-Hosting