Counter-Strike: SourceCounter-Strike: Source Server Configuration Generator
Use the CSS server.cfg generator to create the server.cfg for your Counter-Strike: Source server. Set the server name, password, GSLT, rounds, economy, bots, and RCON in the form, or describe your server to an AI in Easy Mode. The live preview shows the finished server config, which you can copy or download. Free, no sign-up required, and available right in your browser.
Built by Florian Galz
Example result
Example: the generated server.cfg
You set the options using a form or AI Easy Mode, and the generator creates the finished server.cfg for Counter-Strike: Source live. Below are the first lines of the default configuration; your file contains your values and all other settings.
Example · Default configuration
Output
// Counter-Strike: Source — generated with the ZAP-Hosting Game Config Generator// zap-hosting.com/tools/css/config-generator // Server basicshostname "ZAP Counter-Strike: Source"sv_password ""sv_setsteamaccount ""tv_enable 0 // Rounds & timemp_maxrounds 30mp_roundtime 2.25mp_freezetime 6mp_buytime 1.5mp_c4timer 45- +20 rowsYou can copy or download the complete file in the generator; the sample lines here only show the beginning.
Settings
CS:Source server commands: the cvars in your server.cfg
The generator creates server.cfg for your Counter-Strike: Source server, not a client config such as autoexec.cfg. Its 24 settings are divided into seven sections, with the corresponding cvar or startup parameter shown in parentheses.
Server basics
Server name (hostname), server password (sv_password; leave empty for a public server), GSLT token (sv_setsteamaccount), maximum player count (2–32, default 16), starting map, tick rate (33, 66, or 100; default 66), and SourceTV (tv_enable) with automatic demo recording (tv_autorecord). Player count, starting map, and tick rate are startup parameters, so they are not included in the server.cfg.
Rounds & time
Rounds per match (mp_maxrounds, 1–100, default 30), round time in minutes (mp_roundtime, 0.5–9, default 2.25), freeze time at the start of a round (mp_freezetime, default 6 seconds), buy time in minutes (mp_buytime, 0.25–9, default 1.5), and time until the bomb detonates (mp_c4timer, 10–90 seconds, default 45).
Economy
Starting money at the beginning of a new half or match (mp_startmoney, 800–16000, default 800) and the maximum amount a player can save (mp_maxmoney, default 16000).
Teams & fairness
Friendly fire (mp_friendlyfire, off by default), automatic team balancing at the end of each round (mp_autoteambalance, on by default), maximum team size difference (mp_limitteams, 0 = no limit, default 2), and auto-kick for repeated team damage or inactivity (mp_autokick, on by default).
Bots
Bot count (bot_quota, 0–32, 0 = no bots) and bot difficulty (bot_difficulty): 0 = Easy, 1 = Normal, 2 = Hard, 3 = Expert. Difficulty is only written if the bot count is not 0.
Administration & security
RCON password (rcon_password; leave empty to disable RCON) and cheat commands (sv_cheats; off by default). Never enable sv_cheats on a public server.
Other
Gravity (sv_gravity, 0–3000, default 800), intended for fun and Mod servers. Values far from the default can noticeably worsen movement prediction.
The generator appends lines it does not recognize from an imported server.cfg unchanged at the end of the file. It does not create map rotations, plugins, or admin permissions.
Guide
How to set up your CS:Source server.cfg
From the first setting to a running server: how to get your CSS server config onto your Counter-Strike: Source server.
- 1
Step 1
Open generator or import config
The generator starts with Counter-Strike: Source defaults, and you can see the finished server.cfg immediately in the live preview. If you already have a server.cfg, import it as a .cfg or .txt file of up to 2 MB, or paste its contents.
- 2
Step 2
Choose Easy Mode or the form
In Easy Mode, describe your server in your own words, for example, “5v5 server with GSLT and no friendly fire.” The AI suggests suitable values and explains each change. Only changes you confirm are applied. In advanced mode, you set every option yourself.
- 3
Step 3
Set server basics
Enter the server name (hostname), an optional server password, and your GSLT token. Choose a starting map, a maximum player count between 2 and 32, and a tick rate of 33, 66, or 100, and enable SourceTV if needed.
- 4
Step 4
Set rounds, economy, teams, and bots
Set the number of rounds (mp_maxrounds), round time (mp_roundtime), freeze time, buy time, and bomb timer. Adjust starting money (mp_startmoney) and the money cap, toggle friendly fire, team balancing, and auto-kick, and fill empty Slots with bots (bot_quota) at the appropriate difficulty if needed.
- 5
Step 5
Secure administration
Set an RCON password so you can manage the server remotely, and leave sv_cheats off on a public server.
- 6
Step 6
Check and save server.cfg
Check server.cfg in the live preview. Then copy or download the file, or share a link without passwords.
- 7
Step 7
Upload and apply
Upload the server.cfg to the cstrike/cfg folder on your CS:Source server and run “exec server.cfg” in the console, or restart the server. On ZAP-Hosting servers, the server.cfg is regenerated on every startup: set the server name, password, player count, starting map, tick rate, and GSLT through the startup parameters there. Other values only last until the next restart.
Setup
File location & usage
Two ways to get the config onto a server: upload it yourself or apply it directly in our panel.
The manual method
On a self-hosted server
- 1
Download file
Download the generated server.cfg using the button above.
- 2
Upload via file manager or FTP/SFTP
Place in
cstrike/cfg/server.cfg(Linux) orcstrike\cfg\server.cfg(Windows). - 3
Apply changes
Restart your server or run “exec server.cfg” in the console.
The ZAP-Hosting way
Startup parameters in the panel
Rent a Counter-Strike: Source server from us: there, the server image regenerates server.cfg on every start. You set the values using the startup parameters in the panel. Settings without a startup parameter are lost on the next start.
- Startup parameters directly in the panel
- No FTP client required
- Online in 60 seconds
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FAQ
Frequently asked questions about CSS server.cfg generator
File location, GSLT, tick rate, startup parameters, bots, and passwords—briefly answered.
server.cfg is in your server's cstrike game folder: at cstrike/cfg/server.cfg on Linux and cstrike\cfg\server.cfg on Windows. Downloading it does not transfer it automatically. Upload the file yourself and restart the server or run “exec server.cfg” in the console. On ZAP-Hosting servers, the server image recreates server.cfg on every startup. Set the server name, password, player count, starting map, tick rate, and GSLT through startup parameters; other uploaded values do not persist after a restart.
The generator is free to use without signing up: the form, Easy Mode, import, copy, download and sharing features all work without an account. The server.cfg is generated directly in your browser. Only in Easy Mode are your description and current values, without passwords, sent to the AI, which suggests changes. Only changes you confirm are applied.
For a public server, yes. Since Valve's change in 2016, a Source Dedicated Server needs a Game Server Login Token to sign in to Steam. It appears in server.cfg as sv_setsteamaccount. You can create one for free at steamcommunity.com/dev/managegameservers using app ID 240. The token is masked like a password in the form.
66 tick is the standard for CS:Source and suits most community servers. 100 tick requires a sufficiently powerful server; 33 tick is also available. Tick rate is not a server.cfg cvar: it is set when the server starts. The generator therefore leaves it out of the file.
Both are startup parameters (+maxplayers and +map), not server.cfg cvars. The generator therefore deliberately leaves them out of the file. Set them when starting your server, for example in its startup parameters or server settings. In the form, you can choose 2 to 32 players and one of nine starting maps, including de_dust2, de_inferno, de_nuke, and cs_office.
Under “Bots”, set the bot count (bot_quota) to a value between 1 and 32 and choose the difficulty (bot_difficulty): 0 = Easy, 1 = Normal, 2 = Hard, 3 = Expert. The generator only adds the difficulty to the server.cfg if the bot count is not 0. At 0, no bots run.
No. CS:Source does not have a game_type and game_mode system like CS:GO or CS2, so the generator has no such setting. You control gameplay directly through the mp_*-Cvars: rounds, round time, starting money, friendly fire, team balancing, and auto-kick.
No. The server password, RCON password and GSLT token are masked in the form, never stored in share links and not sent to the AI in Easy Mode. A share link contains only the non-secret values you've changed.
Any more questions?
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