Game server: Game Switch Feature via the Web Interface
This guide was created with the following products:
(Details may vary with products from different providers but the main concepts remain the same)
Introduction
With a ZAP-Hosting Game Server, you have the ability to switch the server between various games that we offer quickly and easily through your web interface panel. In this guide, we will highlight our game switch feature and explore how you can utilise this to manage and activate different games on your game server.
How to Use the Game Switch Feature on ZAP-Hosting
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Accessing Web Interface
Begin by heading over to the dashboard of your game server product on our website. Once there, navigate to the Settings->Games section found on the left-hand side.
You will now be on the Game Switch section, where you can manage game installs, activate a game and adjust slot price where necessary.
Manage Games
Within the Games section on your Web Interface, you will be able to see a list of currently installed games. Besides you will be able to see the game version & various buttons for managing the game installation.
With our Lifetime Game Server product, the game switch feature pricing works differently. For each game that you wish to permanently own on your lifetime game server, there is a one-time fee of €30 per game you wish to purchase. Upon purchase, the game will become permanently available on that specific lifetime game server and can therefore be switched to at any time.
Other than the pricing for lifetime game servers, the game switch process is exactly the same but with the purchase of games instead of relying on slot prices.
Installing New Game
In order to install a new game to your game server, select the Available Games drop down menu, where you will be able to browse available games that you can install to your server without any additional costs.
Under this section, you can also find the More Games drop down menu. Across our wide game selection, certain games may have differing slot prices, which can mean that you are unable to install the selected game without additional cost. To resolve this, you will have to pay a surcharge to increase your slot price. See the Change Slot Price section of the guide for more information.
Certain games in our game collection require a specific minimum amount of slots before you can install them to your game server. In such cases, hover over the warning icon to learn more. You should utilise the upgrade/downgrade functionality to upgrade your server based on the information.
Once you have found a game you wish to install, select the green download button to proceed with the installation process.
Depending on the game, you may be required to switch to a different host system to continue with installation. This is usually because the game you wish to install is running on a different operating system (Linux or Windows), therefore it requires a different host.
The host switch process is a destructive process, meaning that any data you currently have on the server will be deleted. Please ensure that you back up any files or saves if you wish to keep them safe before proceeding.
You should receive a pop-up prompt to confirm the installation of the game shortly after selecting the download button. Accept the prompt to begin the automatic installation process. You will be able to view the progress of the installation at the top of the page.
Once complete, you will now see the new game under the Installed Games section. You have successfully installed a new game to your game server.
Activate & Delete Game
As a final step before playing, you will need to activate the game, which will set the game as the active game that will be running on your game server.
This can be done simply by browsing the Installed Games section and selecting the blue activate button. You can view the currently activated game by finding the green tick icon. Once the activate button is selected, a prompt will appear that you should accept to proceed.
Your server will automatically activate the game and restart the server during this process. Once ready, the game will become active and you can get started with playing on your new game. You have successfully activated a game on your game server.
Delete & Reinstall Game
Deleting and reinstalling a game is very simple and can be done by browsing the Installed Games section.
Once you have found the specific game to take action on, use the orange reinstall button to reinstall the game. This is a destructive process and will delete any data found in that specific game, such as game servers or configuration options.
Similarly, if you wish to delete a game at any point, you can use the red delete button besides the relevant game under the Installed Games section to remove it from the game server.
Change Slot Price
Certain games across our game collection may have varying slot prices, which may potentially prevent you from installing specific games. In such scenarios, you will have to increase your slot price and pay a surcharge to make these games available for installation again.
You can do this in two ways, either by selecting the Change Slotprice button at the top of the page or by searching for games first to browse the associate slot prices for unavailable games.
We recommend utilising the More Games drop down menu first to find games and easily browse their slot prices. Once you found the game, select the blue purchase button.
This will open up the slot price adjustment prompt with the slot price pre-populated for the game you have selected. You will be able to view the surcharge that you will have to pay at this time, as well as the new package price based on the slot price adjustment. You can also browse the games here again if necessary.
Once ready, select the next button which will update the page to select a payment method to cover the cost of the surcharge. Select the payment method and use the buy now button to finalize the slot price change.
Upon success, the booked slot price for your game server should have the adjustment reflected. You will be prompted to restart your server to ensure that everything is finalized.
You should now be able to go back to the Available Games section and install the game as normal. Not only that, but you have successfully changed the booked slot price for your game server.