Computer games have always been hardware intensive historically. They demand RAM and storage space to run correctly. Nowadays, the stakes are even higher, thanks to cloud gaming and multiplayer games. If you’ve been gaming online for a while, you might want to have a dedicated gaming server of your own.
However, there’s a catch: how much processing power do you need to launch your game server? There are numerous factors to consider as there’s no definitive answer to it. This article highlights some of the tips you should know as you try to pick the proper hardware for your own dedicated server.
What Are Game Servers?
Online games are pretty different from traditional ones as they don’t have all their resources on the player’s computer. Instead, the game requirements reside in a remote central computer called a server. Valheim hosting provides their own servers, and the users can retrieve some of the data during gameplay over the internet.
The benefit of this arrangement is that you get to save some storage and RAM space while the game remains lightweight. On the other hand, there are “cons” to game servers as well. For one thing, you can only access settings, modifications, and environments specified by the hosting providers. Also, high server traffic can hamper your gameplay speeds for multiplayer games.
One way to bypass these drawbacks is by getting a dedicated server. It allows you to run the game with the resources off of your computer. In addition, this arrangement leads to faster gaming more customizability options.
Consider the Game Type
Running a dedicated server depends on the type of game you’d like to host. It determines the hardware properties you’d implement for the project. For instance, an older game only needs a lightweight server with modest specifications. More RAM and computing power are necessary if you’re hosting a newer title – say, an FPS game.
However, newer game types aren’t always directly proportional to the power they need. So if you plan to host many other multi-players and allow several different mods, it’s best to get a fast, modern processor like a quad-core chipset and ample RAM between 16 and 32GB.
Some popular titles like League of Legends and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive have thousands to hundreds of millions of players accessing their dedicated servers. They require several high-powered clusters to cater to such user volume.
The Number of Players You Plan to Have on the Gaming Server
As we’ve hinted in the paragraphs above, the number of players you plan to have on your dedicated server should also determine how powerful your hardware will be. Typically, the more players try to access a game server, the more information to process. But you might not need many active players on your dedicated server: you can have a minimum of two people or a maximum of twelve.
Furthermore, the game title is also related to the number of players you can have. Popular gaming titles are more likely to have more players on the network at any given moment, while older ones have fewer.
However, you can keep a higher player allocation all the same, but it will cost you in the long term. It helps to plan and anticipate the traffic you’ll have on your private server. You can choose the correct specifications that allow for migrations and upgrades whenever you need them.
Determine the Gaming Server Hardware Requirements
We wouldn’t recommend that you buy any random dedicated server for your setups. However, understanding the maximum/minimum can help you to save money by getting the server settings you need at the time. Typically, 2GB RAM from an old PC is the minimum server specification for most games, with progressions as the game becomes more complex and the number of players increases.
Furthermore, the chipset and storage size are details you should consider as well. Nowadays, 2Ghz processors are the minimum, while 64GB storage would do for a start. However, games require different RAM and server requirements at a given moment. That’s because of the modded and additional content the user might have to include later on.
Minecraft has several modded content that you might have to offer on your private server. The minimum Minecraft server requirement would be about 24GB RAM, 2.5Ghz processor, and 120GB storage. SSDs are a much better option than traditional HDDs for optimal performance.
You’ll need more powerful storage if you have more mods. A 3.5Ghz processor, 240GB storage, and 32GB RAM are the standard maximum Minecraft server requirement for more extensive Minecraft modifications. Overall, it’s best to get the specifications closer to the maximum if you can afford it. That way, you can adjust to whatever expansions you plan in the future.
The Operating System also Matters
What software operating system will your game server run? There are several options available, but Linux and Windows are some of the more popular ones. Linux is the more widely-used operating system for server software due to its high resource management and low operating cost. OS is open-source, which means that you don’t need to pay for licenses.
Furthermore, Linux has better function support for a server than Windows. It has nifty debugging and backup tools that assist you when you encounter a problem. Even more, Linux has broader game support.
On the other hand, Windows OS has a streamlined installation process and a thriving PC gaming and online support community.
Wrapping Up
Private Game servers afford you more control over specific gaming titles. You get to specify the player numbers and other administrative settings as well. It’s also an excellent choice to help you to avoid slow gaming networks.
However, running a gaming server comes at a hardware cost that varies due to various factors. Therefore, it’s essential to consider these details to ensure that the Server host works as intended. Since we can’t give specific numbers on what kind of server configuration to get, the points mentioned above aim to give you an idea of how to choose the correct specifications for your use case.