Space Engineers private server: installation and configuration on VPS/dedicated server

To create your own Space Engineers server that provides a stable and customizable gaming environment for 4-16 players, a VPS with 4-8 GB RAM, 2-4 vCPU, and an NVMe disk is the optimal choice. For larger communities (16+ players) or those with intensive mod usage, a dedicated server with 16+ GB RAM, a powerful CPU, and SSD/NVMe storage will be required, offering full control over the game world, performance, and modifications.

Why You Need Your Own Space Engineers Server and Why Cloud Hosting is the Optimal Choice

Space Engineers is a unique sandbox game where players build spaceships, stations, and explore procedurally generated asteroids and planets. The game focuses on creativity, engineering, and survival, making it ideal for co-op play with friends. However, standard co-op methods, such as connecting to public servers or using in-game hosting, often come with several limitations. This is where your own Space Engineers server comes in, providing complete freedom and control over the gameplay.

Advantages of Your Own Server Over Official and Rented Ones

Using your own dedicated server or VPS for Space Engineers opens up a whole world of possibilities for you and your friends, unavailable when playing on public servers or using built-in hosting:

• Full World Control: You decide what rules apply to your server. Want to disable meteor showers? Set specific starting resources? Change plant growth speed or survival difficulty? All of this is accessible through configuration files.
• High Performance: Public servers are often overloaded, leading to lag, desynchronization, and object "warps." Your own server, especially on a powerful VPS or dedicated server from Valebyte.com, guarantees stable FPS and minimal latency for all players, as server resources are allocated exclusively to your game.
• Unlimited Modifications: Space Engineers has a huge modding community. On your own server, you can install any mods from the Steam Workshop or third-party modifications, creating a unique gaming experience. These can include new blocks, weapons, tools, mechanic fixes, or even entire gameplay changes.
• Constant Availability: Unlike hosting through the game client, which requires the host player to be always online, a dedicated server runs 24/7. Your friends can join and play at any time, regardless of whether you are online.
• Privacy and Security: You control access to the server, can set passwords, player whitelists, and quickly react to undesirable behavior, creating a comfortable environment for your team.
• Backup: The ability to regularly create backups of the game world helps avoid losing progress due to errors, crashes, or malicious players.

VPS or Dedicated Server: What to Choose for Space Engineers?

The choice between a VPS (Virtual Private Server) and a Dedicated Server depends on your needs, budget, and expected number of players. Both options provide full control and high performance but have their own characteristics:

• VPS (Virtual Private Server):
  • Ideal for: Small groups of friends (up to 10-15 players), mod testing, servers with moderate load.
  • Advantages: More affordable price, flexibility in scaling (easy to increase or decrease resources), ease of management (often with a hosting control panel).
  • Disadvantages: Resources, though guaranteed, are part of the physical server's overall pool. Performance might be slightly lower than a dedicated server under extreme loads.
• Dedicated Server:
  • Ideal for: Large gaming communities (16+ players), servers with many complex mods, CPU and RAM intensive, public servers.
  • Advantages: Maximum performance, all physical server resources are exclusively yours, complete isolation from other users, ability to fine-tune the OS and hardware.
  • Disadvantages: Higher cost, requires a higher level of technical knowledge for management (although many providers offer managed dedicated servers).

For most users looking to run their Space Engineers server for a small group, a VPS will be an optimal and cost-effective solution. If you plan to create a large community or host a server with hundreds of mods and complex builds, then a dedicated server will be the best investment.

Hardware Requirements for Space Engineers Dedicated Server

Space Engineers is a game that can be quite demanding on server resources, especially as the world grows larger and the number of players and objects increases. Understanding the key requirements for CPU, RAM, and disk subsystem will help you choose suitable Space Engineers hosting and avoid performance issues.

Processor (CPU): What CPU is Needed for Space Engineers?

The processor is one of the most critical components for a Space Engineers server. The game, while multi-threaded to some extent, still heavily relies on single-core CPU performance for physics calculations, object interactions, and other key game mechanics. Therefore, not only overall multi-core performance but also a high clock speed per core is important.

• Basic Level (up to 4 players, light worlds): Intel Xeon E3/E5 (older generations) or modern AMD Ryzen 3/Intel Core i3 with a clock speed of 2.5-3.0 GHz. 2 vCPUs will be needed.
• Mid-Level (4-10 players, moderate worlds): Intel Xeon E5/E7 (newer generations) or AMD EPYC/Ryzen 5/Intel Core i5 with a clock speed of 3.2+ GHz. 2-4 vCPUs are recommended.
• Advanced Level (10-20 players, complex worlds, mods): Intel Xeon E-2XXX/Gold/Silver or AMD EPYC/Ryzen 7/9 with a clock speed of 3.5+ GHz (preferably with Turbo Boost up to 4.0+ GHz). 4-6 vCPUs are recommended.
• High Level (20+ players, public servers, many mods): Modern Intel Xeon W/Platinum or AMD EPYC/Threadripper with maximum clock speed per core. 6-8+ vCPUs will be needed.

Note that the higher the clock speed of a single core, the better the Space Engineers server performance will be, especially during peak load times.

Random Access Memory (RAM): How Many Gigabytes Are Needed?

RAM plays a key role in storing game world data, objects, player information, and loaded mods. Space Engineers can consume significant amounts of RAM, especially on large and active worlds.

• Basic Level (up to 4 players): Minimum 4 GB RAM.
• Mid-Level (4-10 players): 8 GB RAM. This is a good starting amount for most small servers.
• Advanced Level (10-20 players, mods): 16 GB RAM. This amount will allow the server to run comfortably even with several dozen mods and a large number of builds.
• High Level (20+ players, public servers): 32 GB RAM and more. For very large and active worlds, especially with many complex mods, 32 GB RAM may be necessary to prevent crashes and delays.

It's always better to have a small RAM buffer than to face a shortage, which can lead to server slowdowns or crashes.

Disk Subsystem: NVMe is Not a Luxury, But a Necessity

Disk speed affects world loading time, progress saving, and access speed to mod files. In Space Engineers, especially with large worlds and frequent saves, a slow disk can become a bottleneck.

• HDD: Absolutely not recommended. Slow read/write speeds will negatively impact server performance.
• SSD (SATA): Minimally acceptable option. Provides significantly better performance than HDD but may be insufficient for large servers.
• NVMe SSD: Highly recommended and is the standard for game servers. NVMe drives offer several times higher read/write speeds compared to SATA SSDs, which is critically important for fast world loading, saves, and processing a large number of mod files.

As for storage size, the Space Engineers game world itself doesn't take up much space, but considering the operating system, server files, and mods, you will need:

• Minimum: 50-80 GB NVMe disk.
• Recommended: 100-200 GB NVMe disk for future updates, mods, and numerous backups.

Network Connection: Bandwidth and Stability

A stable and fast network connection is fundamental for any online server. For Space Engineers, two aspects are important:

• Bandwidth (channel speed): Even for a relatively small Space Engineers server, a 100 Mbps connection is recommended. For public servers and a large number of players, a gigabit (1 Gbps) connection is better. Valebyte.com offers high-speed ports on all its VPS and dedicated servers.
• Low Latency (ping): The lower the ping to the server, the more comfortable the gameplay will be. Choose a data center located geographically close to your primary player audience. For example, for players from Eastern Europe and Russia, data centers in Europe are suitable. For the USA – a server in Ashburn or Los Angeles.

Preparing for Space Engineers Server Installation on VPS/Dedicated Server

Before proceeding with the Space Engineers server installation itself, you need to prepare your virtual or physical machine. This stage includes choosing the operating system and basic security configuration.

Choosing an Operating System

Space Engineers Dedicated Server officially supports only Windows operating systems. While unofficial methods exist to run the server via Wine on Linux, they do not guarantee stability and performance, and may cause issues with updates and mods. Therefore, for reliable Space Engineers hosting, it is recommended to use:

• Windows Server 2016/2019/2022: These operating systems are optimized for server tasks, offering good performance and stability. On a VPS or dedicated server with Windows, you will get a familiar graphical interface, which simplifies management, especially for those not very familiar with the Linux command line.

In this article, we will consider installation on Windows Server.

Preliminary Server Setup: Updates and Firewall

After deploying Windows Server on your VPS or dedicated server, follow these steps:

1. System Update:

   Ensure your operating system is fully updated. Open "Settings" -> "Update & Security" -> "Windows Update" and install all available updates. Restart the server if necessary.

2. Disable Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration (IE ESC):

   By default, Windows Server has Enhanced Security Configuration enabled for Internet Explorer, which can interfere with file downloads or the operation of some web services. You can disable it via "Server Manager" -> "Local Server" -> "IE Enhanced Security Configuration". Select "Off" for both Administrators and Users.

3. Configure Windows Firewall:

   For the Space Engineers server to function correctly, certain ports need to be opened. By default, Space Engineers uses UDP ports 27016 and 27017, as well as TCP port 8080 for the web interface (if you use it).

   Open "Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security".

   Create new inbound rules:

   • For UDP port 27016:

     New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Space Engineers Server UDP 27016" -Direction Inbound -LocalPort 27016 -Protocol UDP -Action Allow

   • For UDP port 27017 (for Steam Query):

     New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Space Engineers Server UDP 27017" -Direction Inbound -LocalPort 27017 -Protocol UDP -Action Allow

   • For TCP port 8080 (if you plan to use the web interface):

     New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Space Engineers Server Web UI TCP 8080" -Direction Inbound -LocalPort 8080 -Protocol TCP -Action Allow

   These PowerShell commands will create the necessary rules. For more detailed firewall configuration or if you are using a third-party firewall, refer to your provider's or chosen software's documentation.

Installation and First Launch of Space Engineers Dedicated Server

After preparing the operating system, you can proceed directly to installing the game server files. We will use SteamCMD – a command-line utility from Valve for installing and updating Steam game dedicated servers.

Installing SteamCMD

1. Create a folder for SteamCMD:

   For example, C:\SteamCMD.

2. Download SteamCMD:

   Go to the official SteamCMD page (https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/SteamCMD) and download the archive for Windows. Extract the contents of the archive (the steamcmd.exe file) into the created folder C:\SteamCMD.

3. Launch SteamCMD:

   Open Command Prompt (CMD) or PowerShell as an administrator and navigate to the C:\SteamCMD folder:

   cd C:\SteamCMD

   Run steamcmd.exe. The first time you run it, SteamCMD will download all necessary files. Wait for the Steam> prompt to appear.

4. Log in to SteamCMD:

   You can log in anonymously, which is sufficient for downloading most free game servers, including Space Engineers:

   login anonymous

   If you want to download paid games or games that require authentication, you will need to log in with your Steam account:

   login your_username your_password

   In this case, you may need to enter a Steam Guard code.

Downloading Space Engineers Server Files

Now that SteamCMD is ready, you can download the Space Engineers dedicated server files.

1. Specify the installation path:

   Create a folder where the server files will be installed. For example, C:\SpaceEngineersServer.

   force_install_dir C:\SpaceEngineersServer

2. Download server files:

   Use App ID 298740 for Space Engineers Dedicated Server:

   app_update 298740 validate

   The validate command checks file integrity after download. The download process may take some time depending on your internet connection speed. Wait for the completion message.

3. Exit SteamCMD:

   quit

Now all necessary server files are in the C:\SpaceEngineersServer folder.

Creating the Server Configuration File

After installing the server files, you will need to create a configuration file that will define your game world parameters. Space Engineers uses an XML file for configuration.

1. Launch Space Engineers Dedicated Server GUI:

   Navigate to the C:\SpaceEngineersServer folder and find the SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe file. Run it. This is a graphical interface that will help you create a basic configuration file.

2. Configure settings in the GUI:

   In the GUI window, select "Local / Console" or "Add new instance" (if launching for the first time). Fill in the main fields:

   • Instance Name: The name of your server instance (e.g., "Valebyte_SE_Server").
   • Server Name: The name that will appear in the in-game server list.
   • World Name: The name of the saved world.
   • Game Mode: Survival, Creative.
   • Max Players: Maximum number of players.
   • Admin: Add your SteamID64 to have admin rights.

   You can configure many other parameters, such as growth speed, difficulty, disabling meteorites, etc. After configuring, click "Save".

3. Locate the configuration file:

   The GUI will create a folder for your server instance (e.g., C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server) and inside it, the file SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg. This XML file contains all your server settings.

Launching the Space Engineers Server

Now that the configuration file is created, you can launch your server.

1. Launch via GUI:

   The simplest way is through the same SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe. Select your server instance and click "Start". You will see the server console displaying logs.

2. Launch via Command Line (recommended for automation):

   For automatic server startup on VPS reboot or for management via scripts, it's better to use the command line. Open CMD/PowerShell in the C:\SpaceEngineersServer folder and execute:

   SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe -console -ignorepipeline -path "C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server"

   Where "C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server" is the path to your server instance folder containing SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg.

   The server will launch in console mode. You can connect to it from the game using your VPS/dedicated server's IP address and port 27016.

For easier management, especially if you host not only Space Engineers but also other game servers, consider using tools like Dashy or Homepage for monitoring and quick access to information about your services.

Configuration, Ports, and Mod Management on Space Engineers Server

After the initial launch of your Space Engineers server, it's important to delve into its configuration to optimize performance, ensure security, and extend functionality with mods.

Key Parameters of the Configuration File (SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg)

The SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg file, located in your server instance folder (e.g., C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server), is the heart of your server. It's an XML file that can be edited with any text editor (e.g., Notepad++). Here are some key parameters:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<MyConfigDedicated xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
  <SessionSettings>
    <GameMode>Survival</GameMode>
    <MaxPlayers>10</MaxPlayers>
    <OnlineMode>PUBLIC</OnlineMode>
    <ServerName>Valebyte Space Engineers Server</ServerName>
    <WorldName>MyAwesomeWorld</WorldName>
    <PauseWhenEmpty>true</PauseWhenEmpty>
    <AutoSaveInMinutes>5</AutoSaveInMinutes>
    <EnableSpectator>false</EnableSpectator>
    <ViewDistance>15000</ViewDistance>
    <VoxelDegradationSpeed>0.005</VoxelDegradationSpeed>
    <EnableContainerDamage>true</EnableContainerDamage>
    <RespawnShipDeleteThreshold>10000</RespawnShipDeleteThreshold>
    <BlockLimitsEnabled>PER_FACTION</BlockLimitsEnabled>
    <MaxBlocksPerPlayer>50000</MaxBlocksPerPlayer>
    <StationVoxelSupport>true</StationVoxelSupport>
    <EnableScripter>true</EnableScripter>
    <EnableIngameScripts>true</EnableIngameScripts>
    <EnableDrones>true</EnableDrones>
    <EnableEconomy>true</EnableEconomy>
    <MaxFloatingObjects>256</MaxFloatingObjects>
    <MaxGridSize>0</MaxGridSize> <!-- 0 = unlimited -->
    <MaxSmallShips>0</MaxSmallShips>
    <MaxLargeShips>0</MaxLargeShips>
  </SessionSettings>
  <Administrators>
    <unsignedLong>YOUR_STEAMID64</unsignedLong>
  </Administrators>
  <BannedPlayers />
  <ReservedPlayers />
  <ServerPort>27016</ServerPort>
  <SteamPort>27017</SteamPort>
  <RconPort>27015</RconPort> <!-- Used for remote management, if enabled -->
  <ServerDescription>Welcome to our server!</ServerDescription>
  <LogPath>C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Logs</LogPath>
  <PremadeAsteroids>true</PremadeAsteroids>
  <AsteroidAmount>4</AsteroidAmount>
  <GroupWith      >PUBLIC</GroupWith>
  <IPAddress>0.0.0.0</IPAddress> <!-- Or specific IP if you have multiple -->
  <AutoRestart>false</AutoRestart>
  <AutoRestartTimeInMin>300</AutoRestartTimeInMin>
  <AutoUpdate>true</AutoUpdate>
  <AutoUpdateRestartDelay>10</AutoUpdateRestartDelay>
  <IgnoreLastSession>false</IgnoreLastSession>
  <RemoteAdmin>false</RemoteAdmin> <!-- Enable for remote RCON administration -->
  <RemoteAdminPassword>your_rcon_password</RemoteAdminPassword>
  <EnableCrashReporting>true</EnableCrashReporting>
  <WorldCustomization>
    <EnvironmentHostility>SAFE</EnvironmentHostility>
    <DayNightRatio>0.5</DayNightRatio>
    <EnableFloraAndFauna>true</EnableFloraAndFauna>
    <EnableOxygen>true</EnableOxygen>
    <EnableEncounters>true</EnableEncounters>
    <StartInSpace>true</StartInSpace>
    <EnableRespawnShips>true</EnableRespawnShips>
    <EnablePvp>true</EnablePvp>
  </WorldCustomization>
  <Mods />
  <Scenario />
</MyConfigDedicated>

Important parameters:

• <MaxPlayers>: Number of players. Adjust based on server power.
• <OnlineMode>: PUBLIC (server visible to all), PRIVATE (by invitation/IP only), OFFLINE (local).
• <AutoSaveInMinutes>: Autosave frequency. 5-10 minutes recommended.
• <Administrators>: Insert your SteamID64 (can be found at https://steamid.io) to get admin rights.
• <ServerPort>: Game port (default 27016 UDP).
• <SteamPort>: Port for Steam Query (default 27017 UDP).
• <RconPort>: Port for remote RCON administration (default 27015 TCP). Enable <RemoteAdmin>true</RemoteAdmin> and set <RemoteAdminPassword> if you plan to use RCON.
• <AutoUpdate>true</AutoUpdate>: The server will automatically check for updates on startup.

After any changes to SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg, remember to restart the server for them to take effect.

Configuring Network Ports and Firewall

We've already mentioned ports 27016 (UDP) and 27017 (UDP) for main traffic and Steam Query. If you enabled RCON or plan to use the web interface, you will also need to open ports 27015 (TCP) and 8080 (TCP) respectively in the Windows Server firewall. Make sure your provider also does not block these ports at the network equipment level.

To check open ports, you can use online services or the netstat -an command on your server to ensure the server is "listening" on these ports after startup.

Installing and Managing Mods via Steam Workshop

Mods are an integral part of the Space Engineers experience. Installing them on your server is quite simple:

1. Find mods in Steam Workshop:

   Go to the Steam Workshop for Space Engineers (https://steamcommunity.com/app/244850/workshop/). Find the desired mods and copy their ID. The mod ID is in the URL of the mod page, for example, id=123456789.

2. Add mods to the configuration file:

   Open SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg and find the <Mods> section. For each mod, add a line with its ID:

   <Mods>
       <unsignedLong>123456789</unsignedLong> <!-- ID of the first mod -->
       <unsignedLong>987654321</unsignedLong> <!-- ID of the second mod -->
   </Mods>

3. Save the file and restart the server:

   On the next startup, the server will automatically download the specified mods from the Steam Workshop. Mod files will be stored in the C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Mods folder.

Important: Make sure all players connecting to your server are also subscribed to these mods in the Steam Workshop, otherwise they will not be able to connect or will experience issues.

Automatic Server Startup and Monitoring

For your Space Engineers server to start automatically after a VPS or dedicated server reboot and run stably, it is recommended to configure it as a Windows service or use the Task Scheduler.

1. Run as a Windows Service:

   The most reliable way is to use a utility like NSSM (Non-Sucking Service Manager) to create a Windows service from SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe. This will allow the server to run in the background, automatically restart on failures, and be managed through standard Windows service management tools.

   Example of using NSSM:

   • Download NSSM (https://nssm.cc/).
   • Unpack it and from the command line run: nssm install "SpaceEngineersServer"
   • In the opened window, specify the path to SpaceEngineersDedicated.exe, arguments (e.g., -console -ignorepipeline -path "C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server"), and configure restart parameters on the "Details" tab.
   • After installation, the service can be started/stopped via "Services" (services.msc).
2. Monitoring:

   Regularly check server logs in the C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Logs folder for errors. Use built-in Windows performance monitoring tools (Task Manager, Resource Monitor) to track CPU, RAM, and disk usage. If you use solutions from Valebyte.com, you will also have access to VPS/dedicated server resource monitoring tools through the control panel.

Optimal Space Engineers Hosting Configurations for Different Player Counts

Choosing the right server configuration is critically important for ensuring stable and comfortable gameplay in Space Engineers. Insufficient resources will lead to lag and crashes, while excessive resources will result in unjustified costs. Below are recommendations for various usage scenarios.

Recommendations for Choosing a VPS/Dedicated Server for Space Engineers

When choosing Space Engineers hosting, consider the following factors:

• Number of players: This is the main parameter. The more players, the more CPU and RAM are required.
• World complexity: Large builds, many moving objects, active scripts, and mods significantly increase the load.
• Mods: Some mods can be very resource-intensive.
• Budget: VPS is usually cheaper than dedicated servers.

Here are some general recommendations:

1. For 2-4 players (private server, friends):

   A budget VPS with 2 vCPU (2.5+ GHz), 4 GB RAM, 80 GB NVMe is optimal. This is sufficient for a small world without extreme loads. The cost of such a VPS usually starts from $10-15 per month.

2. For 5-10 players (active group):

   A mid-range VPS with 4 vCPU (3.0+ GHz), 8 GB RAM, 100-150 GB NVMe is recommended. This will allow comfortable play with a moderate number of builds and several mods. Prices start from $20-30 per month.

3. For 11-16 players (semi-public/clan server):

   A more powerful VPS or even a basic dedicated server will be required. Configuration: 4-6 vCPU (3.5+ GHz), 16 GB RAM, 200 GB NVMe. This will ensure stability even in active scenarios and with more mods. The cost of a VPS at this level can be $40-60+, and a basic dedicated server — from $80-100+.

4. For 16+ players (public server, large community, heavy mods):

   Definitely a dedicated server. Configuration: 6-8+ CPU cores (with high clock speed), 32+ GB RAM, 250+ GB NVMe. For such servers, single-core CPU performance is critically important. The cost of a dedicated server starts from $100-150 and higher, depending on the processor and RAM volume.

Valebyte.com offers a wide range of VPS and dedicated servers that are ideal for hosting Space Engineers, providing high performance and configuration flexibility.

Table of Recommended Configurations and Valebyte.com Prices

Below is an approximate table of recommended VPS and dedicated server configurations from Valebyte.com for Space Engineers hosting. Prices are approximate and may vary depending on the specific plan, data center location, and current promotions.

Number of Players	Server Type	CPU (cores/frequency)	RAM (GB)	Disk (NVMe GB)	Bandwidth	Approximate Price/Month
2-4 players	VPS	2 vCPU (2.5+ GHz)	4	80	100 Mbps	$12 - $18
5-10 players	VPS	4 vCPU (3.0+ GHz)	8	150	100 Mbps - 1 Gbps	$25 - $40
11-16 players	Powerful VPS / Basic Dedicated	4-6 vCPU (3.5+ GHz) / 4-core Dedicated	16	200	1 Gbps	$50 - $90
16+ players	Dedicated Server	6-8+ cores (high frequency)	32+	250+	1 Gbps	$120 - $250+

*Prices are approximate and subject to change. It is recommended to check current rates on the Valebyte.com website.

Protecting Your Space Engineers Server from DDoS Attacks and Other Security Measures

Owning your own Space Engineers server, especially if it's public, comes with the need to ensure its security. DDoS attacks and data loss are real threats that can ruin the gaming experience. Valebyte.com provides basic DDoS protection, but there are additional steps you can take.

Basic DDoS Protection

Most reliable hosting providers, including Valebyte.com, offer built-in DDoS protection at the network level. This means that traffic directed to your server passes through specialized filters that weed out malicious requests before they reach your VPS or dedicated server. This protection typically includes:

• Traffic Anomaly Detection: Systems monitor incoming traffic and identify unusual spikes or patterns characteristic of DDoS attacks.
• Traffic Filtering and Scrubbing: Malicious traffic is redirected through "scrubbers" that clean it, allowing only legitimate requests to reach your server.
• Automatic Response: Protection is activated automatically upon detection of an attack, minimizing downtime.

While this protection is effective against most common attacks, very large and targeted attacks may require more advanced protection or specialized services. Check with your provider (Valebyte.com) for details on the DDoS protection offered.

Regular Backups

Losing progress is one of the worst nightmares for any player and server administrator. Regular backup of your game world is absolutely essential. Even if your server is protected from DDoS, hardware failures, configuration errors, or malicious player actions can lead to data loss.

How to organize backups:

1. Automatic Server Saves:

   In the SpaceEngineers-Dedicated.cfg file, ensure that the <AutoSaveInMinutes> parameter is set to a reasonable value (e.g., 5-15 minutes).

2. Manual World File Copying:

   The world save folder is located in your server instance directory, for example, C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server\Saves. Regularly copy the contents of this folder to another location on the server or, even better, to remote storage (e.g., cloud storage or another server).

3. Automated Backup Scripts:

   For a more robust solution, create a PowerShell script or batch file that will archive the save folder and move it to a separate directory with the date in the file name. Then, configure Windows Task Scheduler to run this script daily or several times a day.

   Example of a simple PowerShell backup script:

   $SourcePath = "C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Instances\Valebyte_SE_Server\Saves"
   $BackupPath = "C:\SpaceEngineersServer\Backups"
   $Timestamp = Get-Date -Format "yyyyMMdd_HHmmss"
   $BackupFileName = "SE_World_Backup_$Timestamp.zip"
   
   if (-not (Test-Path $BackupPath)) {
       New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path $BackupPath
   }
   
   Compress-Archive -Path $SourcePath -DestinationPath (Join-Path $BackupPath $BackupFileName) -Force
   
   # Optionally: delete old backups (e.g., older than 7 days)
   Get-ChildItem -Path $BackupPath -Filter "*.zip" | Where-Object { $_.CreationTime -lt (Get-Date).AddDays(-7) } | Remove-Item -Force

   Save this code as backup_se.ps1 and configure it to run via Task Scheduler.

4. Full VPS/Dedicated Server Backup:

   Some providers offer full backup services for the entire VPS or dedicated server. This is the most reliable method, as it allows you to restore the entire system in case of a major failure. Check with Valebyte.com for the availability of such a service.

In addition to backups, regularly update the operating system and the Space Engineers server itself to use the latest security patches and performance improvements.

Conclusion

Creating your own Space Engineers server on a Valebyte.com VPS or dedicated server is the optimal solution for gaining full control over the game world, ensuring high performance, and the ability to use any mods. For most groups of 4-10 players, a VPS with 4-8 GB RAM and 4 vCPU is sufficient, while for large communities of 16 players and more, a powerful dedicated server with 16+ GB RAM and a high-frequency CPU will be required, guaranteeing a stable and comfortable gaming experience under any load.