Insurgency: Sandstorm Server Hosting

What is an Insurgency: Sandstorm server?

An Insurgency: Sandstorm server is the official dedicated server program that hosts sessions for New World Interactive’s tactical shooter, running independently of the game client. Unlike the game’s official matchmaking, community servers can offer their own map rotations, player limits, bot settings, mutators and mods. That is why clans, co-op communities and realism-focused player groups prefer to open their own servers.

The game has two main axes of play. In co-op modes players fight together against AI bots; Checkpoint is the best known and the most popular mode on community servers. In PvP modes two teams face each other; Push, Firefight, Skirmish, Domination and Frontline belong to this group. Which axis you choose directly changes resource planning: in co-op the player count is small but bots tax the server CPU, while in PvP the player count is high.

So when choosing Insurgency: Sandstorm server hosting, first settle which mode your community wants to play.

Key differences between co-op and PvP servers

Rather than mixing both axes on one server, opening a separate instance for each keeps the config files simple and meets players’ expectations.

Does the Sandstorm dedicated server run on Windows and Linux?

The Insurgency: Sandstorm dedicated server is released for both Windows and Linux; it is started with InsurgencyServer.exe on Windows and the InsurgencyServer-Linux-Shipping binary on Linux. The server files do not require owning the game and can be downloaded via SteamCMD with an anonymous login.

steamcmd +force_install_dir /home/sandstorm/server +login anonymous +app_update 581330 validate +quit

Which operating system should you choose?

• Linux (e.g. Ubuntu 24.04 LTS): lower baseline memory use, service management with systemd and easy automation with scripts. Community tools such as LinuxGSM support this game and handle updates, monitoring and backups with a single command.
• Windows Server: a familiar environment for those who want to edit config files through a GUI and watch the server console in a window.

Config files are created on first run. Game.ini and Engine.ini are located in Insurgency/Saved/Config/LinuxServer on Linux and Insurgency/Saved/Config/WindowsServer on Windows; Admins.txt, MapCycle.txt and Mods.txt are kept in the Insurgency/Config/Server folder.

How many resources does an Insurgency: Sandstorm server need?

Because Insurgency: Sandstorm is built on Unreal Engine, its server needs more resources than classic Source servers; for most community servers, 4–8 GB of RAM and four fast cores are a realistic estimated starting point. The table above shows estimates for different scenarios.

The main factors behind resource use:

• Bot count and difficulty: in co-op modes the movement, aiming and team behaviour of AI soldiers are calculated on the server. Settings that raise bot count and difficulty can affect the CPU more than player count.
• Player count: on PvP servers, crowded Push and Frontline matches increase network traffic and server tick time.
• Map size: large open maps with many objectives use more memory.
• Mods and mutators: mods that add weapons, maps or game logic increase memory and disk needs.

Bot calculations are sensitive to single-core speed, so prefer a few fast, dedicated cores over many slow ones. Server files and the mod cache grow on disk over time, so leaving comfortable free space on NVMe keeps updates and mod downloads smooth.

The best way to validate your resource plan is to monitor the server during your community’s real play hours in the first week. On a co-op server, record CPU and memory while playing a scenario’s last objective with a full team; on a PvP server, during a crowded Push match. If values keep approaching the limit, review bot and mod settings first, then consider a more powerful plan. Logging measurements with the day and time lets you see in advance when an upgrade will be needed as the community grows, basing the decision on data rather than guesses.

Game server package or VDS for Sandstorm?

For Insurgency: Sandstorm the page lists VDS packages; you can install the server on a VDS yourself or request a ready-made installation through a support ticket. Details such as the GSLT, the mod.io access token, multiple config files and bot settings make a virtual server with full access a practical choice for this game.

What you control with a VDS:

• Running co-op and PvP servers together on the same machine with different port pairs.
• Editing the launch line, mutators and mod list however you like.
• Scheduling updates and daily restarts on your own timetable.
• Hosting your community’s Discord bot, stats page or admin tools on the same machine.
• Consistent server performance in heavy bot fights thanks to dedicated cores.

In return, OS updates and security are your responsibility. For a detailed comparison of the two models see game server package or VDS?. Core, RAM and disk values can change, so we give no figures here; compare the current package table on this page with the estimate table above. Moving to a larger plan as the community grows is usually more efficient than buying a big plan up front.

Which ports does an Insurgency: Sandstorm server use?

The ports commonly used on an Insurgency: Sandstorm server, in community setups and the official admin guide examples, are 27102/UDP for the game and 27131/UDP for queries; the values are set with the -Port and -QueryPort launch parameters. If RCON is enabled, a separate TCP port defined in Game.ini is used.

Sample launch line (replace the map and scenario names with your own choice):

./InsurgencyServer-Linux-Shipping Map?Scenario=Scenario_Name?MaxPlayers=8 -Port=27102 -QueryPort=27131 -log -hostname=Server_Name -MapCycle=MapCycle -GSLTToken=YOUR_TOKEN

If you open a second server on the same machine, move both ports to different values. Keep RCON off if you do not use it; if you do, set a strong password and restrict access to your own IP address.

What is a GSLT and why does a Sandstorm server need one?

A GSLT (Game Server Login Token) is a login token Steam issues to community servers so that a server connects to Steam with a persistent identity; the official Insurgency: Sandstorm admin guide treats GSLT authentication as a separate step of server setup. The token is created on Steam’s game server account management page and passed on the launch line with the -GSLTToken= parameter.

Points to watch with a GSLT:

1. Create the token with an unrestricted Steam account that owns the game.
2. If you run several servers on the same machine, use a separate token for each.
3. The token is a credential; keep it out of screenshots, shared scripts and public repositories.
4. If you think the token has leaked, regenerate it on the same page and delete the old one.
5. If your server rules break Steam’s terms of use, the token can be suspended, dropping your server from the list.

On servers started without a GSLT, listing and some features may not work as expected. If your server does not appear in the browser after setup, one of the first things to check is whether the token was entered correctly.

How do you configure Game.ini, Admins.txt and MapCycle.txt?

An Insurgency: Sandstorm server’s rules are defined in Game.ini, its admins in Admins.txt and the map and scenario order in MapCycle.txt. Together these three files define the server’s identity, and most communities keep a separate set for each mode.

• Game.ini: game settings such as round times, team balance, friendly fire, votes, bot count and difficulty, and spectating rules after death. RCON is also enabled in the [Rcon] section of Game.ini by setting bEnabled=True, a password and a listening port.
• Admins.txt: the Steam64 IDs of players who get admin rights, one ID per line. The server reads this file with the -AdminList=Admins parameter.
• MapCycle.txt: the map and scenario combinations the server opens in order, selected with the -MapCycle=MapCycle parameter.
• Engine.ini: advanced network and engine-level settings and mod.io access details.

Older community guides may show the map rotation defined inside Game.ini; the current approach is a separate MapCycle file. After changing the files, restart the server and check the log for error lines.

How do you add mod.io mods to a Sandstorm server?

Insurgency: Sandstorm mods are distributed through the mod.io platform; for the server to download mods it needs an access token created from your mod.io account and a Mods.txt file listing the mod IDs to use. The server downloads the listed mods at start-up, and connecting players download missing mods automatically in-game.

Modded server setup flow:

1. Create an access token in the API access section of your mod.io account and add it to the server configuration.
2. Write the IDs of the mods you will use into Insurgency/Config/Server/Mods.txt, one per line.
3. Add the -Mods parameter to the launch line.
4. If you will start with a custom map, specify the map and scenario name with the -ModDownloadTravelTo= parameter; the name is usually given on the mod’s page.
5. Start the server and confirm in the log that the mods were downloaded.

Mutators are the game’s built-in rule modifiers and are added with the -mutators= parameter; for example, there are options that allow only certain weapons or change health values. On modded servers you may need to wait for the mod author’s update after a game patch; remember to back up before big patches.

How do you balance co-op bot settings and performance?

On Insurgency: Sandstorm co-op servers, the game experience and server load are shaped mostly by bot count, bot difficulty and wave settings, edited in the co-op section of Game.ini. A well-balanced co-op server scales bot count to the number of players and does not tax the CPU needlessly.

Recommendations for a balanced configuration:

• Scaled bot count: use settings that spawn fewer bots when few players are connected and more when the server is busy. This keeps difficulty fair and eases the CPU during quiet hours.
• Bot difficulty: higher difficulty means more accurate bots with faster reactions; the CPU impact is limited, but it changes the player experience noticeably.
• Scheduled restarts: memory use can climb on Unreal Engine servers after long uptimes; a daily restart is a good habit.
• Removing unnecessary mods and mutators: every extra mod adds memory and load time.

When players complain about lag, separate server tick problems from network problems before changing settings.

How is a Sandstorm server protected against DDoS and cheaters?

Insurgency: Sandstorm server security rests on a strong RCON password, a short admin list, a protected GSLT and mod.io token, and network-level attack filtering. Competitive PvP servers and popular co-op communities can be targeted by traffic attacks from rival groups.

On LIONFIN infrastructure, traffic is filtered at the network level by the RouteFence firewall and NOC and SOC teams monitor 24/7 for DDoS attacks (see our data center). On the server side, apply the following:

• Add only trusted Steam64 IDs to Admins.txt.
• Enable RCON only when needed, use a strong password and protect the port with an IP restriction.
• Only the person responsible for the server should know the GSLT and mod.io token; strip these values when sharing scripts.
• Run the server as an unprivileged user; do not use root on Linux.
• Protect SSH or remote desktop access with key-based authentication and an IP restriction.

Against cheating and rule-breaking, active admins, a balanced vote-kick setting and server rules stated clearly in the welcome message matter as much for community health as the technical measures.

How do you back up and update a Sandstorm server?

The data to back up on an Insurgency: Sandstorm server is Game.ini, Engine.ini, Admins.txt, MapCycle.txt and Mods.txt, plus any ban list and custom scripts; the game has no persistent world save, so backups are small but valuable. Losing a co-op configuration you spent hours balancing is more frustrating than reinstalling the server.

1. Archive the Insurgency/Saved/Config and Insurgency/Config/Server folders with a date stamp.
2. Add your launch script to the backup, but store the tokens in it separately and securely.
3. Keep at least one copy of the archives off the server.

To update, stop the server and run app_update 581330 validate in SteamCMD. If client and server versions do not match after a game patch, players cannot connect, so do not delay updates on patch days. On modded servers, check mod compatibility after updating.

What are the most common Sandstorm server errors?

The most frequent Insurgency: Sandstorm server problems are the server not appearing in the list, mod download errors, a wrong map or scenario name and version mismatches after an update. The log file produced with the -log parameter clearly shows the cause of most issues.

• Server not in the list: the query port is closed, the GSLT is missing or invalid, or the same port is used by another instance.
• Mods do not download: the mod.io access token is not set, Mods.txt is in the wrong location, or the -Mods parameter is missing.
• Server starts and closes: the map or scenario name on the launch line is misspelled; scenario names are sensitive to letter case and underscores.
• Players get a version error: the server has not been updated; update it with SteamCMD.
• Admin commands do not work: the -AdminList parameter is missing or the Steam64 ID is wrong.

If the problem started after a change, reverting your last setting and restarting the server is the quickest way to narrow down the cause, so making changes in small steps and taking notes helps. If you cannot solve it, open a ticket from the Support section of the LIONFIN customer panel and attach the log file.