{"id":21153,"date":"2026-06-04T22:56:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T22:56:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/"},"modified":"2026-06-04T23:25:52","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T23:25:52","slug":"how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>This guide is for players who want to <strong>self-host<\/strong> an ARK: Survival Ascended server. If you&#8217;d rather skip the setup, port forwarding and maintenance, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/ark-survival-ascended-server-hosting\">rent a managed ARK server<\/a> that deploys in about 60 seconds.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Self-hosting ARK: Survival Ascended gives you total control over rates, mods and rules \u2014 but be warned: ASA is built on <strong>Unreal Engine 5<\/strong> and is one of the most hardware-hungry game servers there is. A weak machine will lag badly. Here&#8217;s the full process.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hardware you&#8217;ll need<\/h2>\n<p>ASA&#8217;s server is heavy. Budget a <strong>fast multi-core CPU<\/strong>, a large amount of RAM (an ASA server can use well over 10&nbsp;GB, more with mods and players), and <strong>SSD\/NVMe storage<\/strong>. Underpowered hardware is the number-one cause of a laggy self-hosted ASA server.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 1: Install with SteamCMD<\/h2>\n<p>Use <strong>SteamCMD<\/strong> to download the ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server files to your machine or VPS. The download is large, so give it time and disk space.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 2: Port forwarding<\/h2>\n<p>Forward the game and query UDP ports your server uses to the host machine in your router, choosing <strong>UDP<\/strong> when asked. Mismatched or unforwarded ports are the top reason players can&#8217;t find or join your server.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 3: Configure the server<\/h2>\n<p>Set your server name, max players, an <strong>admin password<\/strong> (so <code>EnableCheats<\/code> works), and your rates and rules in <strong><code>GameUserSettings.ini<\/code><\/strong> and <strong><code>Game.ini<\/code><\/strong>. Our <a href=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/ark-survival-ascended-server-settings-guide\">server settings guide<\/a> explains exactly what to change.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 4: Mods (optional)<\/h2>\n<p>ASA mods come through <strong>CurseForge<\/strong>, not the Steam Workshop. Add the mod IDs to your launch configuration and players download them automatically on join. See our <a href=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-install-mods-ark-survival-ascended\">mods guide<\/a> for the details and load order.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 5: Launch &amp; connect<\/h2>\n<p>Start the server with your map and launch parameters, then join via the in-game server browser or Direct Connect using your IP. Keep the server updated with SteamCMD whenever ASA patches \u2014 and it patches often.<\/p>\n<p>Because ASA&#8217;s UE5 server is so demanding, most players let a host handle the hardware. A <a href=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/ark-survival-ascended-server-hosting\"><strong>managed ARK: Survival Ascended server from $7\/month<\/strong><\/a> runs on Ryzen 9 hardware with updates handled for you \u2014 30% off with <strong>XGAMEON<\/strong>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A step-by-step guide to self-hosting an ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server \u2014 installing the server files, ports, config, mods, and when renting is easier.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":21154,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[139],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ark-survival-ascended-docs"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.5 (Yoast SEO v26.7) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server - XGamingServer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How to set up your own ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server: installing the server with SteamCMD, port forwarding, GameUserSettings config, adding mods, and connecting to your server.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How to set up your own ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server: installing the server with SteamCMD, port forwarding, GameUserSettings config, adding mods, and connecting to your server.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"XGamingServer\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/web.facebook.com\/xgamingserver69\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-04T22:56:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-04T23:25:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@xgamingserver\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@xgamingserver\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\",\"@id\":\"\"},\"headline\":\"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-04T22:56:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-04T23:25:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\"},\"wordCount\":355,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"ARK Survival Ascended\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\",\"name\":\"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server - XGamingServer\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-04T22:56:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-04T23:25:52+00:00\",\"description\":\"How to set up your own ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server: installing the server with SteamCMD, port forwarding, GameUserSettings config, adding mods, and connecting to your server.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1080},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"ARK Survival Ascended\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/category\/ark-survival-ascended-docs\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"XGamingServer\",\"description\":\"Dedicated Game Server Hosting\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"XGamingServer\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/logo.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/logo.svg\",\"width\":\"1024\",\"height\":\"1024\",\"caption\":\"XGamingServer\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/web.facebook.com\/xgamingserver69\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/xgamingserver\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/xgamingserver\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/xgamingserver\/\",\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/xgamingserver\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCHnOtWxpzaL2r3jM9Jm40EQ\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server - XGamingServer","description":"How to set up your own ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server: installing the server with SteamCMD, port forwarding, GameUserSettings config, adding mods, and connecting to your server.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server","og_description":"How to set up your own ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server: installing the server with SteamCMD, port forwarding, GameUserSettings config, adding mods, and connecting to your server.","og_url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/","og_site_name":"XGamingServer","article_publisher":"https:\/\/web.facebook.com\/xgamingserver69\/","article_published_time":"2026-06-04T22:56:52+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-06-04T23:25:52+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@xgamingserver","twitter_site":"@xgamingserver","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/"},"author":{"name":"","@id":""},"headline":"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server","datePublished":"2026-06-04T22:56:52+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-04T23:25:52+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/"},"wordCount":355,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg","articleSection":["ARK Survival Ascended"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/","url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/","name":"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server - XGamingServer","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-04T22:56:52+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-04T23:25:52+00:00","description":"How to set up your own ARK Survival Ascended dedicated server: installing the server with SteamCMD, port forwarding, GameUserSettings config, adding mods, and connecting to your server.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg","width":1920,"height":1080},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/how-to-set-up-ark-survival-ascended-dedicated-server\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ARK Survival Ascended","item":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/category\/ark-survival-ascended-docs\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"How to Set Up Your Own ARK: Survival Ascended Dedicated Server"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/","name":"XGamingServer","description":"Dedicated Game Server Hosting","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"XGamingServer","url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/logo.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/logo.svg","width":"1024","height":"1024","caption":"XGamingServer"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/web.facebook.com\/xgamingserver69\/","https:\/\/x.com\/xgamingserver","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/xgamingserver\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/xgamingserver\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/xgamingserver\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCHnOtWxpzaL2r3jM9Jm40EQ"]}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/ark-setup.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21153"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21153\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21215,"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21153\/revisions\/21215"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xgamingserver.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}