How to set up an Arma 3 dedicated server on Windows

Hosting your own Arma 3 server is not as complicated as it might sound. If you have a windows PC, chances are that you can do it all from your own PC.

Even though it is not very complicated, the easiest solution would be to use one the cheap hosting providers made specifically for Arma 3. Some tried and tested hosting providers are arma3hosting.com and armahosts.com. Arma3hosting.com provides a free trial as well, so not much to loose.

Prerequisites

Before you get started, there are a couple of prerequisites that are required.

1. A legal copy of Arma 3 on Steam.
2. At least 8 GB of free disk space
3. SteamCMD. A tool for downloading game files from the Steam servers.
4. TADST. A tool for configuring your server settings.
5. Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5. Required for TADST.

Installing the game files

1. Extract SteamCMD into a folder of you choosing.
2. Open SteamCMD.exe, and wait for it to initialize.
3. Next, log in with your steam account by typing:

login <username>

If you have enabled Steam Guard, you may be asked to enter an authentication code.

4. Next step is to specify your installation directory. This is where your server files will be installed. Do this by typing:

force_install_dir <path>

5. Next, start the installation of the game files by typing:

app_update 223780 validate

6. Once the game files are installed, you can quit SteamCMD by typing:

exit

7. Finally, locate the mission (.pbo file) that you want to play, and copy it to the \MPMissions folder located in the root of your install directory you specified earlier.

Forward the required ports

Next, log in to your router and forward the following ports:

UDP 2302 default Arma 3 game port.

UDP 2303 Steam query port.

UDP 2304 Steam port.

UDP 2306 Battleye anti cheat port.

If you are unsure how to do this, portforward.com has guides for most consumer routes on how to do this.

Configure your server

The easiest way of configuring your server is to use a tool called TADST. This gives you a nice graphical user interface, allowing you to change most parameters and settings.

1. Download TADST if you have not already done so.
2. Open the zip file, and extract TADST.exe to the the root of the install directory you specified earlier.
3. Open TADST.exe
4. Click “Server File”, and select arma3server.exe, located in the root of the game install directory specified earlier.
5. Specify a name for your server, so people can find it in the in-game server browser.
6. Set an admin password for your server. This is the password that will be used to log in as an in-game admin.
7. Select the “missions” tab, and specify the mission you want to play.
8. Finally, click “save” to save your current settings.
9. To launch the server, navigate to the “details” tab, click “LAUNCH” in the bottom left.

Using admin commands

Arma 3 doesn’t have many admin commands, but there are some that are useful to know. All admin commands are written in the chat input window, which you can access by typing the chat key (default: / ).

Note: all admin commands are prefixed with the # character.

Useful commands

#login <your admin password> logs you in as admin.

#missions ends the current mission and brings up the in-game mission selector.

#kick <player name>allows you to kick players.

#restart restarts the current mission

#restartserver shuts down and restarts the server immediately

For a more extensive look into the available commands, visit the official wiki.