ArmA: Armed Assault: Server configuration

Introduction

Setting up a server is not easy and is not that obvious to do.

Basically, the server configuration consists of four elements:

• ArmA: Startup Parameters

• Server Basic Config file

• Server Config File

• Server Difficulty Settings File

Example Setups

Windows

Let's assume that ArmA is installed to "D:\Arma" and the Start in: property of the Windows shortcut is set to: "D:\Arma".

• Put your Server Basic Config file to "D:\ArmA\basic.cfg"

• Put your Server Config File to "D:\ArmA\server.cfg"

• Put your Server Difficulty Settings File to "D:\ArmA\Users\server\server.armaprofile"

• Command line / link target:

D:\ArmA\arma_server.exe -cfg=basic.cfg -config=server.cfg -profiles=D:\ArmA\Users\server -name=server -mod=@mod1;@mod2

The parameter requires the explicit path to the directory containing the "server.armaprofile" file and the default location for this is "Drive:\Documents and Settings\UserName\My Documents\ArmA Other Profiles". You may find the required command is longer than that permissible in the Windows Shortcut Target: option. If so, simply create a batch command file to start ArmA_Server and point the Shortcut to it:-

Shortcut properties (following the convention above where ArmA is installed to "D:\Arma", but this time the server profile is in the default "D:\Documents and Settings\%UserName%\My Documents\Arma" location): Target: D:\Batch\ArmA_Server.cmd Start in: "D:\ArmA"

Note that the batch file name can be anything you wish, "ArmA_Server.cmd" is used in this example (the .cmd extension should be maintained). Batch file: ArmA_Server.cmd

Contents:

D:\ArmA\arma_server.exe -cfg=basic.cfg -config=server.cfg -profiles="D:\Documents and Settings\%UserName%\My Documents\ArmA" -mod=@mod1;@mod2

⚠

Tip: If you are running a public server, it is probably a good idea to enable logging using the parameter: -netlog

This will record to a net.log file in the ArmA program directory, IP Address, Player name, mod's they are loading, net traffic and the Player ID which is very useful for dealing with troublemakers.

Be aware, the logs can grow large as they are not rotated, I would suggest doing this manually when the server is shutdown, or you could automate this in your startup batch file as follows:

@if exist net.log goto rotatelog else end

:rotatelog
set str=%date%
set tme=%time%
rem echo."%str%" "%tme%"
for /f "tokens=1,2,3* delims=." %%i in ("%str%") do set str=%%k%%j%%i
for /f "tokens=1,2,3* delims=:." %%i in ("%tme%") do set tme=%%i%%j%%k
rem echo."%str%" "%tme%"
move net.log .\NetLogs\%str%_%tme%_net.log
set str=
set tme=

:end
"D:\Program Files\Bohemia Interactive\ArmA\arma_server.exe" -cfg=server_basic.cfg -config=server.cfg -mod=beta;DBE1;@mod1;@mod2 -profiles="%HomeDrive%%HomePath%\My Documents\ArmA Other Profiles\public_server" -netlog -ranking=public_ranking.txt -maxmem=1024

A directory named .\ArmA\NetLogs is required. Change the delims specified for %str% to match your regional date settings, the example above uses the "." as the date separator.

Linux

Let's assume that ArmA is installed to "/usr/home/arma-server".

• Put your Server Basic Config file to "/usr/home/arma-server/basic.cfg"

• Put your Server Config File to "/usr/home/arma-server/server.cfg"

• Put your Server Difficulty Settings File to "/usr/home/arma-server/server/server.armaprofile"

• Command line / link target:

/usr/home/arma-server/server -cfg=basic.cfg -config=server.cfg -name=server -mod=@mod1\;@mod2\;@mod3

NOTE: this line is only for debugging. When you want to run the server permanently, edit and use the provided script "armaserver" that comes with the linux server files.

NOTE 2: the ';' denotes a line-end in Linux. So you have to put a backslash '\' in front of it to use multiple mods. Same if you use spaces in your directories: write 'my\ files'

Links

Example Setups at sir_hC Detailed forums discussion from CodeSkyWolf

See Also

ArmA: Startup Parameters

Server Basic Config file

Server Config File

Server Difficulty Settings File

Multiplayer Server Commands

ArmA Community Tools

See also: ArmA: Version History