Guides · FiveM
FiveM slot counts versus the players who actually turn up
145 FiveM servers declared 2,048 slots, yet the median server peaked at 38 players in a week. What the number after the slash does and does not tell you.
· 5 min read
521 articles
SweetMask
SweetMask is a gaming enthusiast and content writer covering gaming news, updates, guides, and online communities. Focused on delivering clear, accurate, and useful content, he helps players stay informed about the latest developments, game updates, and trends across the gaming world.
Articles
521 resultsGame Updates · FiveM
FiveM Community Spotlight October Adds Spooky Scripts
The fivem community spotlight october showcase introduces ghost hunting, fingerprint libraries, and Halloween props for server hosts and players.
· 3 min read
Guides · Minecraft
The MOTD and the server icon: what Minecraft's list shows first
What a server sends to Minecraft's multiplayer list: a 64x64 server-icon.png, two lines of MOTD and a player sample, and how to set each one.
· 5 min read
Guides · Terraria
TShock for Terraria servers: what it adds and when to skip it
TShock adds accounts, permissions, regions and server-side characters to Terraria. First-run setup, backups, and the lag after each game update.
· 4 min read
Guides · Counter-Strike 2
CS2 server plugins: Metamod:Source and CounterStrikeSharp
CS2 plugins run on Metamod:Source 2.x and CounterStrikeSharp, not SourceMod. How to install the stack, vet a plugin, and recover after each game update.
· 5 min read
Guides · Factorio
Running a Factorio headless server
The headless build, server-settings.json, admins and whitelists, UDP 34197, mod sync and Space Age, a systemd unit, and updating without losing the map.
· 4 min read
Guides · Minecraft
Which Minecraft versions servers actually run in 2026
We read the version field of 4,230 Minecraft listings: 26.x now edges out 1.21.x, proxies held 86% of players, and 17% had no server behind them.
· 6 min read
Game Updates · Minecraft
Minecraft Snapshot 25w35a Adds Server Management API
Minecraft snapshot 25w35a introduces a JSON-RPC management WebSocket protocol and moves core server properties into dynamic game rules.
· 4 min read
Guides · Left 4 Dead 2
Left 4 Dead 2 tickrate: what 30, 60 and 100 tick actually cost
L4D2 servers run at 30 tick until Tickrate Enabler is installed. The rate cvars that must follow, what clients really get, and the CPU cost of hordes.
· 5 min read
Guides · FiveM
Buying FiveM scripts safely: escrow, Tebex and leaks
What arrives when you buy a FiveM script, what escrow encrypts, which Cfx.re account owns it, and how to check a resource you did not write for backdoors.
· 6 min read
Guides · DayZ
DayZ server mods and keys, and why players get kicked on join
How -mod and -serverMod load mods, why every mod's .bikey belongs in the keys folder, and what to do when a Workshop update starts kicking players.
· 5 min read
Guides · Minecraft
Folia for Minecraft servers: what it changes and who it is for
Folia ticks separate regions of the world on separate cores. What that breaks for plugins, which servers gain from it, and how to test a switch.
· 5 min read
Guides · Palworld
Palworld dedicated server settings that change the game
Edit PalWorldSettings.ini, not the default file. The keys that shape a server, plus admin commands, the REST API, port 8211 and backups after 1.0.
· 5 min read
Game Updates · Minecraft
Minecraft Snapshot 25w36a Adds Mannequins for Hosts
Minecraft snapshot 25w36a introduces mannequin entities, dimension-specific world borders, and Data Pack 86.0 for Java Edition servers.
· 3 min read
Guides
The maps Counter-Strike community servers actually run
In one week, Dust2 took about a quarter of player-hours on CS 1.6 and CS:S servers and Mirage 36.5% on CS2, while thousands of maps split the rest.
· 6 min read
Guides · Don't Starve Together
Don't Starve Together dedicated servers: clusters and shards
How a DST cluster fits together: cluster.ini, the token, Master and Caves shards, ports, per-shard mods, world settings and rollbacks.
· 5 min read
Guides
Packet loss or high ping: working out which one you have
They feel different and show up differently in a trace. How to tell them apart with CS2's telemetry, pathping and mtr, and what to send the owner.
· 5 min read
Game Updates · Minecraft
Minecraft 26.4 Snapshot 6 Changes for Server Hosts
Minecraft 26.4 Snapshot 6 brings automatic heap limits, Snow Bricks, Cold Sulfur Cubes, and Data Pack 125.1 updates for server administrators.
· 4 min read
Game Updates · Minecraft
Minecraft 1.21.9 Pre-Release 1 Drops for Java Hosts
Minecraft 1.21.9 pre release 1 brings Data Pack 87.1, cross-dimension world spawns, mannequin pose tags, and management protocol fixes for Java servers.
· 3 min read
Game Updates · Minecraft
Minecraft Snapshot 25w37a Adds TLS for Server Hosts
Minecraft snapshot 25w37a adds TLS and bearer token authentication to the Server Management Protocol, requiring keystore configuration for hosts.
· 4 min read
Guides · Minecraft
Geyser and Floodgate: letting Bedrock players onto a Java server
Geyser translates Bedrock's UDP protocol for a Java server; Floodgate drops the Java account. Ports, name prefixes, whitelists, proxies and anticheat.
· 6 min read
Guides · Valheim
Setting up a Valheim dedicated server that keeps its world
SteamCMD app 896660, the start script arguments, UDP 2456 and 2457, how Valheim 1.0 stores a world, and moving your own world onto the server.
· 6 min read
Guides · Counter-Strike 2
Game Server Login Tokens: why a CS2 server drops off the list
Without a token for app 730, a CS2 server is LAN only. Creating GSLTs, one per server, regenerating, expiry, and what a token ban costs the owner.
· 4 min read
Game Updates · 7 Days to Die
7 Days to Die 3.4.0 Stable Released for Hosts
The 7 Days to Die 3.4.0 stable update adds inventory filtering, trader drone recovery, and quest crash workarounds for server hosts and players.
· 3 min read