How to host a Counter-Strike server on a Linux VPS with SRCDS

Update system packages:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Reboot only if the kernel was updated (sudo reboot). Otherwise, continue directly.

Enable 32-bit architecture and install dependencies:

sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y lib32gcc-s1 lib32stdc++6 libcurl4-gnutls-dev:i386 \
  ca-certificates wget curl tar screen ufw

The :i386 packages are mandatory — SRCDS complains with a generic “library not found” error if they are missing, without saying which one.

Create a dedicated user for the server (never run SRCDS as root):

sudo useradd -m -s /bin/bash csserver
sudo passwd csserver

Running as root exposes the entire system if the server is exploited through some engine bug. A dedicated user isolates the process.

Switch to the csserver user and create the folder structure:

sudo su - csserver
mkdir -p ~/steamcmd ~/csgo-server
cd ~/steamcmd

Download and extract SteamCMD:

wget https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/client/installer/steamcmd_linux.tar.gz
tar -xvzf steamcmd_linux.tar.gz
rm steamcmd_linux.tar.gz

The first SteamCMD execution auto-updates the utility and downloads additional runtime — wait a few minutes.

Install the CS:GO Dedicated Server (AppID 232330):

./steamcmd.sh +force_install_dir /home/csserver/csgo-server \
  +login anonymous \
  +app_update 232330 validate \
  +quit

For CS 1.6 (HLDS), use this instead:

./steamcmd.sh +force_install_dir /home/csserver/cs16-server \
  +login anonymous \
  +app_update 90 validate \
  +quit

The download is roughly 3-4 GB for CS:GO and 300 MB for CS 1.6. If the connection drops mid-way, run the same command — SteamCMD resumes where it left off, and validate fixes corrupted files.

Configure UFW allowing SSH and CS ports:

exit  # back to the sudo user
sudo ufw allow 22/tcp
sudo ufw allow 27015/udp
sudo ufw allow 27015/tcp
sudo ufw --force enable
sudo ufw status numbered

Make sure SSH (22/tcp) is allowed before enabling — otherwise you get disconnected and locked out.

Switch back to the csserver user and create the file:

sudo su - csserver
nano ~/csgo-server/csgo/cfg/server.cfg

Paste a minimal working template:

hostname "My CS:GO Server"
rcon_password "CHANGE_TO_SOMETHING_STRONG"
sv_password ""
sv_lan 0
sv_region 255
mp_friendlyfire 0
sv_cheats 0
sv_pure 1
mp_autoteambalance 1
mp_limitteams 1
mp_maxrounds 30
log on
sv_logbans 1
sv_logecho 1
sv_logfile 1

sv_region 255 is worldwide; use specific values (0 = US East, 1 = US West, 2 = South America, 3 = Europe, 4 = Asia, 5 = Australia, 6 = Middle East, 7 = Africa) to filter by location in the Steam browser. The rcon_password should be long and unique; RCON exposed with a weak password is a common takeover vector.

Create the systemd service (as root):

exit
sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/csgo.service

Content:

[Unit]
Description=CS:GO Dedicated Server
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=csserver
WorkingDirectory=/home/csserver/csgo-server
ExecStart=/home/csserver/csgo-server/srcds_run -game csgo -console -usercon \
  +game_type 0 +game_mode 1 +mapgroup mg_active +map de_dust2 \
  -tickrate 128 -port 27015 +sv_setsteamaccount YOUR_GSLT_HERE \
  -maxplayers_override 16
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=10

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Replace YOUR_GSLT_HERE with the token generated at steamcommunity.com/dev/managegameservers. Without a valid GSLT, the server does not appear in the public CS:GO browser since 2016.

Enable and start the server:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable csgo.service
sudo systemctl start csgo.service
sudo systemctl status csgo.service

The status should show active (running) and a few lines of SRCDS startup logs.

Check the process and the port:

sudo ss -ulnp | grep 27015
sudo journalctl -u csgo.service -n 50 --no-pager

You should see *:27015 in LISTEN UDP and logs showing the de_dust2 map loaded.

In the Steam client, open the console (~) and connect:

connect YOUR_VPS_IP:27015

If it connects, the server is operational. For the public browser, go to “Community Servers” in the CS:GO menu — the server appears in 2-5 minutes after registration with a valid GSLT.