Port Forwarding
What is Port Forwarding?
Port-forwarding is the term used to describe the process of allowing incoming connections through your router on specific ports, and forwarding those connections to the computer that the server is running on.
Why do I need it?
Servers hosted from PC's at home need to allow incoming connections since most routers block incoming connections for security reasons which means players won't be able to connect to your server, and the server listing won't be able to show your server since it can't communicate with it either.
How do I open ports?
This is usually done within the router's configuration. The instructions for port forwarding are different for almost every router so they won't be listed here, but here's a webpage where you can choose your router from the list: portforward.com. When selecting a router, the website will give you instructions on how to open ports for it. You'll need to open UDP and TCP ports for the server and HTTP connections. The default ports are 22000 for both, but you can change these ports in your server config
Troubleshooting
A few things to remember:
- If you do not have access to your router, you will not be able to port forward
- Some routers may require a restart or complete disconnect to apply the changes to the firewall for opening ports. Depending on the router, it could take a few seconds up to several minutes.
- Some ISPs may block certain ports (or all of them). Unfortunately there's not much we can do about that. In this case, you may need to use a VPN or contact your ISP to see if they'll open the needed ports.
- Hosting companies that provide services like VPS or game servers don't usually need to be port-forwarded, but usually cost money.
- If your ISP uses carrier-grade NAT (CGNAT) then you will not be able to portforward.