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How to set up a private, vanilla Counter-Strike 2 server

Counter-Strike 2dedicated serverserver.cfggsltprivatevanilla

Published Aug 19, 2026

Almost every CS2 server guide online is really a MatchZy guide: a full competitive match plugin, knife rounds, and a pile of config. This is the opposite. You want a private CS2 dedicated server for you and your friends, plain vanilla, no plugins. It is a much shorter setup than the internet makes it look, and it comes down to one thing most people miss: the login token is mandatory now.

First: the GSLT token (not optional)

CS2 will not accept connections on a public IP without a Game Server Login Token (GSLT). This is the single most common reason a fresh server "boots fine but nobody can join". Get one for free:

  • Go to the Steam Game Server Account Management page (steamcommunity.com/dev/managegameservers).
  • Create a token for app ID 730 (Counter-Strike 2). You get a long string back.
  • It ties to your Steam account. One token per server. Do not share it; a leaked token can get your account’s servers banned.

Install the server

The CS2 dedicated server is app 730 (same as the game). Install it with SteamCMD:

./steamcmd.sh +login anonymous \
  +app_update 730 validate \
  +quit

Anonymous login works; you do not need to own the game on the server account. The config lives at:

<install>/game/csgo/cfg/server.cfg

A vanilla server.cfg

Paste this, change the three values marked CHANGE ME. No plugins, no MatchZy.

// --- Identity ---
hostname "My Private CS2 Server"          // CHANGE ME
sv_setsteamaccount "YOUR_GSLT_TOKEN"      // CHANGE ME - the token from above

// --- Lock it down ---
sv_password "friends-only"                // CHANGE ME - join password
rcon_password "pick-a-long-secret"        // admin console over RCON

// --- Vanilla behaviour ---
sv_cheats 0
sv_pure 1
sv_lan 0
mp_autoteambalance 1
mp_limitteams 2

// --- A sane private match ---
mp_maxrounds 24
mp_roundtime 1.92
mp_freezetime 15
mp_warmuptime 30
sv_alltalk 0
sv_deadtalk 1

That is a complete private competitive config. The game mode and starting map are NOT in here: CS2 sets those on the launch line, because game_type and game_mode must be known before the map loads.

The launch line

Start the server from the install folder. Note it is the cs2 binary with -dedicated, not srcds_run anymore:

./game/bin/linuxsteamrt64/cs2 -dedicated \
  -ip 0.0.0.0 -port 27015 \
  +game_type 0 +game_mode 1 \
  +map de_dust2 \
  -maxplayers 10 \
  +exec server.cfg
  • game_type 0 + game_mode 1 is standard 5v5 Competitive. See the table below for the other modes.
  • map de_dust2 is the starting map. Any official map works (de_mirage, de_inferno, cs_office…).
  • exec server.cfg runs your cvars, including sv_setsteamaccount, before players connect.
  • Port 27015 is the game and A2S query port. Open it in your firewall (UDP + TCP).

The game_type / game_mode pairs

CS2 does not have a single "mode" cvar. Every mode is a pair of two numbers:

game_type  game_mode   Mode
    0          0        Casual
    0          1        Competitive (5v5)
    0          2        Wingman (2v2)
    0          3        Hostage / Casual (cs_ maps)
    1          0        Arms Race
    1          1        Demolition
    1          2        Deathmatch

Changing game_type on a live server is unstable in CS2, so pick your mode on the launch line and restart the process to switch. Changing only the map (changelevel de_mirage) within the same mode is fine.

Loading a workshop map

Workshop maps are not a launch argument. You load them at runtime with host_workshop_map and the map’s workshop ID, and the server downloads and hosts it. Add -disable_workshop_command_filtering to the launch line first, then in the server console (or over RCON):

host_workshop_map 3070315466

The number is the ID from the workshop page URL. The first load pulls the map from Steam, so give it a moment. This is the one CS2 gotcha that trips everyone up: putting a workshop map name after +map on the launch line does nothing; it has to be host_workshop_map.

Keeping it private

With sv_password set, only people who type the password can connect. Share your server’s IP and the password with your group and have them use the console: connect your.server.ip:27015; password friends-only. A password also keeps the server out of the public quick-play pool, which is what you want for a private game.

See also

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