Guides
Everything you need to set up and run your server the right way. Or open the CS2 command cheatsheet.
How to host a Counter-Strike: Condition Zero server (2026)
Host a Counter-Strike: Condition Zero dedicated server by the hour. Bots fill the server, Bomb Defusal and Hostage Rescue on every stock map, friends join by IP, ready in about 5 minutes.
How to Host a Counter-Strike: Source Server (CS:S Dedicated)
Set up a Counter-Strike: Source dedicated server by the hour. Bomb Defusal and Hostage Rescue on every stock map, native RCON, AI bots, ready in about 5 minutes.
Adding Bots to a Counter-Strike: Source Server (bot_quota, bot_difficulty)
Add AI bots to your Counter-Strike: Source server with bot_quota, bot_difficulty, and bot_kick. Fill empty slots for a scrim or warmup in seconds.
Best Counter-Strike: Source Maps (Stock de_ and cs_ Pool)
The best Counter-Strike: Source maps to host, from de_dust2 to cs_office. Every stock map ships with the server, so nobody downloads anything to join.
How to host a Day of Defeat server (GoldSrc dedicated)
Host a Day of Defeat: Classic dedicated server by the hour. GoldSrc WWII combat, every stock map built in, friends join by IP, ready in about 5 minutes.
How to host a Day of Defeat: Source server (DoD:S dedicated server)
Set up a Day of Defeat: Source dedicated server (srcds) by the hour. WWII team combat on Anzio, Avalanche and Colmar, native RCON, friends join by IP. Ready in about 5 minutes.
How to host a Half-Life Deathmatch server (GoldSrc, 2026)
Host a Half-Life Deathmatch dedicated server, ready in about 5 minutes. GoldSrc app 90, the valve game folder, every classic map, and how friends connect. Pay by the hour.
How to Host a Killing Floor Server (6-Player Co-op)
Set up a Killing Floor dedicated server in about 5 minutes. 6-player wave-survival co-op, all official maps, Beginner to Hell on Earth, XWebAdmin panel, paid by the hour.
Left 4 Dead game modes: Co-op, Versus and Survival explained
The three Left 4 Dead (1) game modes you can host: four-survivor Co-op, 4v4 Versus and Survival, plus the exact campaigns each one runs.
How to host a Left 4 Dead server (dedicated, by the hour)
Set up a Left 4 Dead (1) dedicated server in about five minutes. Pick a campaign and mode, share the connect string, and run admin commands over RCON. Pay by the hour.
Quake Live game modes explained: Clan Arena, Duel, FFA, TDM, CTF, Freeze Tag
A plain guide to the Quake Live gametypes you can pick when you deploy a server: Clan Arena, Duel, Free For All, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and Freeze Tag, with the maps that fit each one.
Best Sven Co-op maps and campaigns to play (2026)
The best Sven Co-op maps and campaigns for a full squad, which ones ship built in, and how they load on a hosted server. Play them by the hour, no port-forwarding.
How to host a Team Fortress 2 dedicated server
Set up a Team Fortress 2 dedicated server the manual way with srcds and app 232250, or skip the work and get one by the hour, ready in about 5 minutes.
How to host a Team Fortress Classic server
Host a Team Fortress Classic dedicated server by the hour. GoldSrc HLDS, the tfc mod, official maps built in, ready in about 5 minutes. Friends join by IP.
How to set up a Valheim dedicated server (2026)
Set up a Valheim dedicated server the fast way or run it yourself. Correct Steam app ids, ports, the mandatory join password rule, and a world saved between sessions for up to 10 vikings, hosted by the hour.
Valheim world modifiers and difficulty presets explained
Every Valheim world modifier preset explained: Standard, Casual, Easy, Hard, Hardcore, Immersive, and Hammer. Pick one when you deploy a Valheim server by the hour on 2hours.gg.
How to join a Valheim server, and how crossplay changes it
How friends join your Valheim server with Join IP and the password, plus what crossplay does: with crossplay on there is no IP join, players use a join code instead. Host a Valheim world by the hour on 2hours.gg.
How to host a Wreckfest dedicated server
Host a Wreckfest dedicated server by the hour, ready in about 5 minutes. Demolition derby and banger racing for up to 24, AI drivers fill the pack, friends join from the in-game server browser.
Wreckfest game modes explained: racing vs derby
The Wreckfest game modes you can host: Derby Deathmatch, Derby, Team Derby, Racing, Team Race, and Elimination Race. What each mode does and which to pick.
CS2 practice server: nade config, lineups, and the maps everyone uses
A copy-paste CS2 practice config (sv_cheats, infinite nades, grenade trajectory) and the workshop maps the community actually uses for lineups, prefire, aim, and spray. Drill solo, or deploy a server so your whole team practices executes together.
Left 4 Dead 2 mutations: Hard Eight, Gib Fest, and how to set them
Run any L4D2 mutation on your own server instead of waiting for the weekly rotation. The mp_gamemode ids for Hard Eight, Realism Versus, Gib Fest and more, how to set them from the web console, and how to play Hard Eight with a full 8-player team.
The best Left 4 Dead 2 co-op campaigns to play with friends
Seven must-play L4D2 custom co-op campaigns from the Steam Workshop: Warcelona, Suicide Blitz 2, Diescraper Redux, Urban Flight and more. What each one is, and how to load them on a server your whole squad joins.
How to host a Counter-Strike 1.6 server
Set up a Counter-Strike 1.6 dedicated server: the HLDS install (app 90, mod cstrike), a vanilla server.cfg, the launch line, and how friends connect by IP. Or skip it all and deploy one by the hour.
The best Counter-Strike 1.6 maps
The classic CS 1.6 maps worth loading, from de_dust2 and de_inferno to cs_assault and cs_italy. Every official map ships with the server, so pick one at deploy and play, no downloads.
The best free multiplayer games on Steam
Free-to-play multiplayer games on Steam that hold up with a small group. Which ones you can run your own private server for, which ones you cannot, and how to get everyone into the same match.
Quake Live server guide: console, join, maps and admin
How to open the Quake Live console, how friends join (connect ip:27960), changing map and gametype, callvotes, and how server admin works.
How to set up a Quake Live dedicated server
Step by step: install the Quake Live dedicated server with SteamCMD (app 349090), launch it, open the ports, configure gametypes and maps, and grant admin. Or skip it and deploy one in a click.
How the group ping test works
The logic, features, and maths behind the 2hours.gg group ping test: how it measures everyone's latency, why the "fairest" region is the one with the lowest worst ping (minimax), and how to read the map.
Half-Life Deathmatch server guide and commands
How friends join your Half-Life Deathmatch server, changing map, and the admin commands you run from the in-game console.
Valheim on 2hours.gg: your world is saved between sessions
How world persistence works on a 2hours.gg Valheim server: the world is snapshotted automatically when your session ends, you resume it next time, how friends join, in-game admin, crossplay, and what does not work.
The best cheap and free games to play with friends
Old-school multiplayer games that are free or a few dollars, play great with a small group, and take one click to host a private server for. Free picks first, then the cheap ones, each with where to get it and how to play together.
Fistful of Frags game modes: Deathmatch, Team Play and High Roller
What Deathmatch, Team Play and High Roller are in Fistful of Frags, and how to pick the mode on a 2hours.gg server. FoF has no mode cvar, the mode is the map set you deploy with.
Pirates, Vikings & Knights II game modes explained
Booty, Team Objective, Trinket Wars, Last Team Standing and Deathmatch in PVKII, and why the mode comes from the map name. How to pick and switch modes on a 2hours.gg server.
Zombie Panic! Source game modes: Survival and Objective
How Survival and Objective play in Zombie Panic! Source, the humans versus a player-controlled zombie twist, and how to pick the mode on a 2hours.gg server.
Day of Infamy game modes: PvP and co-op explained
The Day of Infamy modes, split by PvP (Frontline, Liberation, Stronghold, Entrenchment, Firefight) and co-op vs AI (Raid, Patrol, Offensive), and how to pick or switch the mode on a 2hours.gg server.
Arma 3 server guide: joining, controls, Zeus and admin
How friends join your vanilla Arma 3 server, the controls that trip up new players, how to run Zeus Game Master, and how in-game admin works.
CS:GO server admin commands (SourceMod)
Every useful CS:GO admin command on your 2hours.gg server: kick, ban, change map, restart the match, tweak rounds and bots, run votes and fun commands, and which commands are blocked for safety. Run them in-game with SourceMod.
How to host a CS:GO server your friends can join over the internet
Legacy CS:GO servers fail with "connect failed after 30 retries". Here is exactly why, and the full working setup: a GSLT, MetaMod, SourceMod and NoLobbyReservation, on a public IP.
How to host a CS:GO LAN server
The simplest way to play legacy CS:GO with friends: a LAN server. No token, no plugins. Plus how to play LAN over the internet with a VPN.
How to launch legacy CS:GO, open the console, and connect to a server
CS2 replaced CS:GO in your Steam library. Here is how to get the legacy CS:GO client back through the csgo_legacy beta branch, turn on the developer console, and connect to any server by IP.
How to set up a Half-Life 2: Deathmatch dedicated server
A vanilla HL2:DM dedicated server from SteamCMD: app 232370, the srcds_run launch line where the map and player count live, a locked-down server.cfg, and free-for-all vs team deathmatch.
How to set up a Half-Life Deathmatch: Source dedicated server
A vanilla HLDM:Source dedicated server: the two-app install (engine 232370 plus content 360), the server_srv.so symlink that stops a fresh server crashing on boot, and the srcds_run launch line.
How to set up a Sven Co-op dedicated server
A vanilla Sven Co-op dedicated server: the standalone anonymous install (app 276060, no Half-Life needed), the svends_run launch line, granting yourself admin with admins.txt, and where custom maps stand.
How to set up a private, vanilla Counter-Strike 2 server
A plain launch line and server.cfg for a private CS2 dedicated server with no MatchZy and no plugins. The mandatory GSLT token, the game_type/game_mode pairs, password lock-down, and loading a workshop map.
How to set up a private, near-vanilla Left 4 Dead 2 server
A plain server.cfg and launch line for a 24/7 private Left 4 Dead 2 dedicated server with little to no mods. Password, private lobbies, difficulty, game mode, and the four-player co-op catch.
How to set up a Killing Floor 2 dedicated server
A vanilla Killing Floor 2 dedicated server from SteamCMD: the launch line, the first-boot config regeneration you must do before editing INIs, the Web Admin panel (KF2 has no RCON), and the six-player cap.
Killing Floor (original) server admin: WebAdmin and joining
How to run your 2hours.gg Killing Floor server. The original KF has no in-game RCON, so you manage it from the XWebAdmin panel. How friends join, changing map and difficulty, and what ships built in.
Team Fortress Classic server guide and commands
How friends join your Team Fortress Classic server, the RCON admin commands you get as owner, changing map, and what ships built in.
Counter-Strike: Source server guide and RCON commands
How friends join your Counter-Strike: Source server, adding bots, changing map and gametype, and the RCON commands you run from the web console.
Counter-Strike 1.6 server guide and commands
How friends join your Counter-Strike 1.6 server, changing map and gametype, the admin commands you run from the in-game console, and what ships built in.
Counter-Strike: Condition Zero server guide and commands
How friends join your Condition Zero server, the built-in bots, changing map and gametype, and the admin commands you run from the in-game console.
Left 4 Dead server guide and commands
How friends join your Left 4 Dead server, co-op vs Versus, changing campaign, and the RCON commands you run from the console.
Day of Defeat server guide and commands
How friends join your Day of Defeat server, changing map, and the admin commands you run from the in-game console.
Day of Defeat: Source server guide and commands
How friends join your Day of Defeat: Source server, changing map, and the RCON commands you run from the web console.
Fistful of Frags server guide and commands
How friends join your Fistful of Frags server, the game modes, and the RCON commands you run from the web console.
Zombie Panic! Source server guide and commands
How friends join your Zombie Panic! Source server, the game modes, and the RCON commands you run from the web console.
Pirates, Vikings & Knights II server guide and commands
How friends join your Pirates, Vikings & Knights II server, the game modes, and the RCON commands you run from the web console.
Day of Infamy server guide and commands
How friends join your Day of Infamy server, the game modes, and the RCON commands you run from the web console.
Wreckfest server guide: joining, modes and derby
How friends join your Wreckfest server, the derby and racing modes, and what is set on deploy vs in-game.
How to run a Windows-only game server on Linux
A working recipe for running a Windows-only Steam dedicated server on a Linux box with Wine, using Alien Swarm: Reactive Drop as the example: the console fix, the Steam library fix (steam.dll), and the A2S trap that makes a working server look dead.
Team Fortress 2 server commands
The console commands that work on every 2hours.gg TF2 server, how friends join, and what admin can do. You are the admin on your own server.
Team Fortress 2 gametypes and maps
Every gametype you can host (Payload, King of the Hill, Control Point, Attack/Defend, CTF, Arena), the stock maps for each, and how bots handle them.
How the bots work on a TF2 server
Our TF2 servers fill empty seats with friendly AI bots that leave as your friends join. How to set the count and difficulty, and which maps they play well.
Half-Life Deathmatch: Source server commands
The console and RCON commands that work on every 2hours.gg HLDM:Source server, how friends join, and what does not work.
Killing Floor 2 server admin: WebAdmin and commands
How to run your 2hours.gg Killing Floor 2 server. KF2 has no in-game RCON, so you manage it from the WebAdmin panel and the web console. How friends join, and what admin can do.
Killing Floor 2 game modes, difficulty and wave length
Survival, Weekly Outbreak, Versus and Endless explained, plus what Normal to Hell on Earth and Short/Medium/Long waves actually change. Pick them on deploy.
Killing Floor 2 with more than 6 players (12 and 24)
Vanilla KF2 caps at 6. We run 12 or 24 with Server Extension. The honest trade: those tiers are a modded, unranked big-lobby mode with its own perk progression, not vanilla.
Custom Workshop maps on a Killing Floor 2 server
KF2 auto-delivers Steam Workshop maps to players on join, so nobody has to subscribe first. How to add one on deploy, and the one catch (custom content runs unranked).
Sven Co-op server guide and commands
How friends join your Sven Co-op server, the in-game admin commands you get as owner, changing campaign, and what ships built in.
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch server commands
The chat and console commands that work on every 2hours.gg HL2:DM server. You are the admin on your own server.
Left 4 Dead 2 server commands and mods
The chat commands that work on every 2hours.gg L4D2 server, and what the pre-installed mods do. You are the admin on your own server.
Left 4 Dead 2 game modes: Co-op, Versus, Survival and Scavenge
The difference between Co-op, Realism, Versus, Survival and Scavenge on a Left 4 Dead 2 server, and how to switch between them on a 2hours.gg server with mp_gamemode.
Playing Left 4 Dead 2 with more than 4 players
Left 4 Dead 2 caps co-op at four survivors by default. Every 2hours.gg L4D2 server raises that so 5, 8 or more friends can play the same campaign together. Here is how it works and how to join.
Playing custom Left 4 Dead 2 campaigns (everyone must subscribe)
How to run a custom L4D2 Workshop campaign on a 2hours.gg server. Unlike CS2, the L4D2 server can't push the map to players, so every person joining must subscribe to the campaign on Steam first. Here's the flow.
Fun CS2 maps to play with friends
Prop hunt, hide and seek, surf, 1v1 arenas, arms race, and minigame maps for a casual CS2 session. The map types groups actually load on a private server, and how to find current ones.
How to spectate a CS2 match with GOTV
Every 2hours.gg server runs GOTV automatically on port 27020, anyone can spectate live with a 105-second delay, no password, no slot taken from the match.
Downloading and watching your CS2 demos
Every map on 2hours.gg is auto-recorded and uploaded after the match. Here is where to find your demos, how to play them back in CS2, and how to share them with teammates.
CS2 server commands reference (MatchZy, RCON, spectator, demos)
Every chat, RCON, and client console command useful on a 2hours.gg CS2 server. MatchZy match flow, map management, spectator controls, and demo playback.
Playing any Steam Workshop map on a CS2 server
How to deploy a 2hours.gg CS2 server running any Steam Workshop map, prophunt, surf, bhop, custom competitive maps. The server auto-downloads the VPKs, no manual uploads.
How a MatchZy 5v5 match flows from join to demo
Every step of running a competitive 5v5 on a 2hours.gg server with MatchZy, readying up, knife round, side pick, MR12 + overtime, pauses, and the demo upload at the end.
Free 2-hour Small CS2 server, how it works
Every signed-in account gets one free 2-hour Small (1v1/2v2) CS2 server, once. No payment, no card, no trial period. Here is exactly what you get and how to claim it.
Hosting a CS2 tournament or 5v5 night with friends
A complete walkthrough for running a small CS2 tournament or 5v5 night on a 2hours.gg server, bracket planning, server deploy, sharing connect info, running back-to-back matches, and pulling demos for review.
Picking the right region for your CS2 server
How to choose the fairest region for your group across 45 global locations on 2hours.gg, with the group ping test, regional clusters, and what to do when players span continents.
Running a CS2 surf, bhop, or KZ server with SharpTimer
Deploy a CS2 server with SharpTimer preconfigured for surf, bhop, KZ, or climb. Workshop maps, leaderboards, replay bots, no setup. Built for the community-server crowd CS:S left behind.
Refunds, credits, and what happens when something goes wrong
How 2hours.gg handles failed boots, mid-match issues, unused time, and the credit system. Auto-refunds on failure, no expiry on credits, 30-minute grace period, the rules in one place.