Install it
The manual route is the one Funcom describe on their own site. Install Conan Exiles Dedicated Server, found in your Steam library under tools, and the files land under your Steam library in steamapps\common\Conan Exiles Dedicated Server.
The other route is Funcom's Dedicated Server Launcher, a Windows utility written by their tools programmer. You download a single executable, put it in its own folder near the base of a drive, and run it. It installs and updates SteamCMD itself, then downloads the game server and any mods you named. Funcom's advice on where to put it is specific: avoid paths with unusual characters or tabs, and avoid the desktop, the downloads folder, and anywhere with special access rights.
Do not treat the launcher as a dependency. Funcom answer that question directly in their own FAQ: the launcher is a helping hand, the SteamCMD and game server windows are fully visible outside it, and you can close the launcher once the server is running. Plan disk space for the unpacked SteamCMD plus the server files, and leave room on top for the database and the logs, which both grow.
The two config files
Conan splits its settings across ini files in ConanSandbox\Saved\Config\WindowsServer. Funcom confirm in the launcher FAQ that everything the tool needs lives in those same files, with no separate config and no registry keys, so hand-editing and the launcher cannot drift apart.
Engine.ini, section[OnlineSubsystem]:ServerNameandServerPassword. The name is what appears in the browser, so make it descriptive and reasonably unique. The password is optional; leave it out and anyone can connect.ServerSettings.ini, section[ServerSettings]:AdminPassword. That is what you use with theMakeMeAdmincommand in game.Game.ini, section[RconPlugin]:RconPort, if you want remote console.
Player count is set here too, and Funcom are plain that it has a direct effect on how the server performs. Pick a number the machine can actually carry rather than the number you would like.
Start it
Go to the server folder and run either StartServer.bat or ConanSandboxServer.exe. Funcom warn that starting the dedicated server build from the Steam client throws a series of Steam dll error messages; that is not the recommended way to start it, though clicking past the errors generally still works. The batch file is the better habit because it carries the details and the logs.
Ports, including the one you cannot change
| Port | Protocol | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| 7777 | UDP | Game port. Set in Engine.ini under [URL] as Port=7777, or on the command line with -Port=. |
| 7778 | UDP | Pinger, used by the server browser to work out whether the server is up. Funcom describe this as a hardcoded value, always the game port plus one, with no way to change it from the command line or a config file. |
| 27015 | UDP | Server query. Set as GameServerQueryPort under [OnlineSubsystemNull], or with -QueryPort=. Funcom note the [OnlineSubsystemSteam] section is deprecated and should be removed, because the dedicated server app no longer goes through Steam for this. |
| 7777 | TCP | Mod download, opened on demand when a client asks for a transfer. The offset lives in Engine.ini as ModFileDownload.DownloadPortOffset. |
| 25575 | TCP | Remote console, if you enabled it. |
Funcom's own networking advice is to forward the ports for both UDP and TCP, and, if a firewall is in the way, to add inbound rules for each port you use: the game client port, the raw UDP port, the Steam query port, and remote console if you turned it on. If you are running the server on the same machine you play on, watch for a port clash: Funcom's suggested workaround is to move the server off the defaults, to something like 7779, 7780 and 27016, with matching forwarding rules.
One more thing about addresses. Your friends connect on your external address; the local network address only means something on your side of the router. If you only want a server for the house, you can skip forwarding entirely and let people find it through the LAN server list.
Saves, backups and moving the server
The world lives in a database file. On the base game that is game.db; the Isle of Siptah expansion has DLC_Siptah.db, and player-made maps bring their own. The launcher's backup feature will take any valid game database, with one documented constraint that is easy to trip over: the file name must not end in a number preceded by an underscore, so something like mygame_23.db is skipped.
Moving the whole server is easier than most. Funcom's answer is that as long as the launcher, SteamCMD and the game server are all stopped, you can rename the folder, move it to another drive, or move it to another computer, and the same thing works as a full backup.
Mods
Server-side mods are .pak files, and the launcher keeps its list in ServerSettings.ini under a DedicatedServerLauncherModList entry, mixing local file paths and numeric Workshop ids. Funcom note that only the numeric Workshop entries get updated by the tool; a mod you dropped in as a local file is yours to maintain.
When mod updates fail to be picked up, Funcom's first suspect is not the mod. It is the clock: they recommend enabling network time on the server machine and checking the time zone and daylight saving settings before looking anywhere else.
When players cannot see the server
Funcom's own checklist is short and correct. Are your players on the same branch as the server, and on the same version, so neither side is a patch ahead? If the server is running mods, the player's browser needs the Show modded servers box ticked, or your server simply is not in their list. If you can join from inside your own network but nobody else can, that is a forwarding problem, not a server problem.
If the server starts and then exits within seconds, read the log for network errors. Funcom name the shapes to look for, lines mentioning a failed socket bind or a failed LAN beacon; those mean the ports are already in use by something else, or an address was typed wrong.
Self-hosting or renting
If you have a machine that stays on, self-hosting Conan Exiles is free and keeps every file in your hands. Funcom clearly built the launcher for exactly that case, and for a private server for friends it is the right answer.
The costs are the usual ones. The machine has to be awake whenever anyone wants to play, and it should not be the computer you are playing on. Many home connections cannot accept incoming connections at all, whatever you do to the router. Every update, restart and mod change is yours to catch, and so is remembering to take the database backup before you find out you needed it.
Renting moves those chores rather than removing them. The settings, the mod list and the backups you actually keep are still your decisions.
Where RadarHost fits
RadarHost rents Conan Exiles servers hosted in Beauharnois, Quebec, Canada. There are three plans, Standard, Premium and Diamond, priced in Canadian dollars, with no setup fee and cancel any time. Renting changes who keeps the machine on; the settings, the mods and the database above are still yours to choose. After payment, our team reviews the order and emails setup details or next steps within 24 hours. Current plans and prices are on the Conan Exiles availability page.