How game server hosting actually works
Panel, server, players: the three moving parts, and what you actually pay for.
When you "host a game," three things are involved. Once you know which is which, everything else about hosting makes sense.
1. The server
The server is a program that runs the world. For Minecraft it's a Java program; for Valheim it's the official dedicated server. It keeps the world loaded, runs the game rules, saves progress, and tells every player what everyone else is doing.
It runs on a machine in a data center instead of on your PC. That's the whole point: the world stays up when you log off, nobody's gaming PC has to carry it, and your friends can play while you sleep.
What you pay for is the slice of that machine your server gets: RAM, CPU, and disk. RAM is the one that matters most for a friend-group server, and it's the one most hosts are stingy with. See How much RAM does my server really need?.
2. The panel
The panel is the website where you control your server. Ours is at the Panel link in the menu. From there you can:
- Start, stop, and restart
- Watch the live console and type commands
- Edit files and upload worlds, mods, or plugins
- Make, restore, and download backups
- Change settings like the world seed, difficulty, or password
You don't need a ticket for any of that. If you'd rather not touch it at all, we set it up for you (see below).
3. The players
Players connect with the normal game client. They type in the server address (your free subdomain, like yourname.zappyhosting.com) or, for Valheim, find it in the server list or use a join code. The game client talks to the server over the internet. How far you are from the server decides your ping, which is why we tell you where our hardware is: US East Coast, one location.
Where billing fits
Billing is separate from the panel. That's where you order, pay, and upgrade. Upgrading from 8 GB to 16 GB is a billing change; your world stays where it is.
The short version
You rent a slice of a machine, you control it from a website, and your friends connect with the normal game. If any of that feels like a lot, tell us what you want to play on Discord. We build it, you log in.