If you have a NAS, chances are that it supports Docker containers and will allow you to run basically whatever you want on it. That includes if you want to run game servers to play online with your friends, as plenty of games out there will let you run your own servers to play locally with friends or over the internet.
If you want to play games with your friends over the internet, you’ll probably need to port forward. This means telling your router to pass traffic on a specific port to a specific device, but once you’ve done that, you’ll be able to play those games with friends online. For example, Counter-Strike 2 defaults to port 27015, and Minecraft defaults to port 25565. If you want to play on LAN, though, then there’s no need to port forward.
Related
Best NAS devices in 2024
Expand your PC storage with one of these NAS enclosures
How to host game servers on a NAS
Make sure your NAS has Docker
The main thing you’ll need to be sure of is that your NAS supports the execution of Docker containers. Docker is an OS-level virtualization software that runs software in containers, which are like islands that host software and bridges can be built for that software to reach out to other containers and the wider internet. These containers have a very basic operating system that’s capable of running the software that it’s aimed to run, and that’s about it.
Depending on the title, you’ll need to do some research to find what software you need. Plenty of Source engine servers can run through LinuxGSM, which is also distributed as a Docker container. If you want to run Minecraft, MineOS is a very popular Docker container that you can also use, and it will run perfectly on TrueNAS. For pretty much all NAS devices, you need to make sure what you want to run can run through Docker.
With TrueNAS, you can add the TrueCharts repository to your NAS, which will give you access to significantly more applications that you can download and install. There are a ton of game servers available that you can install with a click of a button, and you’ll just need to wait a few minutes for them to run and download the game server files once you boot them up. All you’ll need to do is click the application you want, click install, and follow the instructions.
Installing MineOS
A great and easy example for TrueNAS
Minecraft is a game that a lot of people would like to host locally, and it’s really easy on TrueNAS. MineOS is an application in the official TrueNAS repository, and you can get it set up and installed in minutes.
- Search for MineOS in TrueNAS
- Click Install
- Login
- Create a server
That’s legitimately it. You might need to download the profile for the specific version of the game you want, but it really is that easy. It took longer for me to set up port forwarding for Minecraft than it did for me to actually get the server up and running. If you have an old PC lying around and want to make a Minecraft server, TrueNAS and MineOS is legitimately one of the easiest ways out there.
Source Engine games
There are plenty of game specific setups
If you want to host a Source Engine game, there are a ton of game-specific setups out there that will get the job done on TrueCharts. You can also set up LinuxGSM in a Docker container, though you may run into some issues if your NAS uses Kubernetes for its Docker containers. For example, TrueNAS Scale uses Kubernetes, which can cause some problems with games being able to contact outside of the container.
Otherwise, you can play around and see what’s available. I highly recommend checking out LinuxGSM, as it will guide you to create and manage your game server, particularly if it’s a Source Engine game. It’s a very accessible way to run your game servers, and is how I used to primarily run Counter-Strike: Global Offensive servers for years and years.
You can play around and see what’s out there, but there are a ton of options that you can use for running servers on your NAS. If you have a NAS and are trying to think of more things to do with it, maybe running some game servers should be next on your bucket list.
Related
8 incredible projects I completed with just my NAS
A NAS is a gateway into the world of computing, and it can teach you a lot.