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How-To Section
CS Server Setup Section.

The Counter-Server team have devoted this section to the basic requirements of running your HLDS (Half-Life Dedicated Server).

Hopefully this will serve as a good basis for your server set-up. If you would like to see something else posted up here, let us know.

Basic Requirements
» Windows
» Linux/*nix
» The Configuration Files
» Maps
» Server and Client on Same Machine
» Rcon
» Kicking and Banning
» LAN Server

Server Tweaks
» Minimum/Maximum Rates
» Using Screen With Linux

Client Tweaks
» Enhancing Your XP Installation

Other
» Writing Progams/Scripts for hlds

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» Tweaking Rates

Some server admins dislike having LPB's (Low Ping Bastards) or HPW's (High Ping Whiners) on their servers. In the past, there was no way to set these options, but you can with using these two cvars: "sv_maxrate <#>" and/or "sv_minrate <#>". This does not disallow people with a rate not within the range specified on your sever from joining, but forces them to use an appropriate rate set by you.

For example, if you run a large maxplayer server, and do not want people with large pipes stealing all the bandwidth and irritating the HPW's, then you can set the maximum rate allowed on the server to 6000 by using "sv_maxrate 6000". This will not boot any LPB's from the server, but does force them to a rate of 6000 or below, allowing for a more even spread of the bandwidth between players.

Similarly, if you wanted to run a server specifically for a handful of LPB's, you can set the minimum rate allowed to around 9000 using "sv_minrate 9000". This obviously will not kick any HPW's from the server, but it does force their rate to 9000 and above, which will make their game almost unplayable, and maybe they will drop on their own.

You can also use both in combination with each other. In playing around with some servers, I found some interesting combinations. I have a Counter-Strike server running with an 18 maxplayer limit. It was fascinating playing with these settings and watching how they dramatically affect player's pings. After a few hours, I found the best combination for this particular server was sv_maxrate 6500 and sv_minrate 2000. With a server with a larger maxplayer limit, you may want to lower your maxrate to keep the bandwidth reasonable for all the players. On the other hand, if you run a smaller more personal server for you and a few friends in the neighborhood, you may want to make sv_maxrate 20000 and sv_minrate 9000. Also, if you run a server on a cable connection, you may have already noticed how much cable connections seem to fluctuate. You may want to set sv_maxrate 8000 and sv_minrate 4000. Whatever the number for the cable server, keep them closer together to lessen the fluctuating rates.

Please note this is not an exact science by any means. You need to test and find what’s good for you. If you are really pushing the limit and trying to run a server on cable(*gasps*), you could set a relatively low maxrate to squeeze as much bandwidth as possible. This act probably will cause lag to the clients.

Last words of wisdom: When someone complains about lag on your cable server, they are probably 90% correct. This is for a simple reason. If you are playing on the LAN side of your server, you will experience little to no lag. Though, if you ping ever goes above 15-20, you might start to reconsider if you have the basic requirements to run a server. In all honesty, don’t waste your time running a server on a cable connection. It will lag, and is probably against the Terms Of Service of your provider.