Dedicated Server Host Recommendation--Nodecraft!

[sillygolucky]

G'day gaming friends! :) (long post ahead lol)

For those of us who choose to pay for server hosting, I have FINALLY found a company worthy of your money! After using Streamline Servers, Citadel Servers, and one or two others I can't remember, I hunkered down and did some internet digging and happened upon Nodecraft[nodecraft.com] in the last month.

First, they were (ARE!) having a half off sale in October! So that attracted me right away. Because hello, why wouldn't I try them for just $5?!? Then I remembered...oh, but I'll have to get a complete second server for the caves (because all other hosts require you do). BUT NO!! Caves COME WITH your ONE SERVER! I nearly fell off my chair with glee! lol. This was good news indeed They told me in chat that all they have to do is add a small subserver to the main one, and that they feel the caves is part of the main game and shouldn't be extra! YEAH!!

They do have a Money Back Guarantee[nodecraft.com] but BE SURE TO READ IT FIRST!

Then, their customer support. It's PHENOMENAL. Now let me tell you, my CS expectations are kinda high. I've been a CS person myself, and appreciate great, friendly, helpful service. Sooo for Nodecraft, you don't just send a ticket and wait. They have a live chat that is always on your dashboard and there is always one or more agents (they are a small team, btw) available. The chats are auto-saved, archived for your reference, and emailed to you, too. I think the longest I've waited is 20 minutes, although on the weekends they have a little more time off (understandably!!). If they are away, it tells you they will be back in X mintues. The chat also has a picture of your agent which I think is a super cool personal touch They have all been straight up (not wishy washy like some iffy tech support I've endured), friendly, mega helpful and prompt. Even for the littlest question they are ready to help!! They truly want to help their customers and are committed to excellent customer support. A+++ from me!!

Now...the service itself. First, unless you want a COMPLETELY vanilla world, I think you do have to know a little about how to set up the .lua files, mods, and .ini file (at least for DST. I'm not sure about other games yet!). I personally learned how to do it on my own from my previous hosting experiences. However, they do offer SOME support on that according to their website, so it's best to ask them before purchasing to see if their file support fits your knowledge level! This is my only caveat with the service--there's just no way someone who knows NOTHING about setting up a server could come in and set one up, complete with mods, worldgenoverrides, and all the other stuffs. But for me it didn't matter because I already knew it, so this service works perfectly for me. For those who are new it will be a learning curve.

Second about their offerings--it's very unique! They offer hosting for 24 different games. Depending on what package you get (I got the cheapest for $10/month), you have 5 "slots" on which to SWAP BETWEEN GAMES!! Yes, can you hear the angels singing?? lol. The Nano package (cheapest) gives you one "bot" which is essentially a server. But with that one server you can save up to 5 different games (any 5 of the 24) to swap at your leisure. Even multiple times a day! No extra charge or anything. You just archive it (to save it), then deploy the new game and BAM. It's very easy, and their interface is HEAVEN compared to any other host I've used. I'm actually going to purchase the next plan up so I can have two bots--so I can can keep my DST and Factorio servers running all the time (But still swap out if I want!) You do have a limited about of space to save, but it's more than enough unless you need to keep multiple backups of multiple games. If you do, you can buy more space for just a few bucks extra/month.

ALSO...they have servers available in:
* Chicago (where mine is)
* Phoenix
* Atlanta
* Amsterdam, Netherlands
* Paya Lebar, Singapore

So for those of you in Europe or elsewhere, you can use Nodecraft, too! Yay! My server in Chicago is lightning fast, no lag ever, and has never been down.

Oh yes, there's more... ;)

Their interface--NodePanel 2--is nothing short of amazing. It's intelligent, intuitive, user-friendly, nice to look at, well thought out and NOT COOKIE CUTTER crap like all the other services. lol. You can see how many people are on your server, and WHO! Console works great, too.

If you're a nerdball like me and research all your purchases (hehe), you'll definitely want to read their About page[nodecraft.com] and all the links on it. I especially enjoyed the Staff page[nodecraft.com] and all their bios and cool avatars. hehe. But they also talk about their company vision and goals, which are customer-centered and not overly profit driven. They also give back to the gaming community[nodecraft.com] by providing their official partners perks!!

Lastly, they want customer feedback[nodecraft.com]! They have a page where you can post ideas, games, or features you'd like for them to have. As a customer, you can vote ideas up so they can see the need. They note on the post if they have it in the works, too! I love this--it really shows they are constantly working to make their already awesome service even more amazing.

Now, just to be completely honest, there have been a few bumps in my experience with DST so far:

• DST server listing shows ??? ping. This is a bummer because my server is harder to find unless you're in my DST Old School steam group or on my friendslist! I did mention this to a CS agent and they said they are working on it, that it has to do with some backend software changes they're making that controls how they connect with Steam. That was about 3 weeks ago, so hopefully a resolution happens soon.
  
• Steam/DST updates shut down the server (this happens with all dedicated hosting). So anytime there's a change in the game version (pretty much weekly), you have to use their One Click Installer to update it. It's very easy--but unfortunately if you have mods, you have to re-put in the ServerModSetup and ForceEnableMod info. You also have to re-put in the .ini information completely. I just keep mine saved in a .txt file for easy/cut paste for all of these.

So okay I know this was extremely long, but I just had to brag on Nodecraft!! NO, they have no idea I'm posting this. lol. But I want to give them a pat on the back and a shoutout to anyone needing a hosting service to support them and help them grow their business for the betterment of all gamers' experiences! Also, there are sooo many more features in their services, but these are the ones I use most and that I have come to appreciate in the month I have used them so far. And if you're like me and you have wasted HOURS trying to set up your servers, waiting on incompetent, impersonal, and slow customer service, just to have your brain fried by the time it's finally running, and then not even wanting to play after you do all the work (lol), I recommend Nodecraft for a pleasant and fun hosting experience!!!

~sillygolucky~

[Mystery]

These are rather expensive >.> 20~ dollars monthly for 2 gbs of ram.

Doesn't say what the refresh tick rate of the server is.

Rather dull...

[sillygolucky]

Most people will only need the $10/mo plan. It's an amazing deal--I've used several other services. I have had no issues with server performance, lag, or speed with Nodecraft. For what you get (esp for DST, I can't speak for other games except Factorio so far), this price is outstanding. They have no limit on player slots, either. So you can have 6 or 20 and not pay more. And remember you can swap between games without having to pay for a second server. Did you see this page? https://nodecraft.com/about/servers

[(◣_◢)]

I just got a server myself but frustrating just to find and test my server. I never ran a server but I have a general idea on I.P. and port #'s but' my server isn't responding according to the steam server list or maybe I entered it wrong. I placed I.P. and port together.

[Retrolicious]

Originally posted by (◣_◢):

I just got a server myself but frustrating just to find and test my server. I never ran a server but I have a general idea on I.P. and port #'s but' my server isn't responding according to the steam server list or maybe I entered it wrong. I placed I.P. and port together.

please don't necro. the original thread was already weird commercial spam >.<

if you got questions about hosting go to the appropriate forums / subforums or directly to klei tech forums ...

I won't pointlessly bump this illegal thread by more posts, i will simply report you and get it locked instead

@ raging dude below and above

[(◣_◢)]

Originally posted by 󰀀 Redhead 󰀈:

Originally posted by (◣_◢):

I just got a server myself but frustrating just to find and test my server. I never ran a server but I have a general idea on I.P. and port #'s but' my server isn't responding according to the steam server list or maybe I entered it wrong. I placed I.P. and port together.

please don't necro. the original thread was already weird commercial spam >.<

if you got questions about hosting go to the appropriate forums / subforums or directly to klei tech forums ...

Please learn to type puntuated sentences. Please learn to NOT back seat moderate. Please learn to mind your own business. These forums are to be used and and not going to have some random tell me how to use them. You think I didn't go to the appropriate place to answer my question?So stop being nosy.

You provided zero value to the conversation and now you "re-necro'ed" because of your pointless reply. I wasn't going to come here for full support it was just a one post reply. I posted because it related to me. I got a server and everything is fine. So what's your problem with people replying to threads that relate to them? Now watch you "re-necro" by arguing with me about pointless things.