How to set up Palworld dedicated server with Microsoft Azure

Setting up a Palworld dedicated server on Microsoft Azure involves several steps. Here's a comprehensive guide to help you through the process.

Create a new server on Microsoft Azure (Azure Virtual Machine / Azure VM)

First of all, we have to create our new server on Azure: it will be a Microsoft Azure Virtual Machine (aka Azure VM) running an image of Windows Server 2022.

Go to Microsoft Azure[portal.azure.com], log in with your Microsoft Account having an Azure Subscriptions and click "Create a resource".



Type Virtual Machine in the search box, search, and click "Create".



Configure the Azure Virtual Machine (Azure VM) by entering the necessary information as outlined below:

• Choose the subscription, create a new resource group, specify the virtual machine name
  
• Select the region nearest to you, the Availability Zone (1 AZ is enough), and Security Type (Standard is acceptable)
  
• As for the image, you should see in the list "Windows Server 2022 Datacenter: Azure Edition - x64 Gen2". If you don't see it in the list, click "See all images" and search for it.
  
• When selecting the size, look for "E4as_v5" in the list. If you don't find it, click "See all sizes" and search for it. If you have a different budget, try another size that best fits your wallet, just keep in mind that a VM size with at least 32 GB of RAM is recommended by Pocketpair (Palworld devs). Remember that you will only be billed for the hours when your Azure VM is not stopped.

Click the "Review + create" button.




Once you have clicked the "Review + create" button, you will see the Validation test results and the review page; click Create.


Once you have clicked Create, wait some minutes for the deploy.

Open Ports 8211

Go to your new VM page, click "Networking", click "Add inbound port rule".



Open the port 8211 as shown below (Source: Any, Source port ranges: *, Destination: Any, Service: Custom, Destination port ranges: 8211, Protocol: Any, Action: Allow, Priority: 100, Name: AllowAnyCustom8211Inbound).

Click "Add".



Once you have clicked Add, you have created the new rule to open the port 8211. Now we finally can connect to the VM: in the VM page, click "Connect", and click "Download RDP file"; once you have downloaded it, open it.

In the Windows dialog, insert your username (if required) and the password you have chosen in the previous section. We are now connecting to the server.





And we are in!



In the just opened new VM with Windows Server, go to "Windows Firewall with Advanced Security tool" and add a new Inbound Rule for UDP Port 8211.

Install softwares and run Palserver in the VM

In order to run Palworld dedicated server we need to download and install in our VM the following software:

• SteamCMD for Windows: https://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/SteamCMD#Windows
  
• DirectX 9.0 (search the package online; note that Microsoft websites don't have the real .exe but downloader, if the downloader doesn't work search for the real .exe from another website)
  
• Visual C++ for x64: https://learn.microsoft.com/it-it/cpp/windows/latest-supported-vc-redist?view=msvc-170#visual-studio-2015-2017-2019-and-2022

Now, we can finally run our Palword dedicated server (aka PalServer):

• Install SteamCMD double-clicking steamcmd.exe
  
• In the same directory of steamcmd.exe open a new Command Prompt (not PowerShell) and enter the following commands:
  
  1. steamcmd +login anonymous +app_update 2394010 validate +quit
     
  2. cd .\steamapps\common\PalServer
     
  3. PalServer.exe

The server is running!

Join the server

Run Palworld and, in the main menu, choose "Play Multiplayer".

Insert the IP of your Azure VM followed by :8211 and click "Connection".



We are online!

Thank you very much for reading this guide, I hope it will help you enjoy this funny game. I am open to answer question in the comments if you need to!

[Falkons]

Hi @ashgabatt, first of all thank you for appreciating our work. I have not tried it yet, but it should be relatively easy. While launching Palworld from your computer, when you are choosing your savegame to play there should be a folder icon in the bottom left, this will open your Steam savegame (you can also reach it in file explorer, ask me if you need the path). Then just copy the savegame folders and paste it into Palserver savegame folders in the VM (it should be easy to find)

I am sorry for being a bit unsure but it will be in the next guide’s update for sure!

[ashgabat]

do u know how to move/migrate palserver to the new VM?
i don't want to start from zero again

[ashgabat]

thank u bro you're the best!! work without any problem

[Falkons]

@jpearldrumw Most likely, yes, if you intend to keep the virtual machine running continuously, 24 hours a day. However, if you plan to use the VM only for a few hours, say from 3 to 5 hours a day (25€-35€ per month), then the VM it's probably the better option.

[jpearldrumw]

wow! so an always available azure server is like $228 a month. i'd rather build a nice desktop for $600 and spend the electricity. it'd be way cheaper for me.

[Falkons]

@jpearldrumw It really depends on the Virtual Machine (Azure VM) size you choose, the Azure region where you want your machine to be hosted, and the number of hours you play per month, as Azure VM is a Pay-as-You-Go service. It's difficult to provide an exact cost for your specific needs.
Keep in mind that for the best experience, it is recommended to use a VM with 32GB of RAM hosted in the region nearest to you. This configuration would cost approximately 0.25€ per hour in the EU.

[jpearldrumw]

How much per month will this cost to run?

[Falkons]

@Yeat thanks to you! I hope it will help

[Samir - TrenchGoat]

Thank u so much me and my friends wanted to play without having to leave his pc on