Installing a Hytale Dedicated Server on Ubuntu

Introduction

This tutorial explains how to install and run a Hytale Dedicated Server on Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04. The server runs under a dedicated system user, uses Java 25, and is managed by systemd for automatic startup and reliable operation. With this setup, you will have a production-ready Hytale server with automated backups and proper resource management.

Prerequisites

Ubuntu 22.04 LTS or 24.04 LTS (fresh installation recommended)
At least 4 GB RAM (8 GB or more recommended for better performance)
Root or sudo access to the server
Basic knowledge of Linux command line operations
A Hytale account with the Standard Edition of the game

Example terminology

Username: hytale
Installation directory: /opt/hytale

Step 1 - System Update and Firewall Configuration

First, update your system and install the required tools. This ensures all packages are up to date and you have the necessary utilities for the installation.

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install -y zip unzip curl screen wget

Step 1.1 - Configure UFW Firewall

Hytale uses UDP port 5520 for the QUIC protocol, which needs to be accessible from the internet. You should also allow SSH access to maintain remote administration capabilities.

sudo ufw allow 22/tcp
sudo ufw allow 5520/udp
sudo ufw enable

When prompted to proceed with the firewall activation, type y and press Enter.

Step 2 - Create a Dedicated User

Running the Hytale server under a dedicated user account improves security by limiting potential damage if the server is compromised. This follows Linux best practices for running services.

sudo adduser hytale
sudo usermod -aG sudo hytale

You will be prompted to set a password and enter optional user information. You can skip the optional fields by pressing Enter.

Next, create the installation directory and set proper ownership:

sudo mkdir -p /opt/hytale
sudo chown -R hytale:hytale /opt/hytale

Step 3 - Install Java 25

Hytale requires Java 25 to run. We will use SDKMAN, a tool that simplifies the installation and management of Java versions.

Switch to the hytale user account:

su - hytale

Install SDKMAN and Java 25:

curl -s "https://get.sdkman.io" | bash
source "$HOME/.sdkman/bin/sdkman-init.sh"
sdk install java 25.0.1-tem

SDKMAN will download and install Java 25. After the installation completes, you can verify it with:

java -version

Exit back to your administrative user:

exit

Step 4 - Download and Authenticate

To run a Hytale server, you need an account that already owns the Standard Edition of the game (at the time of writing (January 2026), approx. 23,79$ in Germany). You can purchase the game and download the necessary tools at hytale.com/download. Now you need to download the Hytale server files and authenticate your server with your Hytale account.

Switch to the hytale user and navigate to the installation directory to download the server tools:

su - hytale
cd /opt/hytale

Step 4.1 - Download and Extract

Download and run the official downloader:

wget https://downloader.hytale.com/hytale-downloader.zip
unzip hytale-downloader.zip
chmod +x hytale-downloader-linux-amd64
./hytale-downloader-linux-amd64

The downloader fetches a version-specific zip file (e.g., 2026.01.17-4b0f30090.zip). You must identify and unzip it manually:

List the files to find the name:
```
ls
```

Unzip the identified file:

# Replace with your actual filename
unzip 2026.01.17-4b0f30090.zip

Verify that the Server folder and Assets.zip are present:

ls -F

Step 4.2 - Authenticate the Server

Start the server for the first time to perform authentication:

java -Xms4G -Xmx4G -jar Server/HytaleServer.jar --assets Assets.zip

In the server console, execute the following command:

/auth login device

This will provide you with a URL and a code. Open the URL in your web browser and enter the code to authenticate the server with your Hytale account.

After successful authentication, run:

/auth persistence Encrypted

This saves your authentication credentials securely. You can now stop the server by pressing CTRL + C, then type exit to return to your administrative user.

Step 5 - Create a Systemd Service

Creating a systemd service allows the Hytale server to start automatically on system boot and provides easy management commands.

Create the service file as root or with sudo:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/hytale.service

Insert the following configuration:

[Unit]
Description=Hytale Dedicated Server
After=network.target

[Service]
User=hytale
Group=hytale
WorkingDirectory=/opt/hytale
ExecStart=/home/hytale/.sdkman/candidates/java/current/bin/java -Xms8G -Xmx16G -jar Server/HytaleServer.jar --assets Assets.zip --backup --backup-frequency 10 --backup-dir backups
KillSignal=SIGTERM
TimeoutStopSec=60
SendSIGKILL=no
Restart=always
RestartSec=10
StandardOutput=append:/var/log/hytale.log
StandardError=append:/var/log/hytale.log

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Note: Adjust the memory allocation (-Xms8G -Xmx16G) according to your server's available RAM. The example above allocates 8 GB minimum and 16 GB maximum.

Save the file and exit the editor (in nano: press CTRL + X, then Y to confirm, then Enter to confirm the filename).

Step 5.1 - Start and Enable the Service

Reload systemd to recognize the new service, enable it for automatic startup, and start it:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable hytale
sudo systemctl start hytale

Check the service status to ensure it's running correctly:

sudo systemctl status hytale

You can view the server logs with:

sudo tail -f /var/log/hytale.log

Step 6 - Automated Backups

Regular backups are essential to protect your world data from corruption or accidental deletion. This script will create daily backups and automatically remove backups older than 7 days.

Switch to the hytale user:

su - hytale
cd /opt/hytale

Create the backup script:

nano backup.sh

Insert the following content:

#!/bin/bash
TIMESTAMP=$(date +%F)
mkdir -p /opt/hytale/backups
tar -czf /opt/hytale/backups/world_$TIMESTAMP.tar.gz -C /opt/hytale universe/
find /opt/hytale/backups/ -mtime +7 -delete

Save and close the file. Make the script executable:

chmod +x /opt/hytale/backup.sh

Step 6.1 - Setup Automated Backup Schedule

Configure a cron job to run the backup script daily at 4:00 AM:

(crontab -l 2>/dev/null; echo "0 4 * * * /opt/hytale/backup.sh") | crontab -

You can verify the cron job was added by running:

crontab -l

Exit back to your administrative user:

exit

Step 7 - Server Management

Here are some useful commands for managing your Hytale server:

Check server status:

sudo systemctl status hytale

Stop the server:

sudo systemctl stop hytale

Restart the server:

sudo systemctl restart hytale

View live logs:

sudo tail -f /var/log/hytale.log

View recent log entries from systemd:

sudo journalctl -u hytale -n 50

Step 8 - Connecting to your Server

Once the server is running, you can join your world:

Start your Hytale client on your local computer.
Navigate to Multiplayer.
Click on Direct Connect (or Add Server).
Enter your server's IP address. The default port is 5520, which is used automatically unless changed.

Conclusion

Congratulations! Your Hytale dedicated server is now running securely under a dedicated user account with automatic startup, logging, and daily backups. The systemd service ensures your server will restart automatically if it crashes and will start on system boot. You can now connect to your server using the server's IP address and the default Hytale port (5520).