LinuxGSM_

Game Servers

Action Half-Life server

Run a Action Half-Life dedicated server with LinuxGSM, in Docker or directly on Linux.

ahlserver Docker ahlGoldSrc

Run with Docker

First install Docker Engine and the Compose plugin on your Linux host. Run the commands below from your project directory with a user allowed to access Docker; otherwise prefix Docker commands with sudo. The container manages its own linuxgsm user.

The ahl image has LinuxGSM and every dependency for Action Half-Life already installed on Ubuntu 26.04. On first start it downloads the game server, then keeps it updated.

1. Create compose.yaml

compose.yaml
services:
  ahlserver:
    image: ghcr.io/gameservermanagers/gameserver:ahl
    container_name: ahlserver
    restart: unless-stopped
    network_mode: host
    volumes:
      - ./ahlserver:/data
    environment:
      - UPDATE_CHECK=60

Also published on Docker Hub as gameservermanagers/gameserver:ahl. Prefer docker run? See Docker help.

2. Start it

shell
docker compose up -d
docker compose logs -f

The first start installs the server, which can take a while for large games. When it is ready the log shows the server details, including ports and passwords.

Ports

With network_mode: host the server uses the host's ports directly, so there is nothing to map. Open them in your firewall.

SettingDefault port
port27015
clientport27005

Defaults from the LinuxGSM config. Run details to see every port and its protocol.

Manage the server

Show details, ports and passwords
docker exec -it --user linuxgsm ahlserver ./ahlserver details
Open the live console (leave with CTRL+b then d)
docker exec -it --user linuxgsm ahlserver ./ahlserver console
Restart the game server
docker restart ahlserver
Check for a game update now
docker exec -it --user linuxgsm ahlserver ./ahlserver update
Update the image
docker compose pull && docker compose up -d

Server files, configs and logs live in ./ahlserver on the host: back up that directory. Docker help below covers permissions, environment variables and bridge networking.

Docker help

Images and tags

Images are built weekly and published to two registries. They are identical, so use whichever you prefer.

RegistryImage
GitHub Container Registryghcr.io/gameservermanagers/gameserver:ahl
Docker Hubgameservermanagers/gameserver:ahl

The image uses the base OS LinuxGSM recommends for this game. You do not need to match it on the host.

Use docker run instead of Compose
shell
docker run -d \
  --name ahlserver \
  --network host \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  -v "$PWD/ahlserver:/data" \
  -e UPDATE_CHECK=60 \
  ghcr.io/gameservermanagers/gameserver:ahl
Data and permissions

Everything that should survive a container update lives in /data inside the container, which is ./ahlserver on the host.

Path in /dataContents
serverfiles/The game server itself
config-lgsm/LinuxGSM config, including common.cfg
log/Script, console and game logs
data/LinuxGSM data and cache

The game server runs as the linuxgsm user, not root. On every start the container sets that user to UID and GID (both 1000 by default) and takes ownership of /data. If your host user has a different ID, set them to match so you can edit files on the host:

compose.yaml
environment:
      - UID=1001
      - GID=1001
Environment variables
VariableDefaultWhat it does
UPDATE_CHECK60Minutes between update checks, from 1 to 59, or 60 for hourly. 0 turns scheduled checks off.
UPDATE_ON_STARTtrueCheck for a game update every time the container starts.
VALIDATE_ON_STARTfalseRun a SteamCMD validate on start. Slow, but repairs broken files.
UID / GID1000User and group IDs the game server runs as.
LGSM_GITHUBBRANCHmasterLinuxGSM branch to run. Set develop to test unreleased fixes.
Updates and health checks

The game server updates itself. The container checks every UPDATE_CHECK minutes and on start. If an update is out, it stops the server, updates it and starts it again.

The image brings new LinuxGSM releases, dependency fixes and OS updates. Pull it now and then with docker compose pull && docker compose up -d.

The image runs LinuxGSM's monitor as the Docker health check every minute, so docker ps shows whether the game server is answering, not just whether the container is up.

Bridge networking

network_mode: host is the simplest choice: the game server uses the host's ports directly, the way it would without Docker, and query ports work without extra setup.

If you need bridge networking, publish each port the server uses. Run details to see them, then add them with the right protocol:

compose.yaml
ports:
      - "PORT:PORT/udp"
      - "PORT:PORT/tcp"

Bridge networking can hide the server's real IP from the game, which breaks some server browsers. Use host networking if players cannot find the server.

Troubleshooting
  • Permission denied in /data: set UID and GID to the owner of the host directory.
  • Server not listed in game: check the ports are open, use host networking, and add a GSLT if the game needs one.
  • Install fails at SteamCMD: the game may need a Steam login. Check the notes at the top of this page.
  • Will not start: stop the container, then run docker compose run --rm ahlserver debug to see why.
  • Still stuck: run details and debug, then ask on Discord or GitHub Discussions with the output.

Install on Linux

Install directly on a server running Ubuntu 26.04, Debian 11 or Enterprise Linux 8.

1. Create a user and log in

Creating users and installing system packages require administrator privileges. From your administrator account, use sudo below (omit it if already root). Install curl, tar and an editor such as nano with your distribution's package manager first.

administrator shell
sudo adduser ahlserver

Give the user a strong password, then switch to its login shell:

administrator shell
sudo su - ahlserver

Run all remaining commands as ahlserver from its home directory, without sudo. On Enterprise Linux, create the account with sudo useradd -m ahlserver and set its password with sudo passwd ahlserver instead of adduser.

2. Download LinuxGSM

shell
curl -Lo linuxgsm.sh https://linuxgsm.sh && chmod +x linuxgsm.sh && bash linuxgsm.sh ahlserver

3. Install

shell
./ahlserver install

LinuxGSM checks dependencies and installs the game files. If this user has sudo access, it can install missing packages when prompted. Otherwise, ask an administrator to install the packages listed by LinuxGSM, then rerun this command as ahlserver. Running ./ahlserver install as root only installs dependencies, not the game server.

4. Configure and start the server

Review your LinuxGSM settings in lgsm/config-lgsm/ahlserver/ahlserver.cfg (instance settings) or lgsm/config-lgsm/ahlserver/common.cfg (shared settings). Do not edit _default.cfg, which LinuxGSM updates automatically. Game settings use a separate config file; run ./ahlserver details to find its path. Once configured, start the server explicitly:

shell
./ahlserver start

Common commands

Start the server
start
./ahlserver start
Stop the server
stop
./ahlserver stop
Restart the server
restart
./ahlserver restart
Show details, ports and passwords
./ahlserver details
Open the live console (leave with CTRL+b then d; CTRL+c stops the server)
./ahlserver console
Update the game server
./ahlserver update
Run in the foreground to debug
./ahlserver debug
Back up the whole server
./ahlserver backup
List every command
./ahlserver

Automate with cron

Restart the server if it crashes, apply game updates and keep LinuxGSM current. Add these with crontab -e.

crontab
*/5 * * * * /home/ahlserver/ahlserver monitor > /dev/null 2>&1
*/30 * * * * /home/ahlserver/ahlserver update > /dev/null 2>&1
0 0 * * 0 /home/ahlserver/ahlserver update-lgsm > /dev/null 2>&1