What Is a Dedicated Server in Gaming?
By Linus Pierre · Updated October 2026
The word “dedicated” means two different things in gaming. This guide explains both in plain English, so you know what you actually need before you set anything up or pay for a plan.
In gaming, a dedicated server is a copy of the game’s server software that runs on its own, separate from anyone’s game. Your world stays online even when every player, including the person who set it up, has logged off.
- Host-and-play means one player’s game is also the server. The world closes when they quit.
- Dedicated server means the server runs by itself, at home or on a rented game server.
- Dedicated hardware (bare metal) is a different idea: a whole physical machine rented to you alone.
The two meanings of “dedicated server”
If you search for a dedicated server for your game, you will find two very different products. Knowing which one people mean saves a lot of confusion.
Meaning 1: dedicated server software. This is what gamers usually mean. Many multiplayer games ship a separate server program, often listed as a free tool on Steam. It runs the world, the rules and the saves. Nobody has to be playing on it, so it can stay up all day and night. When a game host sells you a “Valheim server” or a “Project Zomboid server”, this is what you are renting.
Meaning 2: dedicated hardware. This is what the wider hosting industry means. A “dedicated server” is a whole physical computer in a data centre that you rent for yourself. Nobody else shares its processor, memory or disk. It is also called bare metal. You can run game servers on it, but it is a much bigger and more hands-on product.
The short version: almost every group that wants a server for friends needs meaning 1, a dedicated game server. Very few need meaning 2, a whole machine.
The rest of this guide covers meaning 1 first, because that is the choice most players face, then explains dedicated hardware and where it fits.
Host-and-play vs a dedicated server
Most co-op and survival games let you start multiplayer in one of two ways. The difference decides whether your world is available when you are not.
Host-and-play
One player starts the game and opens their world to friends. Their copy of the game does two jobs at once: it draws the game on their screen and runs the shared world. Different games call this a listen server, a hosted game, peer-to-peer or simply “host”. It costs nothing extra and suits a group that always plays together.
The catch is that everything depends on that one person. If the host logs off, the session usually ends. If their PC is busy or their upload speed is low, everyone else may feel it as lag or rubber-banding.
Dedicated server
A dedicated server runs the world as its own program, without a game window and without anyone playing on it. Players connect to it from their own copies of the game. The person who set it up joins like everyone else.
This is why groups move to a dedicated server once their world matters to them. Friends in different time zones can play when it suits them, long-running saves stay in one place, and admin tools such as whitelists, backups and scheduled restarts become practical.
Which one do you need?
- Stay with host-and-play if you always play as a full group, the host has a decent PC and connection, and nobody needs the world while the host is away.
- Move to a dedicated server if people want to play at different times, you want the world to keep running, the host’s PC struggles, or you want proper backups and admin control.
Not every game offers both. Some only support host-and-play, and some rely on official servers. If you are unsure, our game guides show how each title handles multiplayer, for example the easiest ways to play Minecraft with friends and how to play Palworld with friends.
Dedicated hardware: when you rent the whole machine
In the wider hosting world, “dedicated server” means a physical computer reserved for one customer. It sits at the top of a ladder that starts with shared hosting and passes through virtual private servers.
- What you get
- One game server with a set amount of RAM on a host’s machine
- You manage
- Game settings, mods and players, through a web panel
- Host manages
- Hardware, operating system, network and updates to the panel
- What you get
- A virtual machine with its own operating system on a shared physical server
- You manage
- Installing, updating and securing everything yourself
- Host manages
- The physical hardware and network
- What you get
- A whole physical machine; nobody shares its CPU, RAM or disk
- You manage
- Everything from the operating system up, unless you pay for a managed service
- Host manages
- Power, cooling, network and hardware swaps
Shared game hosting
This is what game server hosts sell. Your server runs alongside other customers’ servers on a powerful machine, and you get a slice of its memory and processor time. You control the game through a web panel with one-click installs, file access and backups. It is the simplest route and covers most groups. Our guide to what a game server is explains what renting one includes.
VPS
A virtual private server is a virtual machine with its own operating system. You can install any server software you like, run several things at once and tweak everything. In return, you handle updates, firewalls and backups yourself. Read more in our VPS hosting guide.
Dedicated hardware (bare metal)
Here the whole machine is yours. No other customer can slow it down, and you choose how to split its resources. It suits large communities, server networks running several games, or people who need full control. It is also the most work and usually the most expensive way to host. Most groups of friends will never need it.
Watch the wording: many game hosts call every plan a “dedicated server” because it runs the game’s dedicated server software. That does not mean you get a whole machine. If you need real dedicated hardware, look for terms like bare metal and a listed processor, core count and memory that are reserved for you alone.
Every way to run a dedicated game server
Once you know you want a dedicated server, the next question is where it runs. Here is how the realistic options compare.
| Option | Online when you are offline? | Who looks after it | Set-up effort | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host-and-play (no dedicated server) | No | The host player | Very low | Groups that always play together |
| Dedicated server on your own PC | Only while that PC is on | You | Medium: ports, updates, backups | Trying a game out, LAN play, tight budgets |
| Rented game server | Yes, all day | The host runs the hardware; you run the game via a panel | Low | Most groups and small communities |
| VPS | Yes, all day | You, apart from the hardware | High | People who want to run several services |
| Dedicated hardware | Yes, all day | You, unless it is a managed service | Highest | Large communities and server networks |
Running the server software on your own PC is free apart from electricity, but your PC has to stay on, you need to open ports on your router, and your home upload speed limits how many people can join smoothly. Our self-hosting guide covers this route in detail.
Renting a game server takes most of that work away. You pay monthly, pick a location close to your players and manage the server from a browser. For players in the UK, a server in a UK data centre, such as London, keeps the connection short. LOW.MS, for example, hosts its game servers in London; you can read our LOW.MS review or compare every option on our game hosting hub.
Set-up guides for popular games
Each game handles dedicated servers a little differently. These step-by-step guides cover installation, ports and first settings:
What you gain and what it costs you
- The world stays online whether or not the owner is playing
- Nobody’s gaming PC has to run the world as well as their game
- Admin tools: whitelists, roles, scheduled restarts and backups
- Easier mod management, because everyone connects to one setup
- One permanent address your group can bookmark
- A monthly fee if you rent, or an always-on PC if you self-host
- Some set-up, even with a one-click panel
- Updates to keep in step with the game client
- Someone in the group has to own it and pay for it
If you are weighing up cost, our cheap game server hosting guide shows which UK options give you the most for the least. To see how we judge hosts, read how we compare game hosts.
What to check on a host’s plan page
- What you are actually renting: a game server, a VPS or a whole machine. The word “dedicated” alone does not tell you.
- Memory: how much RAM the plan guarantees. Our guide to how much RAM and CPU a game server needs helps you size it.
- Processor: whether the host names the CPU model or clock speed. Most game servers lean on fast single cores.
- Location: a data centre near your players. For a UK group, that means a UK location.
- Backups: whether they are automatic, how many are kept and how you restore one.
- Your existing world: whether you can upload a save from host-and-play to carry on where you left off.
- Protection and terms: DDoS protection, plus the refund and cancellation policy. Our security guide explains what to ask.
Dedicated server questions
Is a dedicated server better than host-and-play (peer-to-peer)?
It depends on how your group plays. A dedicated server keeps the world online when the owner is offline and takes the load off one player’s PC, which usually means steadier performance for everyone. Host-and-play is free and fine for a group that always plays together with a host who has a good PC and connection.
Do I need a dedicated server to play with friends?
No. Many games let one player host for friends with no extra cost. You need a dedicated server when people want to play at different times, when the world should stay online without the host, or when the host’s PC struggles to play and host at the same time.
Can I run a dedicated server on my own PC?
Yes, if the game provides server software. The server only runs while your PC is on, you usually need to forward ports on your router, and your home upload speed limits how many players can join smoothly. Running it on a spare machine avoids slowing down the PC you play on.
Is a VPS a dedicated server?
No. A VPS is a virtual machine that shares a physical server with other customers, although it has its own operating system and resources set aside for it. You can run dedicated game server software on a VPS, but you are not renting a whole machine.
Does “dedicated” on a game hosting plan mean bare metal?
Usually not. Game hosts often call their plans dedicated servers because they run the game’s dedicated server software, not because you get a whole machine. Real dedicated hardware is normally sold as bare metal, with a named processor and memory reserved for you alone.
