The Tool Desk
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What you need before hosting
Nitrox hosting is a server-and-client arrangement: the machine running the server loads the Subnautica installation and Nitrox world data, while each player connects with a compatible Nitrox client. The safest starting point is a current public Nitrox release that supports the Subnautica build installed on the host and on every player’s computer.
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- An installed, working copy of Subnautica on the host.
- A Nitrox client/server release compatible with that Subnautica version.
- Permission to run NitroxLauncher as Administrator on a Windows host.
- For Internet play, control of the router in front of the host or an alternative VPN/tunnel that can carry the server traffic.
- A firewall rule allowing the relevant game and server executables.
Nitrox’s development documentation describes build instructions for contributors; those instructions are not a normal installation procedure. Its main development branch tracks the latest Subnautica code, so a client and server built from different releases can stop working together after an update. Keep the versions aligned rather than updating only one side.
Start a server with NitroxLauncher on Windows
- Install and verify Subnautica. Launch the game normally once on the host so the installation is complete and the expected files are present.
- Install a matching Nitrox release. Use the same release family for the host and every player. If Subnautica has just updated, check Nitrox compatibility before attempting to host.
- Run NitroxLauncher as Administrator. On Windows, right-click
NitroxLauncherand choose Run as administrator. Elevated launch avoids permission failures when Nitrox starts the server and interacts with the game installation. - Choose the server mode. In NitroxLauncher, select Server.
- Start the process. Select Start Server and wait for the server window to appear. Do not close that window while people are playing.
- Record the connection information. The server window reports the game mode, server password, administrator password, local IP address, and the address intended for players reaching the server through port forwarding. Use the address shown there instead of guessing which address other players should enter.
The launcher workflow is the least complicated option because Nitrox supplies the server process and the configuration is visible in one place. It does not, however, automatically make the server reachable from the public Internet; network exposure is a separate step.
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Connect from the host computer or a home network
Connecting on the same computer
On the computer running the server, open the Nitrox client and use the My server option. Enter 127.0.0.1 or localhost. These loopback addresses keep the connection on the same machine and do not depend on the router’s public address.
Connecting from another device on the LAN
A player on the same home network should use the host’s private address, such as the local IP shown in the server window. The host firewall must permit the connection, and both devices must actually be on the same routed network. A guest Wi-Fi network or client-isolation setting can prevent two devices that appear to share a router from communicating.
- Use the host’s private address, not
127.0.0.1; loopback refers to the player’s own device. - Keep the Nitrox server running while the client attempts to join.
- Test locally before changing router settings. A successful local test proves that the server process and game installation start correctly, even though it does not prove Internet reachability.
Make the server reachable over the Internet
Forward the required UDP port
The official Nitrox hosting guide states: “Nitrox uses port 11000 UDP.” Create a port-forwarding rule in the router that sends UDP 11000 to the private IP address of the computer running Nitrox. The destination address must remain stable; if the host receives a different private IP from DHCP, the rule can silently point at the wrong device. Reserve the host’s address in the router or configure an equivalent static assignment.
Port forwarding is configured in the router, not in NitroxLauncher. Menu names vary by manufacturer, but the rule needs the same three facts: protocol UDP, external port 11000, and the host computer’s internal address with destination port 11000. Do not forward the port to a different computer that merely has Subnautica installed.
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Allow the applications through the host firewall
Permit both Subnautica.exe and NitroxServer-Subnautica.exe through the host operating system’s firewall on the network profile you use. If Windows displayed a firewall prompt when the server first started, declining it can produce the same timeout as a missing router rule. A rule for only the launcher is not necessarily enough: the server executable is the process that listens for game traffic.
Give players the correct address
Remote players should use the address intended for port-forwarded connections that Nitrox displays in the server window. A private address such as 192.168.x.x or 10.x.x.x is normally usable only inside the LAN. Do not send friends the host’s loopback address. If the Internet connection’s public address changes, the remote address changes as well; re-check the value shown by the server and any router status page.
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Some connections use carrier-grade NAT, restrictive campus networks, or routers you cannot administer. In that situation, a VPN or tunneling option such as Hamachi can provide a shared virtual network instead of a conventional inbound forward. Every participant must join the same virtual network, and the address players use is the host address supplied by that VPN. The VPN still has to pass Nitrox’s UDP traffic; installing it alone does not guarantee that the server is reachable.
Passwords, addresses, and safe administration
The server window exposes both a server password and an administrator password. Give ordinary players only the server password. Keep the administrator password private, because it is intended for management rather than normal joining. If you change a password, tell players which value is current and restart or reload the server only when the change requires it.
Do not post the public address and administrator credentials together. If a connection problem requires troubleshooting, share the address and port separately from any administrative secret. Shut down the server cleanly when finished so the current world and configuration can be written to disk.
Docker or Podman: an optional headless setup
A container can be useful when you want the server to run without a desktop session or on a Linux machine. This is not the primary Nitrox launcher workflow; it depends on third-party container images whose tags, defaults, supported architectures, and directory layouts can change. Verify those details against the image documentation before deploying.
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- The Subnautica installation mount: the container needs access to the real game installation, not an empty directory created inside the container.
- An explicit installation-path setting: the spidegames example lists
SUBNAUTICA_INSTALLATION_PATHas required. Set it to the path as seen inside the container, not merely the host path. - Persistent Nitrox data: mount the Nitrox working/configuration data and save directories to host storage. Otherwise, deleting or recreating the container can delete settings and worlds stored only in its writable layer.
- Published networking: publish UDP port
11000from the container to the host. The official protocol requirement remains UDP; a container image that also publishes TCP is exposing an image-specific default, not proof that TCP is required by Nitrox.
Deployment sequence
- Choose an image release whose architecture and Nitrox version match the host. Treat an unpinned or floating image tag as a maintenance risk because a later pull can change defaults.
- Map the host’s Subnautica installation into the container and set the image’s required installation-path variable to that mounted location.
- Map separate persistent host directories for Nitrox configuration, working data, and saves. Confirm the container user can read the game files and write the persistent directories.
- Publish UDP 11000 on the container and allow the same port through the host firewall and, for Internet play, the router.
- Start the container and inspect its logs for the server address, startup errors, and confirmation that the installation path was found.
- Connect locally from a client on the container host first. Only after that works should you test a LAN device or an Internet connection.
Examples of image-specific differences
The spidegames example documents publishing both 11000/udp and 11000/tcp, while the Cuteminded image documents publishing UDP 11000. Those differences are container packaging choices. Read the instructions for the exact tag you selected rather than copying a port list from a different image.
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Launcher versus container hosting
| Consideration | NitroxLauncher on Windows | Docker or Podman |
|---|---|---|
| Initial setup | Run the launcher as Administrator, select Server, and start it. | Install a runtime, select an image, configure mounts and environment variables, and publish the port. |
| Platform fit | Best suited to a Windows machine with the normal Nitrox launcher workflow. | Useful for Linux or headless hosts; image support varies by architecture and operating system. |
| Game files | Uses the local Subnautica installation directly. | Requires a correctly mounted installation and, for the spidegames example, SUBNAUTICA_INSTALLATION_PATH. |
| Persistence | Worlds and settings remain in the host’s normal Nitrox data locations. | Requires explicit persistent mounts for working/configuration data and saves. |
| Networking | Forward UDP 11000 from the router to the Windows host. | Publish UDP 11000 from the container, then apply the host firewall and router rules. |
| Maintenance | Update Nitrox and Subnautica manually and keep client/server releases aligned. | Update image tags and mounted game files deliberately; a tag change can alter defaults. |
| Capacity and performance | No authoritative Nitrox source in the available official material publishes a player cap, minimum CPU, minimum RAM, or minimum bandwidth figure. Neither approach has a documented universal advantage on those measures. | |
Troubleshoot a server that friends cannot join
Everyone times out, including LAN players
- Confirm the server window is still open and the server started without an installation error.
- Verify that the player is using the host’s private address for LAN play, not
127.0.0.1. - Allow
Subnautica.exeandNitroxServer-Subnautica.exethrough the host firewall. - Check that the client and server use compatible Nitrox and Subnautica versions.
LAN works, but Internet players time out
This pattern usually points to reachability rather than the Nitrox world itself. Re-check that the router forwards UDP 11000 to the current private IP of the server computer, that the host firewall allows the traffic, and that remote players are using the port-forwarding address shown by the server. A VPN or tunnel can alter which address is correct.
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The port forward appears correct, but the server is still unreachable
- Check whether the Internet service uses carrier-grade NAT or another upstream router. Inbound forwarding on your own router cannot bypass an upstream NAT you do not control.
- Confirm the server is listening while the test is performed; a stopped Nitrox window cannot accept connections.
- Remove conflicting rules that send UDP 11000 to an old computer.
- Test from a genuinely external network, such as a phone hotspot. A test from inside the same LAN may be affected by the router’s loopback behavior and is not conclusive.
The container cannot find Subnautica
Inspect the mounted path from inside the container. The path must contain the actual Subnautica installation, and the image’s installation-path variable must point to that in-container location. A common mistake is setting the variable to a Windows host path that does not exist in a Linux container, or mounting the parent directory while pointing the variable at a different subdirectory.
Worlds or settings vanish after a restart
The data was probably written inside the ephemeral container layer. Stop the container, create host directories for Nitrox working/configuration data and saves, mount them at the paths required by the image, and start again. Verify write permissions before beginning a new world. Existing data inside a discarded container may not be recoverable.
A client suddenly reports a version mismatch
Update the Nitrox client and server together, then verify the Subnautica build they target. The official development documentation ties its main branch to the latest Subnautica code, so a game update can require a corresponding Nitrox update. Avoid mixing a newly updated client with an older server image or launcher build.
Capacity, hardware, and bandwidth: what is actually known
The searched official Nitrox material does not publish a supported player-capacity number or minimum CPU, RAM, or bandwidth specification. Do not treat an arbitrary “maximum players” figure from an unrelated server host as an official limit. Start with a small group, watch the host for CPU, memory, network, and storage pressure, and increase the load only if the game remains stable. Keep world saves backed up regardless of platform.
The absence of a published minimum does not mean hardware is irrelevant. The host must keep the server process, Subnautica files, operating system, and any container runtime responsive at the same time. A container on low-power hardware can work in a tested environment, but the cited image tests are not a promise of identical results for every world, player count, or architecture.
A reliable first-session checklist
- Subnautica launches successfully on the host.
- Nitrox versions match between server and clients.
- NitroxLauncher was run as Administrator on Windows.
- Server and Start Server were selected.
- The server window remains open and its address information was recorded.
- The host can join through
127.0.0.1orlocalhost. - LAN players use the host’s private address and can pass the firewall.
- Internet play uses a router rule for UDP 11000 or a functioning VPN/tunnel.
- Both
Subnautica.exeandNitroxServer-Subnautica.exeare allowed by the firewall. - Container deployments mount the real game files and persistent Nitrox data, with the image’s required installation-path variable set.
- You have a backup plan for saves before changing versions, image tags, or storage mounts.
Choosing the right hosting path
Use the Windows launcher when you want the shortest supported path and have a Windows machine available. Choose a container when headless operation, Linux, or repeatable deployment matters more than a one-click setup, and accept the extra responsibility for mounts, image tags, permissions, and persistence. In either case, solve networking separately: local hosting needs no public exposure, LAN hosting needs the host firewall and private address, and Internet hosting needs reachable UDP 11000 through forwarding or a tunnel.
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