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How to Make Your Soulmask Server Private

Make a Soulmask dedicated server private by setting a non-empty player password, restarting the process, and keeping the join credential separate from the administrator password.
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To make a Soulmask dedicated server private, set a non-empty player join password, save the setting, and restart the server. In a hosting panel, this is usually the Server Password field under Config or Startup. On a self-hosted installation, add -PSW="yourpassword" to the launch command. Keep that password separate from the administrator password, which uses -adminpsw.

What a private Soulmask server actually does

A password-protected Soulmask server allows only people who know the player join password to connect. That is the access control established by the documented hosting and self-hosting procedures. It does not necessarily make the server invisible in every server browser or discovery system. Treat “private” as password-gated access, not as a guarantee that no one can see the server listing.

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The player password is applied at server startup. Changing a value in a panel, batch file, shell script, or container environment does not alter a running process by itself; the server must be restarted, or the container must be recreated or restarted, before the new value is active.

Choose the procedure that matches your deployment

Deployment Where the password is set What applies the change Operational responsibility
Managed hosting panel Config tab and a Server Password field, or a Startup variable mapped to -PSW Save the setting, then restart from the panel or console The provider operates the server process and normally handles the hosting environment
Self-hosted Windows -PSW="yourpassword" in StartServer.bat Save the batch file and launch the server again You maintain the process, files, updates, and network exposure
Self-hosted Linux -PSW="yourpassword" in StartServer.sh Save the shell script and launch the server again You maintain the process, files, updates, and network exposure
Container deployment SERVER_PASSWORD in the container environment or env file Recreate or restart the container You maintain the deployment definition, environment values, and port mapping

Panel labels vary between providers, but the underlying operation is the same: provide a non-empty value for the player password represented by -PSW, then restart.

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Set a password in a managed hosting panel

Panel with a Config tab

Shockbyte’s Soulmask instructions, published November 12, 2024, use the following sequence. Other providers may use slightly different labels, so look for the equivalent server configuration field.

  1. Stop the Soulmask server. Changing a startup value while the process is still running may leave the old configuration in memory.
  2. Open the server’s Config tab.
  3. Locate Server Password.
  4. Enter a password that you intend to give only to approved players. Leaving this field empty leaves the server public in the documented panel workflow.
  5. Save the configuration.
  6. Restart the server and wait for it to finish starting.

After the restart, players should enter the value from Server Password when joining. Do not confuse this field with an administrator, GM, console, or RCON credential; those are separate access controls.

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Panel with a Startup tab

Some hosts expose the startup command through variables rather than a general configuration form. XGamingServer documents a Startup variable mapped to -PSW.

  1. Stop the server if the panel requires it before editing startup variables.
  2. Open Startup.
  3. Find the variable that represents -PSW or is labelled as the server or player password.
  4. Enter a non-empty value. The documented behavior is that an empty value makes the server public.
  5. Save the variable.
  6. Restart the server from the panel or its console so the launch command is rebuilt with the new password.

If the panel has both a general Server Password field and a raw startup-variable editor, use the control that your provider maps to -PSW. Setting an unrelated administrative variable will not protect player joins.

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Set a password on a self-hosted server

The documented launch flag for the player join password is -PSW="yourpassword". Add it to the command that starts your dedicated server. The file name differs by operating system, but the flag has the same purpose on both.

Windows: edit StartServer.bat

  1. Stop the running Soulmask server.
  2. Open the server directory and locate StartServer.bat.
  3. Edit the command line that launches the server.
  4. Add -PSW="yourpassword" as a startup argument. Keep the quotation marks when the password contains characters that the command shell could parse as separators.
  5. Save the batch file.
  6. Run StartServer.bat again to start a new process with the password enabled.

A complete command can look like this:

call StartServer.bat -SteamServerName="My Private Server" -MaxPlayers=50 -PSW="choose-a-strong-password" -adminpsw="separate-admin-password" -pve

The server name, player limit, PvE option, and passwords in that example are launch arguments. Replace the example values with your own configuration; do not copy the example passwords into production.

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Linux: edit StartServer.sh

  1. Stop the running server process.
  2. Open the directory containing StartServer.sh.
  3. Edit the command that starts the Soulmask server.
  4. Add -PSW="yourpassword" to that command.
  5. Save the script and ensure you are launching the edited copy rather than another script or service definition.
  6. Start the server again so the new argument is read during process initialization.

On Linux, keep the password inside the same quoted argument style used by the existing command. If your service manager starts the server instead of you running the script directly, update the command source that the service actually invokes and then restart that service.

Understand the startup arguments

Argument Purpose Who should receive it
-PSW="..." Player join password; it gates entry to the server Players who are allowed to join
-adminpsw="..." Administrator or GM password Only trusted administrators

These are different credentials. A player who knows the join password does not need the administrator password to join, and an administrator password should not be distributed to ordinary players merely because they are part of your group.

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Use the password with a container deployment

The jsknnr container documentation exposes the player password as the SERVER_PASSWORD environment variable. Set that variable in the environment file or deployment configuration used to create the container.

  1. Stop the current container or prepare a new deployment revision.
  2. Set SERVER_PASSWORD to the intended player join password in the environment or env file.
  3. Keep the administrator credential separate from this value if your image exposes an administrator-password setting.
  4. Preserve the deployment’s configured game and query ports. The container documentation treats those ports separately and notes that router port forwarding may be required for external connectivity.
  5. Recreate or restart the container so the new environment value is loaded by the game process.
  6. Give players only the value of SERVER_PASSWORD, not the environment file or the full deployment definition.

Editing an env file without recreating or restarting the container leaves the already-running process unchanged. If the container comes back with the old behavior, inspect the environment attached to the newly created container rather than only the file on disk.

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Player password versus administrator password

The most important security distinction is between the credential that controls joining and the credential that controls administration.

  • Player join password: supplied through the panel’s server-password field, -PSW in a batch or shell command, or SERVER_PASSWORD in a container. It is intended for approved players.
  • Administrator or GM password: supplied through -adminpsw in a self-hosted launch command or the corresponding administrative setting in a hosting environment. It is intended only for people who operate or moderate the server.

Use different values for the two roles. Reusing one password means every player who can join may also know the credential intended for server administration. The documented procedures do not establish a universal minimum password length, so choose a long, unique value appropriate for the people and risk level of your server.

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Verify that the server is actually password-gated

Do not assume that saving a field changed the running process. Verify the result after the restart or container redeploy.

  1. Confirm that the panel, batch file, shell script, or container environment contains a non-empty player password.
  2. Confirm that the server was restarted after the edit. For containers, confirm that the container was recreated or restarted with the updated environment.
  3. Ask an intended player to join using the exact player password, including capitalization and punctuation.
  4. Check that an unapproved person who does not have the password cannot complete the join process.
  5. Confirm that administrators are using the separate administrative credential rather than distributing -adminpsw.

This test demonstrates password restriction. It does not demonstrate that the server is absent from every listing or discovery mechanism; the available procedures do not make that stronger claim.

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Troubleshoot a server that still appears public

The field is empty or the wrong field was edited

In the documented hosted-panel workflow, an empty password field means public access. Return to Config or Startup, find Server Password or the variable mapped to -PSW, enter a value, save it, and restart.

The password was saved but the server was not restarted

A panel edit does not retroactively change a running server process. Stop and restart it, or use the provider’s documented console restart action. For a container, recreate or restart the container so SERVER_PASSWORD is loaded again.

The launch script contains the flag, but players are not prompted correctly

Check that the process is using the edited StartServer.bat or StartServer.sh, and that -PSW is part of the actual command being executed. Multiple copies of a script or a service that launches a different command can make an apparently correct edit ineffective.

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Players are using the administrator password

Give players the value assigned to -PSW or SERVER_PASSWORD. Keep the value assigned to -adminpsw private and replace it if it has already been shared beyond the administrator group.

A container restart changed connectivity

Changing the password should not require changing the game or query ports. Preserve the deployment’s existing port mappings and router forwarding rules. The container documentation treats game and query ports separately, so verify both if players can no longer reach the server after a redeploy.

Protect the credential while sharing access

  • Never include the real password in screenshots, public configuration repositories, issue reports, or support posts.
  • Share the player password only with the people you intend to admit.
  • Do not send the administrator password to ordinary players.
  • Keep the password out of copied command examples and public documentation.
  • If the player password is exposed, change it in the same control surface where it was originally set, then restart or redeploy before distributing the replacement.

Managed hosting, self-hosting, or containers: which is the better fit?

All three approaches can enforce the same player-password rule, but they place the work in different places.

Consideration Managed panel Self-hosted files Container
Control surface Provider’s Config or Startup interface Local batch or shell launch command Environment variable or env file
Password setting Server Password or variable mapped to -PSW -PSW="yourpassword" SERVER_PASSWORD
Applying a change Save and restart Save the script and relaunch Recreate or restart the container
Credential separation Keep the player field separate from administrative credentials Keep -PSW separate from -adminpsw Keep SERVER_PASSWORD separate from any administrative variable
Operational burden The provider handles the hosted process and environment You maintain the process, updates, and network exposure You maintain the image, deployment definition, environment, and port mapping

Choose the method that matches where your server is already managed. Moving to a different deployment type is not required merely to add a password; each documented control surface supports the same basic outcome when the value is non-empty and the process is restarted.

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Limits of the privacy setting

A join password is an access gate, not a complete privacy or anonymity system. The documented instructions establish that people who know the password can connect and that leaving the password empty can leave the server public. They do not establish that a password-protected server is removed from every browser, query result, or discovery mechanism.

If your goal is to control membership, distribute the player password carefully and rotate it when the group changes. If your goal is to hide the server’s existence from listings, do not assume the password setting alone provides that behavior; the available setup procedures do not promise it.

Quick reference

  • Hosted panel: Stop server → Config or Startup → set non-empty Server Password or -PSW variable → save → restart.
  • Windows: Add -PSW="yourpassword" to StartServer.bat → save → launch again.
  • Linux: Add -PSW="yourpassword" to StartServer.sh → save → launch again.
  • Container: Set SERVER_PASSWORD → preserve game and query ports → recreate or restart the container.
  • Administration: Keep -adminpsw separate from the player join password.

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