Game server hosting
Counter-Strike 2 server hosting
Counter-Strike 2 server hosting on AMD EPYC cores in Lauterbourg, France: 4 GB RAM from €10.99 every 30 days, VAT included. Metamod:Source and CounterStrikeSharp supported, with GSLT and Workshop map hosting configurable from the panel.
Set up for you by our team. Email us and we will confirm your start date and have your Counter-Strike 2 server installed, configured and running, usually the same day.
Stripe-secured payments · unused wallet credit refundable · no minimum term, cancel any time · EU company, VAT LT100016340412
Hosting Counter-Strike 2
What actually matters on a Counter-Strike 2 server
CS2 is RAM-light and single-thread hungry. The simulation leans on one core, so clock speed decides whether the server holds a clean 64-tick when a smoke goes up and eight players fire at once; extra cores and extra gigabytes do very little for it.
The real operational work is keeping pace with Valve: patches land often, clients auto-update and then refuse to join an outdated server, and an update can reset game/csgo/gameinfo.gi and invalidate Metamod and CounterStrikeSharp gamedata signatures on the same night. There is also no world save to protect.
A CS2 server is its cfg files, its Workshop map list and its plugin MySQL data, so that is what backups actually need to cover.
What 4 GB realistically runs
4 GB is generous for a competitive, retake or practice server. Vanilla CS2 sits comfortably under 2 GB; a full Metamod plus CounterStrikeSharp stack with MatchZy, ranks and skins backed by the included MySQL database, plus GOTV recording, typically lands around 2 to 3 GB.
The .NET runtime CounterStrikeSharp loads accounts for a few hundred MB of that on its own. Larger community deathmatch, surf or KZ servers also run on it, though headroom narrows as the plugin list grows and the Workshop rotation gets heavier, since Source 2 custom maps are larger than their CS:GO equivalents.
If you are aiming at 64 slots with a heavy plugin stack and a second GOTV instance, email hello@puranode.com before launch and we will resize the same day.
Worth knowing: the CS2 server files run to tens of gigabytes, so the first install and each post-patch update is a genuine SteamCMD pull rather than a quick download, and GOTV demos accumulate on disk until you prune them.
After checkout
Getting your Counter-Strike 2 server running
- 1
Add your GSLT before the first start
Create a Game Server Login Token at steamcommunity.com/dev/managegameservers using App ID 730, paste it into the sv_setsteamaccount startup variable in the panel and restart.
Without it the server boots but stays invisible in the community browser and refuses connections from outside your own network.
Tokens are revoked after roughly 30 days of inactivity, and if the Steam account behind them picks up a game ban the token dies with it, so keep a note of which account issued yours.
- 2
Set the game mode in the startup line, not server.cfg
CS2 takes its mode from game_type and game_mode passed at launch (+game_alias competitive, casual, deathmatch or wingman).
Mode-specific convars belong in cfg/gamemode_competitive_server.cfg rather than server.cfg, because the gamemode_*.cfg files exec after server.cfg.
That exec order is why hand-edited mp_maxrounds, mp_overtime_enable and friends look like they reset themselves on every map change.
- 3
Add a Steam Web API key for Workshop maps
Custom and community maps come from the Workshop, which needs a Steam Web API key passed as -authkey in the startup line.
With that set you can boot straight into a map using host_workshop_map <id>, or run a rotation with host_workshop_collection plus workshop_start_map.
Maps are pulled on demand, so the first load of a large surf, KZ or bhop map takes noticeably longer than a stock Active Duty map.
- 4
Install Metamod:Source, then your plugin framework, then back up gameinfo.gi
Metamod:Source is the base loader. CounterStrikeSharp is where most current CS2 plugins live (MatchZy for 5v5 pugs with knife round, pause and demo upload, plus rank and skin plugins).
SourceMod does not officially support CS2, so most current plugins use CounterStrikeSharp, and CS:GO-era SourcePawn plugins do not carry across unmodified. Installing Metamod means adding its search path line to game/csgo/gameinfo.gi.
Save a copy of that file somewhere safe: Valve updates overwrite it, every plugin silently stops loading, and restoring one line brings them all back.
Mods & how far you can go
How mods work on your Counter-Strike 2 server
Upload Metamod:Source and CounterStrikeSharp over SFTP, then add your plugins to the addons folder. Every config file is yours to edit in the web file manager.
- Set up for you, usually the same day
- Hosted in Lauterbourg, France (EU-West)
- Upload mods, plugins or a server pack and run them
- Full file access (SFTP + web editor)
- Nightly backup set up from the start, plus backups on a click
- Free MySQL database
- DDoS protection included
- Console, metrics & crash auto-restart
- RAM upgrades on request, same day
Already running Counter-Strike 2 somewhere else? See how moving to Puranode works.
Setting up your own launch options? Use the CS2 server config generator.
Test your latency to our server
Measures the round trip from your connection to our server in Lauterbourg, France, right now.
This is an HTTPS round trip to the server itself, which typically reads a little higher than in-game ping. Treat it as an upper bound, not a promise.
How much RAM do you need?
Your Counter-Strike 2 plan ships with 4 GB. Group sizes below are a rough guide: mods, plugins and world size matter more than raw player count.
| RAM | Group | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| 2 GB | Small group | Vanilla worlds, small co-op, Terraria |
| 4 GB | Friends or small community | Vanilla+ with plugins, light modpacks, most survival servers |
| 6 GB | Mid-size group | Mid-size modpacks, Satisfactory and 7 Days to Die worlds |
| 8 GB | Larger group | Heavy modpacks, Rust, Palworld, busy community servers |
Picked the wrong size? Email us and we will resize your server the same day: you keep the world, the files and the address.
Going deeper: How to Set Up a CS2 Server With Plugins
How ordering works
- 1
Tell us what you need
Email us the game and plan. We confirm the price and your start date.
- 2
We set it up for you
Your server is installed and configured by our team, usually the same day.
- 3
Create your account and add credit
You get the panel details, top up your wallet by card through Stripe, and it renews like any other server.
Your servers live in the client panel at client.puranode.com, a separate app from this site, run by the same company.
Stripe handles the card
Payments run through Stripe. Puranode never sees or stores your card number.
VAT included
The price you see is the price you pay. No tax added at the last step.
No minimum term
Billed every 30 days. Cancel from the panel any time, no cancellation fee.
48-hour refund on your first order
Change your mind within 48 hours and we refund your first server's first 30 days in full. Unused wallet credit is refundable too.
MB VARIANTAI · company code 306133252 · VAT LT100016340412 · Lithuania, European Union. Refunds & cancellation
Further reading for Counter-Strike 2
How to Set Up a CS2 Server With Plugins
Set up a Counter-Strike 2 dedicated server: disk and RAM it really needs, the Steam login token, Metamod:Source, CounterStrikeSharp and Workshop maps.
Read the guideCS:GO Server Hosting in 2026: Move to CS2?
Looking for CS:GO server hosting? What changed when CS2 replaced CS:GO, what still works, and how to move a community, retake or practice server across.
Read the guideFAQ
Counter-Strike 2 server hosting: FAQ
Why can't anyone find my CS2 server in the community browser?
Nine times out of ten it is the GSLT. CS2 needs a Game Server Login Token for App ID 730, set through sv_setsteamaccount, before it will accept internet connections or list itself publicly. Check that the token is present and still valid (they lapse after about 30 days of inactivity and are revoked if the linked Steam account gets a game ban), that sv_lan is 0, and that you are giving players the panel's connect address with the game port rather than the GOTV port. If the console shows a Steam logon failure at startup, the token is the culprit.
Do you offer 128-tick Counter-Strike 2 servers?
No, and neither does anyone else honestly. CS2 replaced the CS:GO tickrate model with subtick, so servers run at 64 tick while inputs are timestamped between ticks. The old 64 versus 128 argument does not map onto Source 2, and tickrate-enabler hacks tend to cause movement and timing oddities and break with each Valve update. What actually decides how the server feels is single-core clock speed and stable frame timing on the host, which is why we run EPYC with NVMe storage in the EU rather than chasing a number.
My plugins stopped loading after a CS2 update. What happened?
Almost always one of two things. Either the update overwrote game/csgo/gameinfo.gi and removed the Metamod search path line, in which case restoring that one line and restarting fixes everything at once, or Metamod or CounterStrikeSharp needs a rebuild because the new server binary moved the signatures their gamedata points at. The second case is a waiting game on the upstream project, not something a restart cures. Keep a copy of gameinfo.gi outside the game directory, check the console for Metamod load errors first, and use a panel backup to roll a plugin config back if an update leaves the server crash-looping on start.
How much does a Counter-Strike 2 server cost?
Counter-Strike 2 server hosting at Puranode starts at €10.99 every 30 days for a 4 GB server, VAT included. It's a flat price: what you sign up at is what you renew at, with no setup fees and cancel anytime.
How quickly is my Counter-Strike 2 server online?
Your Counter-Strike 2 server is installed and configured for you by our team. Email us and we will confirm your start date and hand over the panel details, usually the same day. From then on it is yours to run like any other server.
Can I install mods and plugins on my Counter-Strike 2 server?
Upload Metamod:Source and CounterStrikeSharp over SFTP, then add your plugins to the addons folder. Every config file is yours to edit in the web file manager. Want a hand? Email us and we set it up with you.
Where are the servers located?
All Puranode servers run on EPYC + NVMe hardware in Lauterbourg, France (EU-West). It is one EU location, best for players in western and central Europe. Puranode is operated by MB VARIANTAI, an EU company in Lithuania, and prices include VAT.
Can I move my existing Counter-Strike 2 server to Puranode?
Yes. Upload your existing world and config over SFTP, or contact us and we'll help migrate it, free for the first setup.
What happens if I run out of credit?
Auto-renewal is on by default, so your server renews from your wallet every 30 days while the balance covers it, and you can switch it off on the order form or in the panel. If the balance will not cover the renewal, or auto-renewal is off, we email you 7, 3 and 1 days before it expires. If a server lapses it is suspended, not deleted: your files are kept for 30 days, and renewing at any point in that time brings it back.
Want a Counter-Strike 2 server?
Email us and we will have it installed and running for you, usually the same day.