Getting Started with Your Arma Reforger Dedicated Server

This is the first-time walkthrough for a fresh Arma Reforger server on LOW.MS. If you've just ordered one and you're staring at the panel wondering what to touch first, start here.

Step 1: Order the server and grab your credentials

1. Pick your plan on the Arma Reforger order page and complete checkout.
2. Once the order is provisioned you'll get an email with your LOW.MS Control Panel login.
3. Sign in at https://control.low.ms and you'll see your new Arma Reforger service on the dashboard.

Provisioning is usually done in a few minutes. If it's been longer than that, open a ticket – we'd rather hear from you early than have you sit there refreshing.

Step 2: Find your way around the panel

Click into the service and you'll land on the Arma Reforger management page. The sidebar is where everything lives. The bits you'll use most on day one:

• Service Settings – start, stop, restart, and see your server's current state.
• Configuration Files – where config.json lives.
• Commandline Manager – startup flags (scenario override, -listScenarios, BattlEye, etc.).
• Mod Manager – pulls mods from the Workshop straight onto the server.
• File Manager – full file tree if you need to poke around.
• Log Viewer – console output, useful when something won't start.

Your game port is shown on the Service Settings page. On LOW.MS that's typically 2302, but always check the panel for your exact value – that's the number of truth.

Step 3: Open config.json

Go to Configuration Files and open config.json. A fresh server ships with a working default, but it's worth understanding what's in there. Here's a canonical minimal example:

{
  "bindAddress": "",
  "bindPort": 2302,
  "publicAddress": "",
  "publicPort": 2302,
  "a2s": {
    "address": "",
    "port": 17777
  },
  "rcon": {
    "address": "",
    "port": 2312,
    "password": "changeme",
    "permission": "admin"
  },
  "game": {
    "name": "My LOW.MS Reforger Server",
    "password": "",
    "passwordAdmin": "changeme-please",
    "scenarioId": "{ECC61978EDCC2B5A}Missions/23_Campaign.conf",
    "maxPlayers": 64,
    "visible": true,
    "crossPlatform": true,
    "supportedPlatforms": ["PLATFORM_PC", "PLATFORM_XBL", "PLATFORM_PSN"],
    "gameProperties": {
      "serverMaxViewDistance": 1600,
      "serverMinGrassDistance": 0,
      "networkViewDistance": 1500,
      "disableThirdPerson": false,
      "fastValidation": true,
      "battlEye": true
    },
    "mods": []
  },
  "operating": {
    "lobbyPlayerSync": true,
    "playerSaveTime": 120,
    "aiLimit": -1
  }
}

A couple of things worth knowing before you change anything:

• bindAddress / bindPort is the socket the server listens on. publicAddress / publicPort is what the game browser advertises. On LOW.MS both ports match what's shown in your panel.
• a2s is the Steam query block, and rcon is its own block too. Don't flatten them into root keys – the old pre-0.9.9 schema (with adminPassword, a2sQueryEnabled, etc.) is gone. On LOW.MS, RCON port is your game port + 10 (so 2312 if your game port is 2302).
• game.passwordAdmin is the in-game admin password. This is the one you'll use to #login. It is not the same as the RCON block password.
• maxPlayers defaults to 64 and the engine hard-caps at 128. We see a lot of tickets from people pushing that cap – be careful, the top end is rough.

For the full deep dive on every key, see Arma Reforger Server Configuration.

Step 4: Pick your scenario

scenarioId is the mission the server loads. The two you almost certainly want to start with:

• Conflict Everon – {ECC61978EDCC2B5A}Missions/23_Campaign.conf
• Game Master Everon – {59AD59368755F41A}Missions/21_GM_Eden.conf

Honestly, start with Conflict. It's the one most groups actually end up running, and it'll show you straight away whether everything's networked correctly. Game Master is great once you've got a crew and someone who wants to build scenarios live.

For the full official list (Combat Ops, GM Arland, stress test, etc.), add -listScenarios as a startup flag in Commandline Manager and check the log, or look at the Bohemia wiki scenario page. We're deliberately not listing every GUID here – a few of them have been renumbered between updates and I don't want you copying a stale one.

Step 5: Start the server

1. Any launch flags go in Commandline Manager. The default is fine for a first boot – leave it alone unless you need -listScenarios or a specific mission override.
2. Go to Service Settings and hit start.
3. Open Log Viewer and watch the console. A healthy boot ends with a line showing the scenario loaded and the server listening on your port.

First start takes a little longer than subsequent ones. If it fails, the log will almost always tell you why – most of the time it's a JSON typo in config.json (missing comma, unmatched brace). Paste the file into any JSON validator before you raise a ticket.

Step 6: Connect from the game

1. Launch Arma Reforger.
2. Multiplayer → Server Browser. Filter by your server name, or use Direct Join with your public IP and port from the panel.
3. Pick a slot and spawn in.

If the server doesn't show up in the browser but Direct Join works, that's usually a publicAddress / visible issue, not a hosting problem – covered in Arma Reforger Troubleshooting.

Step 7: Log in as admin

There's no "first player to connect is automatically GM" magic, even though a lot of old guides claim there is. The real flow:

1. In-game, open chat.
2. Type #login <your passwordAdmin> (the value you set in config.json).
3. You're now authenticated as admin for the session.
4. On a Game Master scenario, open the role/spawn menu and select the Game Master slot. GM controls are shown on-screen in the GM HUD – don't memorise a specific keybind, the game tells you.

If you rotate that password later, change it in config.json and restart via Service Settings.

Where to go next

• Adding mods: the existing How to Install Mods on Your Arma Reforger Server walks through Workshop → mods[] end to end. Arma Reforger supports mods on PC, Xbox, and PS5 since Update 1.4 (May 2025), though some mods are still flagged PC or PC/Xbox only by their author.
• Tuning for your player count: Best Arma Reforger Server Settings.
• Running a milsim or GM night: Arma Reforger Game Master & Milsim Guide.
• Background on why we host the way we do: Arma Reforger Server Hosting Guide.

That's the full first-time path. Save your config.json, keep your admin password somewhere sensible, and you're good.

Happy gaming!