Recommended Distro for Hosting a CS:GO Dedicated Server?
 

Hello everyone!

Due to issues with my previous server, I've decided to boot up one of my old dual core's and move to linux!

The specs of this laptop: AMD Athlon II M340 (2.2GhZ), 4GB RAM, 500GB HDD.

On my previous server I attempted to set up on Debian which went smoothly - however, it seemed to have the same performance as on Windows 7, so I decided to stick with 7 since I also needed to set up an FTP Server and I have practically zero clue on how to do that on Debian or Linux in general.

This time I'm planning to stick and commit to Linux as I feel the need and interest to learn.

Which distribution would you guys recommend for hosting a CS:GO Dedicated Server? I used Debian due to old threads recommending it due to stability, although I'm not too sure about that now. I also read that Valve personally used Ubuntu for their servers, but recently moved to Slackware.

Thanks,

Ryan.

EDIT: I believe I could've squeezed more performance from my first attempt on Debian by increasing the Kernel Frequency to 1000Hz, enabling High Resolution Timers and PREEMPT, or using a custom kernel in general. At the time I didn't know about this and even now I need to learn to do so.

redhat or cent or Debian

Most company webservers run CentOS or Debian Stable. The other free high-stability Linux is Slackware.

In Linux, it's usual to run a server from the command line. The advantages are
> better performance, as there's less stuff running
> quicker debugging if anything goes wrong, as there's less stuff running
You can install a GUI if you like, but set the OS to run without it; then if you want a GUI program or tool, the command startx will load it.

My personal preference is CentOS, as you can see. It's the most user-friendly of the three, especially if you install the GUI for nice utilities (e.g. the firewall configuration tool). You need to get the big installer (2DVD) and to select a custom installation. Then you get a choice of basic server / database server / webserver and you can specify extra GUI stuff as well.
https://www.centos.org/
The detailed installation & deployment guides say they're for RHEL 5, but they still work.

Thanks for the reply John. I'll probably stick with Debian and give CentOS a try since I have the time ^^.

Hehe, I had a feeling it was one of those two in the end! I've read up more old threads and found that Debian has better performance "out-of-the-box", so I'll probably stick with it.. although I do have a heap of time so I will mess around with both! Considering my CPU is 64-bit and I have 4GB of RAM, is it worth it to go for a 64-bit version of the distro? I found out that the game server doesn't gain any performance benefits from running on a 64-bit OS.

In relation to Debian: In order to only run via a command line, do I just choose not to install a Desktop Environment when asked? Also.. what are "standard system utilities"? I normally don't install anything other than the "Debian Desktop Environment" + LXDE and "Standard System Utilities". Because this laptop is old, I'd like to minimize the amount of things I have installed and running. Are "Standard System Utilities" necessary when hosting a Server?

Thanks again!

EDIT: Since I'm only hosting a Dedicated Game Server, an FTP Server and MAYBE(unlikely) a TeamSpeak Server, which server choice would you recommend in CentOS? Basic, Database or Web?

It's so long since I tried anything but the basic Debian installation that I can't remember. You certainly want the system utilities, though.

For CentOS, go for the web-server version.

Oo. That's fair enough. So I guess not much to change! I finally think I got how to install the PREEMPT RT Kernel/Build a custom kernel so now I'm just settling on an OS. Alright, Web-Server it is!

Thanks Again, David!

consider using scp/sftp/sshfs/... instead.

Ooo.. I've never used SSH FTP before, so I'm not sure if it works with CS:GO's FastDL. I'll check up on it though. Thanks Schneidz!