How to keep an s&box server updated (and stop version mismatch lockouts)

Your s&box server goes quiet after a Facepunch patch because players on the newer build can't join an older server, and the dedicated server has no updater of its own. RCON Hub fixes it: its s&box Manager pack checks Steam for a new build, updates and restarts the server by itself, and restarts it twice a day so long uptime never turns into jitter.

Why s&box servers fall behind

Facepunch ships s&box updates about every two weeks. Steam updates your players' games quickly. Your server doesn't update at all until you do it.

The moment a patch lands, anyone on the new build can't join your old server. Your player count drops to zero, and nothing tells you why.

Long uptime hurts too. After about 11.6 hours up, s&box's clock loses precision and the server starts to jitter. A server you never restart gets worse every hour.

So the manual routine looks like this:

• Watch for Facepunch patches yourself.
• Stop the server and run SteamCMD for app 1892930 by hand.
• Check the game package still loads on the new build.
• Restart at least every 12 hours, around the clock.

Miss one step and your players go elsewhere.

What the game and other tools leave out

• No built-in updater. The s&box server never checks for a new build. s&box Manager checks Steam every 30 minutes and updates by itself, on by default. Prefer to decide? Turn it off and you get a news post instead.
• Jitter after long uptime. Nothing restarts the server for you. s&box Manager sets two restarts a day to begin with, and you can add up to six.
• A patch can break your game. When a game package fails to load, s&box stays up with nobody able to play. s&box Manager catches the failed load, stops the server and says why in the news.
• Freezes look like a running server. The process stays up while nothing answers. s&box Manager restarts the server when both Steam's query and the console go silent, after 90 seconds by default, and after crashes too.
• Public and staging don't mix. Players on one branch can't join a server on the other. s&box Manager has a Branch setting for public or staging, so you pick on purpose.

How RCON Hub fixes it

s&box Manager installs the server with SteamCMD and compares your build with the newest one on Steam. When a new build is out, it updates only when nobody's on, or after a countdown in games that support in-game messages. It backs up the server's config before each update, so you can put it back if the update breaks something. The daily restarts pick up updates too.

Step-by-step setup

1. Install RCON Hub. Download it from rconhub.gg and run the installer. It's free for Windows 10 and 11.
2. Add the s&box game pack. Open RCON Hub. On Your games, click Add game, pick s&box and click Install.
3. Set up your server. Open the s&box card. Click Install it for me to download the dedicated server with SteamCMD (about 2.6 GB). Already have one? Paste the folder that holds sbox-server.exe and click Use it.
4. Pick your branch. On the Server page, set Branch to Public or Staging. Most servers want Public. Click Save.
5. Check your version. The Server version card shows your build and the newest on Steam. Click Check now to look right away, and Update now if you're behind.
6. Turn on auto-update. Open Automation. Under Restarts and backups, leave Update automatically when Steam has a new build ticked.
7. Set your restart times. In Restart every day at (this PC's time), keep the two default times or add your own. Leave Restart straight away when nobody's on (no countdown needed) ticked.
8. Keep the watchdogs on. Back on the Server page, tick Restart the server automatically if it crashes. Under Ports, the freeze watchdog and extra launch options, set Restart when frozen after (seconds; 0: never).
9. Undo a bad update. Something wrong since the update? Stop the server, then use Restore that backup on the Server version card to put the config back.

Renting your server? Add it on the Servers page with its Pterodactyl panel. Daily restarts go through the panel, and your host updates the game, most panels at each restart.

Is it safe?

Yes.

• It runs locally. RCON Hub and s&box Manager run on your own Windows PC. There's no RCON port, and no admin port is ever opened.
• No injection. RCON Hub never touches the game client or your players' games. There's nothing for anti-cheat to flag, so it won't get anyone banned.
• Your secrets stay put. The game server token is stored encrypted on your PC.

It's beta software. Back up your server's settings and data before you change things.

Stop losing players to patch day

Your server should be on the new build before your players notice. Download RCON Hub, add the s&box pack, and let your server keep itself current.

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