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Playing with friends? Godlike.Host runs hosted Assetto Corsa servers from 10 data-center locations, with free DDoS protection.
To let players outside your home network join an AssettoServer instance for Assetto Corsa, forward 9600/TCP, 9600/UDP, and 8081/TCP from your router to the PC running the server. Then allow AssettoServer.exe through the host firewall and share the join link generated by the server console. A router rule alone is not enough: the router and the computer’s firewall are separate controls.
The instructions below apply to Assetto Corsa with AssettoServer. They do not describe Assetto Corsa EVO, whose dedicated-server tools and ports are separate.
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Ports an AssettoServer needs
AssettoServer’s beginner setup guide documents these default values:
| Purpose | Protocol | Port | Forward to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game traffic | TCP | 9600 | Private IPv4 address of the server PC |
| Game traffic | UDP | 9600 | Private IPv4 address of the server PC |
| HTTP service | TCP | 8081 | Private IPv4 address of the server PC |
Create three separate forwarding rules, even though the two game rules use the same port number. One rule must be TCP, one must be UDP, and the HTTP rule must be TCP. These are the documented AssettoServer defaults; if you deliberately changed the corresponding values in your server configuration, the router rules must match those configured values.
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How port forwarding works in this setup
Your router normally blocks unsolicited inbound connections from the internet. Port forwarding tells it that traffic arriving on selected ports should be sent to one device on your private network. The destination device is the computer hosting AssettoServer, identified by a private IPv4 address such as an address in the 192.168.x.x, 10.x.x.x, or 172.16–172.31.x.x ranges.
After the router sends the traffic onward, the operating system still decides whether the application may receive it. Windows Firewall or another host firewall therefore needs its own allowance for AssettoServer.exe. A successful router rule does not override a blocked application, and an application allowance does not create a router rule.
Prepare the server computer
1. Find the host’s private IPv4 address
On the computer where AssettoServer runs, identify its current private IPv4 address. The router’s forwarding destination must be this address, not the public address shown by an internet speed-test site and not an address belonging to a different gaming PC.
2. Keep that address from changing
Forwarding breaks when the router later gives the server computer a different address through DHCP. The practical fix is to create a DHCP reservation in the router for that computer, or use an equivalent local configuration that keeps its private IPv4 address stable. The AssettoServer guide requires forwarding to the host but does not prescribe one universal reservation method, so the exact menu and procedure depend on your router.
3. Confirm the server configuration
Open the AssettoServer configuration you intend to run and verify the game ports represented by 9600 for both TCP and UDP and the HTTP port represented by 8081/TCP. Do this before creating rules so the router and server agree. If you have multiple presets or installations, check the configuration for the preset that will actually be launched.
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Create the three router rules
Router and ISP interfaces use different names. Look for a page labeled Port Forwarding, NAT, Virtual Server, or a similar term. If you cannot find it, use the router’s manual or search for the router model together with your ISP name. There is no single set of screenshots that fits every router and ISP combination.
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- Add the TCP game rule. Set the external or public port to 9600, the internal or private port to 9600, choose TCP, and set the destination device to the server computer’s reserved private IPv4 address. If the interface asks for a port range, enter the same value as both the start and end.
- Add the UDP game rule. Create a second rule with external port 9600, internal port 9600, protocol UDP, and the same destination address.
- Add the HTTP rule. Create a third rule with external port 8081, internal port 8081, protocol TCP, and the same destination address.
- Save or apply. Some routers apply changes immediately; others restart their networking service. Wait for the router to report that the rules are active before testing.
Use a distinct description for each rule, such as “AssettoServer game TCP,” “AssettoServer game UDP,” and “AssettoServer HTTP.” Clear labels make it easier to spot a missing protocol or a rule pointing at the wrong computer later.
Allow AssettoServer through the host firewall
When Windows Firewall or Windows Defender displays a permission prompt for AssettoServer, allow the application on the network profiles you use for the server. If the server was installed previously and no prompt appears, create an exception for AssettoServer.exe in the firewall’s allowed-app or inbound-rule controls. The executable exception is separate from all three router entries.
Check that the exception applies to the network profile on which the computer is currently operating. If you use a third-party security suite, it may have its own inbound-traffic control in addition to Windows Firewall; review that product’s application rule for the same executable.
Launch AssettoServer and read the log
AssettoServer can run directly from a dedicated folder or as a preset launched through Content Manager. Start the exact instance whose configuration you checked, then watch its console or log output while it registers with the Kunos lobby.
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A forwarding or firewall problem can produce this message:
Error during Kunos lobby registation: ERROR, INVALID SERVER, CHECK YOUR PORT FORWARDING SETTINGS
The spelling of “registation” is part of the displayed message. When you see it, recheck all three forwarding rules, their protocols, the destination IPv4 address, and the firewall exception for AssettoServer.exe. Also confirm that the server is actually running when you test; a saved router rule cannot connect to a process that is stopped.
Give outside players the correct join link
Do not use the Content Manager Invite button if it copies a local address. The AssettoServer guide warns that this can produce the host’s local IP, which only works for devices on the same network and is useless to players outside it.
Instead, copy the link generated in the AssettoServer console after the server starts. Send that console-generated link to friends on other networks. If you run more than one preset, make sure the link comes from the instance you intend them to join.
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Test from outside your network
A test performed on the same home network can succeed even when internet access is misconfigured. Ask a friend on a different connection to open the console-generated link and attempt to join, or test from a genuinely separate network. Keep the server process running during the test and watch its log for an incoming connection.
If local players can connect but an outside player cannot, compare the three router entries with the table above and verify that they still target the server’s current private IPv4 address. Then check the host firewall exception. Do not substitute the host’s private address into a link intended for an outside player.
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Troubleshooting by symptom
“Invalid server, check your port forwarding settings” appears in the log
- Confirm that all three rules exist, not just one rule for port 9600.
- Check that 9600 has both a TCP rule and a UDP rule.
- Check that 8081 is TCP and is forwarded to the same server computer.
- Verify every rule points to the current private IPv4 address of the host.
- Confirm that
AssettoServer.exeis allowed by the host firewall. - Restart the server after correcting the rules and inspect the new log output.
The host can join, but friends outside the home cannot
First make sure friends are using the console-generated link rather than a local address copied by Content Manager. Next, repeat the external test while the server is running and review the forwarding and firewall settings. If those checks are correct and the symptom remains, the cited setup material does not establish which network condition is present. Carrier-grade NAT, double NAT, or an ISP policy that blocks inbound connections are possible network-level blockers, but confirming any of them requires a router- and ISP-specific diagnostic rather than an assumption.
The link opens on the host but not for an outside player
That pattern usually indicates that the link contains an address reachable only inside the home network. Obtain the link from the AssettoServer console instead of using the Content Manager Invite copy action. If the console link still fails externally, return to the router destination, protocol selection, and firewall checks.
The server worked until the computer received a new address
Update the forwarding destination to the computer’s current private IPv4 address, then create a DHCP reservation or another stable-address arrangement so the destination does not change again.
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Content Manager or a dedicated folder?
Both launch paths can run AssettoServer. Choose based on how you plan to operate and maintain the server:
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| Approach | Best fit | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Content Manager preset | Quick setup and convenient launching alongside an existing Assetto Corsa installation | Less portable when you move the server or build a more advanced, separately maintained setup |
| Dedicated folder | Portability, independent files, and greater flexibility for advanced setups | Requires you to manage the folder and launch process yourself |
The network procedure is the same either way: the running instance must use the documented ports (or matching custom values), the router must target its host computer, the firewall must allow its executable, and outside players must receive the console-generated link.
What AssettoServer is designed to provide
AssettoServer is a custom, freeroam-oriented server implementation for Assetto Corsa. Its project introduction says that race sessions, qualifying sessions, and lap times are not supported yet. If your group needs those workflows, forwarding the ports correctly will not add them; select the server implementation and configuration that match the activities you intend to run.
Router and firewall checklist
- The server computer has a known private IPv4 address.
- The router reserves that address or otherwise keeps it stable.
- A TCP rule forwards 9600 to the host.
- A UDP rule forwards 9600 to the host.
- A TCP rule forwards 8081 to the host.
- The server configuration uses the same port values you forwarded.
AssettoServer.exehas a host-firewall exception.- The intended AssettoServer instance is running while you test.
- Outside players receive the link printed by the server console, not a local-IP link copied through Content Manager.
Limits of a home-hosted diagnosis
Port forwarding documentation can identify the required application ports and the separation between router and host firewall controls. It cannot, by itself, determine whether a particular internet connection uses carrier-grade NAT, has two routers in series, or filters inbound ports. If the complete checklist passes but no independent network can connect, record the router’s WAN details and contact the ISP or router manufacturer for a network-specific diagnosis. Treat those conditions as possibilities to investigate, not as confirmed causes.
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