You might need to forward some ports in your router when you use Ark: Survival Evolved Server. By forwarding ports you allow connection requests coming from the internet to be directed to Ark: Survival Evolved Server.
Routers do not generally allow incoming connection requests from the internet. Forwarding ports can work around this limitation.
Before Forwarding a Port
You need to know the following things before you can forward a port:
- The internal IP address of your router.
- Your computer's IP address.
- Each of the TCP and UDP ports that you need to forward.
Use a VPN Instead
Have you considered using a VPN instead of forwarding a port? For most users, a VPN is a much simpler and more secure choice than forwarding a port.
We use and recommend NordVPN because not only is it the fastest VPN, it includes a new feature called Meshnet that makes forwarding a port no longer necessary for most applications. With NordVPN Meshnet, you can connect to your devices from anywhere in the world, completely secure, over a highly encrypted VPN tunnel.
When shopping for a VPN, make sure that they meet the following criteria:
- Your VPN provider should have a no-logs policy. This means that they do not keep any logs of any kind.
- Make sure that your VPN provider has lots of exit nodes all around the world.
- Check that your VPN will not affect your speed.
- Verify that your VPN provider uses WireGuard as the underlying protocol.
- Many people prefer a VPN provider that is not based in the United States.
This is the list of requirements that we used when we were shopping around for a VPN provider. There are lots of free, shady VPN providers out there that we looked at and dismissed.
Based in Panama, using diskless servers, and with over 6,100 servers in 61 countries, we can safely say that NordVPN satisfies all of these requirements.
Once you've set up your NordVPN account on multiple computers and enabled Meshnet, you can seamlessly access all of your devices as if they were on the same network. You don't even have to log in to your router. It's very simple.
Every time you click on one of our affiliate links, such as NordVPN, we get a little kickback for introducing you to the service. Think of us as your VPN wingman.
Locate Your Router's IP Address
The easiest way to locate your router's IP address is to run our free Router Detector utility. It's a part of the Network Utilities suite of tools and it's completely free to use.
We have a guide you can follow Find Your Router IP Address if you don't want to run the software.
Forwarding a Port for Ark: Survival Evolved Server
You can use our Network Utilities software to automatically forward ports for you. With Network Utilities, you can easily forward ports and also un-forward ports quickly so that you can keep your network up to date with the ports that you need forwarded and maximize your network security.
You can also choose to set up port forwards manually. The normal process for forwarding a port is:
- Start by logging in to your router.
- Find the port forwarding section in your router.
- Put your computer's IP address in the proper box in your router.
- Put the TCP and UDP ports that you are forwarding for Ark: Survival Evolved Server in the correct boxes in your router.
Frequently you have to reboot your router for the changes to take effect.
You can choose your router from our list to see exactly how to forward ports for Ark: Survival Evolved Server:
List of Routers - Customized for Ark: Survival Evolved Server
Setting Up a Port Forward for Ark: Survival Evolved Server
The following ports need to be forwarded for Ark: Survival Evolved Server:
Ark: Survival Evolved Server - PC
- TCP: 25147
- UDP: 7777-7778, 25147, 27015
Those are the steps to take in order to forward ports in your router for Ark: Survival Evolved Server.
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