Game Server Hosting

Portal exposes a game server running on your own machine through a public relay. Players connect to the relay’s assigned host:port; they do not install Portal.

Game client -> Relay public port -> Portal tunnel -> Local game server

The game host needs outbound access to the relay. The relay, not the game host, needs a public IP address and open TCP or UDP lease ports.

Compatibility

Portal currently allocates one TCP port and one UDP port per lease. It does not reserve a related group of UDP ports or preserve a game’s public port layout. That is why Valheim and Rust are not ready yet.

Relay Setup

For TCP game servers, enable TCP allocation and publish the lease range:

environment:
  TCP_ENABLED: "true"
  MIN_PORT: "50000"
  MAX_PORT: "50009"
ports:
  - "443:443"
  - "50000-50009:50000-50009/tcp"

For UDP game servers, also enable UDP, publish the UDP lease range, and expose the relay’s QUIC backhaul port:

environment:
  UDP_ENABLED: "true"
  MIN_PORT: "50000"
  MAX_PORT: "50009"
ports:
  - "443:443"
  - "443:443/udp"
  - "50000-50009:50000-50009/udp"

Your cloud firewall or security group must allow the same public ports.

Minecraft Java Edition

Run the Minecraft server locally on its default TCP port, 25565, then start the tunnel:

portal expose localhost:25565 
  --tcp 
  --name minecraft 
  --relays https://relay.example.com 
  --discovery=false

Portal logs the assigned endpoint:

raw transport endpoints allocated tcp_addr=minecraft.relay.example.com:50000

In Minecraft Java Edition, add a multiplayer server with:

minecraft.relay.example.com:50000

Do not add https://. Test from a different network before sharing the server with friends.

Terraria

Terraria’s dedicated server uses TCP port 7777 by default. Start the server, then expose it with raw TCP:

portal expose localhost:7777 
  --tcp 
  --name terraria 
  --relays https://relay.example.com 
  --discovery=false

Players use the allocated host:port in Terraria’s Join via IP flow. The Terraria dedicated server guide documents the default TCP port and the direct-IP join flow.

Palworld

Palworld’s default game port is UDP 8211. Start the dedicated server locally, then expose its UDP listener:

portal expose localhost:8211 
  --udp 
  --udp-addr localhost:8211 
  --name palworld 
  --relays https://relay.example.com 
  --discovery=false

For a community server, configure Palworld’s advertised publicip and publicport with the relay’s public IPv4 address and the assigned UDP port. Those values describe the public relay endpoint; the local Palworld listener can remain on 8211. See the Palworld server arguments.

Portal UDP datagrams are currently limited to 1350 bytes and inactive flows are removed after 5 minutes. Direct joins and sustained gameplay must both be tested before treating a Palworld server as production-ready.

Valheim and Rust

Do not describe these as supported through Portal yet.

• Valheim uses the configured UDP port and that port plus one; its default pair is 2456-2457. See the Valheim dedicated server guide.
• Rust requires separate UDP server.port and server.queryport endpoints for player connections and server browser queries. See Rust’s server guide.

Supporting them needs grouped UDP port allocation and per-port public-to-local mapping. Running separate single-port tunnels does not provide the stable, related public ports these games expect.

Security and Operations

• Raw TCP and UDP transports do not add Portal tenant TLS. Treat unencrypted game traffic as visible to the relay network.
• Use game passwords, allowlists, or both before giving an endpoint to others.
• Keep the tunnel process and game server running. Stopping either makes the assigned endpoint unavailable.
• Back up worlds and test from an external network, such as a mobile hotspot or a friend’s connection.