Choosing hosting for a CS 1.6 server

I’m probably one of those who love the classics—Counter-Stike 1.6 (or simply someone without a very powerful PC). Although various server browser services are killing this game nowadays, it is still alive and kicking. Perhaps that’s exactly why I decided to rent a CS 1.6 server.

I played CS: Source for a long time, but it seems its era is coming to an end (thanks to Valve’s developers), so I had to switch to CS 1.6. Although the game is quite old, it is still alive today (thanks to server browser services—a paradox, isn’t it?).

About a couple of years ago, an acquaintance persuaded me to switch games (to CS 1.6) and move to game hosting, instead of keeping the server on my home PC. That’s exactly what I’d like to tell you about: the advantages of CS 1.6 hosting over a home PC, and whether it’s worth switching to game hosting specifically or whether VDS/VPS hosting will do.

If you’re a professional CS 1.6 server builder and can easily manage a server using the console, read logs, and configure a VDS server for a game server, feel free to choose VDS/VPS hosting (you’ll spend more time on setup, but it will cost less). I don’t have, and never had, the knowledge to configure a VDS server, which is exactly why I chose CS 1.6 server hosting.

Let me take you back a little and mention that I ran a CS 1.6 server with an acquaintance named zokker (some of you may know him), who knows how to configure a VDS and also edit/create maps for the server.

It was zokker who persuaded me to switch to game hosting after yet another failure (when the host changed the IP on the VDS). For those who don’t know: changing the IP = losing the online player count and all the players. That’s exactly why I don’t recommend firstvds.ru hosting.

Switching from VDS hosting to CS 1.6 game hosting seemed like night and day to me. If you aren’t familiar with server configuration and use Google to set up your server, I recommend renting a server at cshost.fun. We chose this host and rented two CS 1.6 servers.

I’d like to point out that one advantage of cshost.fun hosting is its protection against DDoS attacks. But that’s not where the advantages end. If you’re new to creating servers, the plugins section will be useful: you can install plugins with one click (and, according to the hosting administration’s promise, add your own plugins to the hosting service for a fee). Besides installing plugins in 1 click, you won’t need to rummage through the server’s FTP or look for plugin configs. All the configs are collected on the plugin settings page, and you just need to edit the required values.

Honestly, this was something else for me. Before that, my map-making friend had helped me configure the server, but now I started figuring it out on my own. I’d like to give special thanks to the hosting service’s technical support, which helped with installing and configuring plugins.

By the way, technical support and protection against DDoS attacks aren’t the only advantages of game hosting. In addition to those benefits, you get:

1. Free web hosting (for example, for installing GameCMS)

2. Automatic installation of the CSBans banning service, as well as AStats statistics

3. Fast fastdl file uploads with no additional configuration (just press one button)

4. The ability to create a copy of the server (if you break something, you can easily restore the copy and everything will be fine)

In addition to the hosting benefits listed above, I’d like to mention the server rental price: 15 rubles per slot (Public plan).

This brief overview or review of cshost.fun hosting is only part of what I liked about game hosting. Rating: 4,5 out of 5. I recommend renting a CS 1.6 server only at cshost.fun.