Which port does ARK RCON use?

27020 by default, set by RCONPort in GameUserSettings.ini. It is separate from the game port and the Steam query port, which is the most common reason a connection is refused.

Does this work with ARK: Survival Ascended?

Yes — Ascended and Survival Evolved both speak the standard RCON protocol with the same settings names.

Why is my admin password rejected?

ServerAdminPassword is read at startup; edit it while the server runs and the old one is still in force. Restart, then reconnect.

Can I manage a whole cluster?

Save each map as its own RCON profile in a folder. A broadcast or a save can then be sent to each in turn, or driven from a snippet.

Should the RCON port be reachable from the internet?

No. RCON sends its password unencrypted — bind it locally and reach it over an SSH tunnel, which Tempest can save as a rule on the host.

ARK admin

An ARK admin console that stays connected

ARK servers are long-running, memory-hungry and full of ini settings nobody remembers. Tempest gives you the RCON console, the config file over SFTP, and a shell on the machine — saved as one set of profiles that follow you to your phone.

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Windows, macOS, Linux, Android & iOS.

Tempest RCON console connected to an ARK dedicated server

Setup

RCONEnabled, RCONPort, ServerAdminPassword

All three live in GameUserSettings.ini under the ServerSettings section. Ascended and Evolved work the same way here.

RCONEnabled=True, RCONPort=27020 by default, and ServerAdminPassword as the credential.

The RCON port is deliberately not the game port — a connection refused usually means the profile is pointed at the query or game port instead.

Edit GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini over SFTP, then restart from the shell tab. SFTP file manager

The console

The commands a tribe war needs

ListPlayers for who is on, KickPlayer and BanPlayer by ID, Broadcast for the server-wide warning, ServerChat to answer, SaveWorld before anything, DoExit to bring it down cleanly, DestroyWildDinos when spawns have gone stale.

Scrollback and command history survive reconnects, so a long ListPlayers is still there after the server hiccups.

Saved profiles per map — the cluster is a folder, not a text file of ports.

Passwords stored zero-knowledge encrypted and synced across your devices. How E2EE works

The machine

Saves, mods and the restart cycle

SaveWorld then DoExit is the easy part. Mod updates, disk space, and a crash at 3am are jobs for the host, and the host is in the same host list.

A snippet for the full cycle: save, broadcast, exit, update, start. Snippets & scheduled runs

Download the SavedArks directory over SFTP before a risky mod update.

Live memory and disk gauges in the session, and a scheduled check that pushes to your phone when it fails. Monitoring docs

Run the same command across every map in a cluster in one go.

ARK host shell and file manager beside the RCON console

Frequently asked questions

Which port does ARK RCON use?: 27020 by default, set by RCONPort in GameUserSettings.ini. It is separate from the game port and the Steam query port, which is the most common reason a connection is refused.
Does this work with ARK: Survival Ascended?: Yes — Ascended and Survival Evolved both speak the standard RCON protocol with the same settings names.
Why is my admin password rejected?: ServerAdminPassword is read at startup; edit it while the server runs and the old one is still in force. Restart, then reconnect.
Can I manage a whole cluster?: Save each map as its own RCON profile in a folder. A broadcast or a save can then be sent to each in turn, or driven from a snippet.
Should the RCON port be reachable from the internet?: No. RCON sends its password unencrypted — bind it locally and reach it over an SSH tunnel, which Tempest can save as a rule on the host. Port forwarding guide

Keep exploring

RCON client Palworld server manager BattlEye RCON for DayZ & Arma SFTP client Server monitoring

Save the world. Then restart it properly.

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