Swarm Hosts

Swarm Hosts lets you run game servers on hardware you already own, manage them from anywhere, and upgrade only when you want easier public access, cleaner server addresses, and more automated protection.

Bring a Linux PC, mini PC, home server, or VPS with Docker. Windows agent support is in foundation status for registration, heartbeat, and capability reporting while full game-deployment proof is completed. The Swarm Hosts web app becomes your browser-managed game server platform: launch supported games, update versions, manage files, monitor performance, create backups, restore worlds, and share access without handing out your own login.

Fastest path: account -> agent -> first Minecraft server

  1. Create a free account and verify your email.
  2. On a Linux host, run the Swarm Host installer. For Windows foundation testing, use the Windows install path.
  3. Confirm the swarm host appears in the web app.
  4. Launch your first Minecraft Java server, then use the first deployment guide to verify it.
  5. If this is your old PC or mini PC setup, start with the Minecraft self-hosting guide.

What the app does today

  • Account-based login with profile-managed agent tokens
  • Swarm host registration through the agent itself
  • Game deployment from a curated catalog with per-server CPU and memory limits, plus optional swarm host overcommit
  • Automatic host-port assignment from each swarm host's allowed port range
  • Deployment actions: start, stop, restart, update limits, requeue, delete, and force delete
  • Deployment lifecycle tooling: versions, file-based mod workflows, backups, restore, and migration between swarm hosts
  • Deployment ownership transfer to another registered user through backup-and-restore handoff
  • File management over the swarm host gateway, with WebRTC fallback support
  • Resource monitors, deployment logs, public reachability checks, and swarm host DNS status
  • Swarm host and deployment sharing with role-based access for other registered users
  • Swarm host agent version checks with update-state badges and force-update support where the agent build allows it
  • Swarm host storage cleanup with automatic unused Docker image pruning and a manual prune action

Product Model

  • Self-host for free: run deployments on your own hardware and use Swarm Hosts as the remote management layer.
  • Unlimited own-hardware deployments: create as many servers as your hardware, ports, and game requirements can handle.
  • Paid convenience layers: hosted relay access, custom swarmhosts.com endpoints, health alerts, and advanced backup automation are Early Access roll-out areas. Billing details are not published yet, and access may be limited to enabled Early Access accounts.

How it works

  1. Create a Swarm Hosts account.
  2. Sign in and copy your agent token from Profile.
  3. Start the swarm host agent on a Linux machine you control using that token. Windows foundation hosts can register with the Windows artifact and report capability limits.
  4. The agent registers itself and begins heartbeats and task polling.
  5. Pick a supported game, choose the host, set resources, and launch from the browser.
  6. Swarm Hosts assigns ports and resources, queues the task, and the agent starts the container on that swarm host.

Note

There is no manual "create swarm host" form in the UI. Swarm hosts appear automatically after an agent starts with a valid user token.

Best Path To Get Started

  1. Install the agent
  2. Deploy your first server
  3. Read the user guide
  4. Check the troubleshooting guide
  5. Use the support checklist if you need to escalate a launch or connection issue

Public Launch Catalog

The broader game definitions remain in the codebase for existing deployments and future validation work, but they are not advertised as public launch-ready.

Where To Go Next