Rising World Dedicated Server

Docker image for the Linux Rising World dedicated server. The image installs and updates Steam application 339010 at container startup and runs the game server as the unprivileged steam user.

The image supports linux/amd64.

Quick start

The named-volume example works without host-side permission preparation:

docker compose -f compose.named-volume.yaml up -d
docker compose -f compose.named-volume.yaml logs -f

The first startup downloads and validates the required SteamCMD metadata and can take several minutes. Server files, configuration, worlds, and plugins persist in the rising-world-data volume.

Compose examples

• compose.named-volume.yaml uses a Docker-managed volume and is recommended for new installations.
• compose.bind-mount.yaml stores the server data in ${RW_DATA_DIR:-./data} on the host.

Both examples publish TCP and UDP ports 4254 through 4259, enable a two minute graceful-stop window, and limit Docker log retention.

Steam beta branch

Set RW_BETA to the Steam branch name to install and update that version:

RW_BETA=branch-name docker compose -f compose.named-volume.yaml up -d

Replace branch-name with the exact Steam branch name. Use the same setting with compose.bind-mount.yaml if needed. Set RW_IMAGE to a different image tag when testing a local build. The branch is selected when SteamCMD runs at startup. Set RW_BETA=public to switch an existing installation back to the public branch. Keep RW_UPDATE_ON_START=true when changing branches; an absent server installation is downloaded even when updates are disabled. Back up persistent server data before switching between branches with different world or configuration formats.

Bind-mount permissions

The container runs as uid 1000 and gid 1000. Prepare an existing host directory before switching from an older root-based image:

sudo chown -R 1000:1000 /absolute/path/to/rising-world-data
RW_DATA_DIR=/absolute/path/to/rising-world-data \
  docker compose -f compose.bind-mount.yaml up -d

Replace the example path with the exact dedicated-server directory. The container exits with a clear error when the mounted directory is not writable.

Install OZ Tools

Automatic installation

Set RW_INSTALL_OZ_TOOLS to true in either Compose example to download and install the latest OZ Tools release before every server start:

environment:
  RW_INSTALL_OZ_TOOLS: "true"

API, download, or extraction failures are logged as warnings and never prevent the Rising World server from starting. Existing local OZ Tools configuration files are carried over when the release files are replaced.

One-off installation

Both Compose examples create the server container as rising-world-server-1. The following one-liner downloads the latest OZ Tools release, installs it into the persistent Plugins directory with the correct ownership, and restarts the server:

docker run --rm --volumes-from rising-world-server-1 alpine:3.22 sh -ec 'apk add --no-cache curl unzip >/dev/null; plugins=/appdata/rising-world/dedicated-server/Plugins; url="$(curl -fsSL https://api.github.com/repos/Devidian/rw-plugin-oz-tools/releases/latest | sed -n "s/.*\"browser_download_url\": \"\\([^\"]*\\.zip\\)\".*/\\1/p" | head -n 1)"; test -n "$url"; mkdir -p "$plugins"; curl -fsSL "$url" -o /tmp/oztools.zip; unzip -oq /tmp/oztools.zip -d "$plugins"; test -f "$plugins/OZTools/OZTools.jar"; chown -R 1000:1000 "$plugins/OZTools"' && docker restart rising-world-server-1

The helper container inherits the server's mount, so the command works with both the named-volume and bind-mount variants. If the Compose project name was changed, replace rising-world-server-1 with the actual server container name. Running the command again updates the existing OZ Tools installation while retaining its local configuration files.

Configuration

Variable	Default	Description
RW_UPDATE_ON_START	true	Run SteamCMD app_update before starting the server. A missing installation is always installed.
RW_VALIDATE	false	Add validate to app_update. This makes startup slower but verifies all installed files.
RW_BETA	empty	Select a Steam beta branch with -beta <branch>. Empty uses SteamCMD's default branch behavior; use public explicitly to return from a beta.
RW_INSTALL_OZ_TOOLS	false	Download and install the latest OZ Tools release before every server start. Installation failures are non-fatal.
RW_BACKUP_ON_START	true	Snapshot existing Worlds and Plugins before SteamCMD, plugin updates, and the game server start.
RW_BACKUP_KEEP	7	Number of startup archives to retain (1–999999). Oldest archives are pruned only after a new archive completes.
RW_COMPACT_PLUGIN_DBS_ON_START	false	Compact SQLite .db files under Plugins whose main file exceeds the configured size before starting the server.
RW_COMPACT_PLUGIN_DBS_MIN_MIB	512	Minimum main database size in MiB (1–999999). Files must be larger than this value.

The boolean variables accept only the literal values true and false.

Rising World configuration is stored inside the persistent server directory:

/appdata/rising-world/dedicated-server

Health and shutdown

The image reads Server_Port from the persistent server.properties and checks http://127.0.0.1:<Server_Port - 1>/info every 30 seconds. Before the file exists, it uses the default game port 4255 and checks 4254. When changing Server_Port, publish the matching game and info ports in Compose too; the image healthcheck only verifies the local endpoint. For example, with Server_Port=5255, publish 5254-5259:5254-5259 for both TCP and UDP in the Compose ports section. The EXPOSE declaration lists the default ports but does not restrict other published ports. A ten minute startup grace period accommodates the first installation. Docker health status is observational: a container marked unhealthy is not restarted solely by the Compose restart policy.

The server replaces the entrypoint process and receives Docker stop signals directly. The Compose examples allow up to two minutes for world data to be saved before Docker forces termination.

Backups

By default, each container start archives the existing Worlds and Plugins directories before SteamCMD or the game server runs. The first start skips the backup if neither directory exists. Borg stores the archives in Backups/docker-rising-world/repository/ inside the persistent server directory. Each archive is independently restorable, while Borg deduplicates unchanged data and changed chunks within large SQLite databases. The repository uses authenticated, unencrypted storage with an empty passphrase. A failed backup prevents the server from starting. Set RW_BACKUP_ON_START=false to disable this behavior; set RW_BACKUP_KEEP to change the retention count. These are startup backups, so a continuously running container does not create new archives on a timer.

To restore, stop the server and preserve the current data outside the server directory. List archives with borg list Backups/docker-rising-world/repository from inside the server directory. Move the current Worlds and Plugins directories aside, then run borg extract Backups/docker-rising-world/repository::ARCHIVE from that directory. Set BORG_PASSPHRASE='', BORG_CACHE_DIR and BORG_SECURITY_DIR to the corresponding paths under Backups/docker-rising-world/ when running Borg outside the image. With a named volume, use a temporary helper container while the game server is stopped. Archives remain in the same persistent volume and do not protect against volume or host loss. Copy the repository to external storage and periodically test a restore.

Plugin database compaction

Set RW_COMPACT_PLUGIN_DBS_ON_START=true to reclaim unused pages in large plugin SQLite databases during startup. The routine checks regular .db files under Plugins, including nested plugin directories; it does not touch game databases under Worlds. RW_COMPACT_PLUGIN_DBS_MIN_MIB defaults to 512 MiB. The server must be stopped while the routine runs, as it is during a normal container start. It can extend startup time and needs enough free space for a new copy of each selected database as well as the Borg backup.

A Borg startup archive is created before any compaction, even when RW_BACKUP_ON_START=false. With the normal startup backup enabled, the routine uses that same archive and does not create a second one. If a forced backup fails, compaction is skipped and the server starts with a warning. A failed normal startup backup still prevents startup. Each database is copied and checked before replacement; its original database and SQLite journal files remain available for local rollback until the replacement is verified. If compaction fails, the original is restored and startup continues with a warning. An interrupted replacement is recovered on the next startup, even if compaction has since been disabled. A failed rollback stops startup to avoid opening an incomplete database.

Build

docker build \
  --build-arg VERSION=dev \
  --build-arg VCS_REF="$(git rev-parse HEAD)" \
  -t rising-world-docker:dev .

Published releases use immutable version tags such as 2.1.0, the compatible major tag 2, and latest.

License

This project is available under the MIT License.