hyscale

The easiest way to host a private Hytale server for you and your friends

A web-based server manager that runs on your private Tailscale network - no port forwarding, no exposing your IP, no firewall headaches.

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Why hyscale?

Traditional Server Hosting	With hyscale
Configure port forwarding on your router	Nothing to configure
Share your home IP address with everyone	Only your Tailscale network can see it
Dynamic IP? Set up DDNS	Automatic DNS name (e.g., hytale.your-tailnet.ts.net)
Manage via command line	Web dashboard in your browser
FTP for mods	Map a network drive directly!

Quick Start

1. Download and Run

Download the latest release for your platform and run it:

./hyscale

2. Authenticate with Tailscale

On first run, you'll see an authentication URL:

====================================================
  AUTHENTICATION REQUIRED
====================================================
  Visit this URL to authenticate:
  https://login.tailscale.com/...
====================================================

Visit the URL and sign in to connect hyscale to your Tailnet.

3. Open Dashboard and Start Your Server

Once authenticated, hyscale prints your dashboard URL (something like https://hytale.your-tailnet.ts.net).

From the dashboard:

1. Click Authenticate and sign in with your Hytale account
2. Click Download Server to fetch the server files
3. Click Start - you're running!

Invite Friends

Getting friends connected is simple:

1. They install Tailscale - free for personal use at tailscale.com

2. You share your node - In the Tailscale admin console, click on your hyscale machine, then Share to email an invite or create an invite link

3. They join and connect - Friends accept your invite and use your server's Tailscale DNS name (shown in your dashboard) to connect in-game

Allow Game Traffic

Add this rule to your Tailscale ACL policy so shared users can connect:

ACLs syntax:

{
  "action": "accept",
  "src": ["autogroup:member", "autogroup:shared"],
  "dst": ["tag:hytale:5520"],
  "proto": "udp"
}

Grants syntax:

{
  "src": ["autogroup:member", "autogroup:shared"],
  "dst": ["tag:hytale"],
  "ip": ["*:5520"],
  "proto": "udp"
}

Replace tag:hytale with your node's actual tag or IP address.

Features

• Web Dashboard - Manage everything from your browser, no terminal required
• Real-Time Console - Full terminal emulator with xterm.js
• Config Editor - Edit server settings with Monaco (the same editor as VS Code)
• One-Click Backups - Back up your entire universe or individual worlds
• Mod Support - Enable/disable mods through the UI, upload via WebDAV
• Auto Updates - Keep your server up to date automatically
• Developer Mode - JDWP debugging support for mod developers
• Private by Default - Only devices on your Tailscale network can connect

Requirements

• A computer to run the server (Windows, macOS, or Linux)
• A Tailscale account (free for personal use)
• A Hytale account (for downloading server files)

That's it. No Java installation needed - hyscale can download and configure it for you.

Advanced Configuration

Mod Development (JDWP Debugging)

Enable developer mode in the dashboard settings to start the server with JDWP debugging enabled. Connect your IDE's remote debugger to the displayed port.

Multi-Server (Federation)

hyscale supports running multiple servers that can transfer players between them. Configure federation settings in your server's config.json.

Running with Docker

Image: ghcr.io/tailscale/hyscale:latest

Run hyscale in a container:

docker run -d \
  --name hyscale \
  -v ./config:/app/config \
  -v ./server:/app/server \
  -v ./tsstate:/app/tsstate \
  ghcr.io/tailscale/hyscale:latest

Volume mounts:

Mount	Purpose
/app/config	Configuration files (hyscale.json, credentials)
/app/server	Server files, worlds, mods, backups
/app/tsstate	Tailscale state (preserves node identity)

Docker Compose:

services:
  hyscale:
    image: ghcr.io/tailscale/hyscale:latest
    volumes:
      - ./config:/app/config
      - ./server:/app/server
      - ./tsstate:/app/tsstate
    restart: unless-stopped

First-run authentication: Check logs for the Tailscale auth URL:

docker logs hyscale

Headless/automated setup: Set TS_AUTHKEY for unattended setup:

docker run -d \
  --name hyscale \
  -e TS_AUTHKEY=tskey-auth-xxx \
  -v ./config:/app/config \
  -v ./server:/app/server \
  -v ./tsstate:/app/tsstate \
  ghcr.io/tailscale/hyscale:latest

Generate auth keys at https://login.tailscale.com/admin/settings/keys

Troubleshooting

Friends can't connect?

• Verify they've joined your Tailnet via the share link
• Check that your ACL policy allows UDP traffic on port 5520
• Have them verify Tailscale is running (tailscale status)

Server won't start?

• Check the console output in the dashboard for error messages
• Ensure you have enough disk space for server files
• Verify the server files downloaded completely

Download fails?

• Re-authenticate with your Hytale account in the dashboard
• Check your internet connection
• Try the download again

License

BSD-3-Clause License. See LICENSE for details.