Port Forwarding for OpenArena
OpenArena uses a single UDP port for all game traffic. No TCP port is required.
Required Port
| Port | Protocol | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 27960 | UDP | Game traffic — required for players to connect |
UDP 27960 is the only port you need to forward. OpenArena does not use a separate RCON port — RCON commands are sent over the same UDP game port.
Auto-Increment Behavior
If port 27960 is already in use when the server starts, OpenArena automatically tries the next port: 27961, then 27962, and so on. The server console output shows which port was actually bound:
Opening IP socket: 0.0.0.0:27960
If you are running multiple server instances, each will bind a different port sequentially. Forward each port individually on your router and firewall.
Router Port Forwarding
Log in to your router's admin interface (typically 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1) and create an inbound port forwarding rule:
- Protocol: UDP
- External port: 27960
- Internal port: 27960
- Internal IP: the local IP of your server machine (e.g.
192.168.1.100)
Linux — UFW
# Allow OpenArena game traffic
sudo ufw allow 27960/udp
sudo ufw reload
Verify the rule is active:
sudo ufw status
For multiple server instances on sequential ports:
sudo ufw allow 27960:27963/udp
Linux — iptables (without UFW)
sudo iptables -A INPUT -p udp --dport 27960 -j ACCEPT
Windows Firewall
Open Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security and create an inbound rule:
- New Rule → Port → UDP → Specific local port:
27960→ Allow the connection - Name it (e.g. "OpenArena UDP 27960")
Alternatively, via PowerShell:
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "OpenArena UDP 27960" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 27960 -Action Allow
Changing the Port
Pass +set net_port on the launch command line to use a non-default port:
./oa_ded.x86_64 +set dedicated 2 +set net_port 27961 +exec server.cfg
If you change the port, also update your firewall and router rules to match. Players will need to specify the port when connecting directly: connect YOUR_IP:27961.