Icarus takes its server password from a settings file rather than from a field in the panel, and there are two files on the server with the same name. Only one of them is read once your server has started for the first time. Editing the other is the single most common reason a password appears to do nothing and strangers keep dropping into your prospect.
The file that counts
Icarus/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/ServerSettings.ini
Note the WindowsServer folder. The Icarus server is a Windows program running under Wine on our Linux machines, and Unreal Engine puts the live configuration in a folder named after the platform it thinks it is on.
There is a second file one level up, at Icarus/Saved/Config/ServerSettings.ini. That one is a template. It is used once, to create the real file the first time your server boots, and after that the server never looks at it again. If you set a password there on a server that has already run, nothing happens, and the file will sit there showing your password back to you as if it worked.
Setting a join password
- Open your server in the game panel
- On the Console tab, press Stop and wait for it to shut down fully
- Go to the Files tab and open
Icarus/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/ServerSettings.ini - Set the values you want:
[/Script/Icarus.DedicatedServerSettings]
SessionName=My Server
JoinPassword=choose-something-here
AdminPassword=something-different
MaxPlayers=8
- Save, then press Start
Stopping first is not optional. Icarus keeps its settings in memory while it runs and writes them back out when it shuts down, so an edit made on a running server is overwritten seconds later by the values it started with.
Give it a minute after starting. The server has to re-register with Steam before the password is enforced on new connections.
What each setting does
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
SessionName |
The name players see in the server browser |
JoinPassword |
Required to connect. Leave it empty and anyone can join |
AdminPassword |
Grants admin rights in game. Not a join password |
MaxPlayers |
How many players can be connected at once |
AllowNonAdminsToLaunchProspects |
Whether ordinary players can start new prospects |
AllowNonAdminsToDeleteProspects |
Whether ordinary players can delete prospects |
Keep JoinPassword and AdminPassword different. The first is handed to everyone you want on the server, the second is the one that should not travel.
Avoid spaces and quotation marks in either password. The file is read as plain text with no escaping, so a space is a common cause of a password that looks right and does not work.
Checking it actually took
Start the server, then look at the Console tab. If a stranger connects, you will see lines mentioning player validation. The reliable test is to have someone outside your group try to join: they should be asked for a password.
If you want to confirm the file is the one being used, stop the server, open it again, and check that your values are still there. The live file is rewritten on every shutdown, so if your values survive a stop, you edited the right file.
Getting people off the server
Icarus has no kick command and no ban list. There is no file of banned accounts and no console command that removes a connected player, so the practical options are:
- Set a join password and restart. The restart disconnects everyone, and only people with the password get back in. This is the fix for an open server that strangers have found.
- Lower
MaxPlayersso the slots fill with the people you want. - Set
AllowNonAdminsToLaunchProspects=Falseso that even if someone gets on, they cannot start or wreck prospects.
Restarting is the blunt instrument here, but on a server that has been open it is the only thing that clears everyone out at once. Do it together with setting the password, in one stop and start, rather than restarting twice.
Troubleshooting
I set a password and people still walk in. You almost certainly edited Icarus/Saved/Config/ServerSettings.ini instead of the one in WindowsServer. Put the same values into the WindowsServer copy with the server stopped.
My settings went back to what they were. The server was running when you saved. Stop, edit, start.
The password works for some people and not others. Players who were already connected are not disconnected when a password is set. They stay on until they leave. Restart to clear them.
I cannot find the WindowsServer folder. It appears the first time the server has run. Start the server once, wait for it to finish loading, stop it, and the folder will be there.
The server does not show up in the browser at all. That is a different problem to a password. Open a ticket and we will look at the query port with you.
Frequently asked questions
Does the password protect my prospect from being deleted?
Not on its own. Set AllowNonAdminsToDeleteProspects=False for that, and keep your AdminPassword private.
Can I set the password without stopping the server? No. Any edit made while it runs is discarded at shutdown.
Do I need to give players the admin password too?
No, and you should not. Players only need JoinPassword.
Why are there two files with the same name?
The one in Config is the template that ships with the dedicated server. It seeds the real file in WindowsServer the first time the server starts, and is ignored from then on.
Will changing the password wipe my prospect? No. Settings and save data are separate. Your prospect is untouched.
Still letting strangers in? Open a ticket from the support page with your server name, and we will read the live settings file and tell you exactly what it says. Looking for somewhere to run it? See our Icarus server hosting plans.