Windows (Docker Desktop)

Running the Hytale server container on Windows requires Docker Desktop. The following guide covers installation and server deployment via Docker Desktop or WSL2 backend.

Prerequisites

Windows 10/11 (64-bit)
Virtualization enabled in BIOS
A valid Hytale game license for authentication

Install Docker Desktop

Download Docker Desktop from docker.com and install it.
Ensure WSL2 backend is enabled: Open Docker Desktop → Settings → General → “Use the WSL 2 based engine” should be checked.

Verify installation:

docker --version
docker compose version

Deploy the Server

Create a project directory:

mkdir hytale-server && cd hytale-server

Create a docker-compose.yml:

[!NOTE] The default /etc/machine-id binding works with Docker Desktop’s native Linux image but breaks under WSL2. Use the local machine-id approach below for compatibility.

services:
  hytale:
    image: deinfreu/hytale-server:latest-alpine-liberica
    container_name: hytale-server
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "5520:5520/udp"
    volumes:
      - ./data:/home/container
      - ./machine-id:/etc/machine-id:ro
    tty: true
    stdin_open: true

Generate a machine-id file:

In the same directory, run in PowerShell:

[guid]::NewGuid().ToString("N") | Out-File -Encoding ascii -NoNewline .\machine-id

Start the server:
```
docker compose up
```
The first run will download the Hytale server binary and display an authentication URL in the terminal. Open this link in a browser, log in with your Hytale account, and follow the instructions to authorize the server.

Run docker compose up without the -d flag to access the terminal for initial authentication. Once authorized, you can restart with -d for background operation.