How to Change the Cluster Settings on Your ARK: Survival Ascended Server

ARK: Survival Ascended supports a feature called clustering, which lets players carry their characters and items between multiple ARK server instances. If you want to run more than one map and allow your players to travel between them, you need to set up a shared cluster. This guide walks you through how to do that using the Cluster page in the RiverHosting panel.

Before you start

• You need at least one active ARK: Survival Ascended server on your RiverHosting account. A cluster works best with two or more servers sharing the same cluster ID.
• Each server that should be part of the cluster needs to be configured individually with the same cluster ID.
• You must stop your server before making changes to cluster settings. Applying changes while the server is running may cause them to not take effect properly.

1. Open the Cluster page

1. Log in to the RiverHosting panel at panel.riverhosting.com.
2. Select your ARK: Survival Ascended server from the server list.
3. In the left-hand menu, click Cluster.

The Cluster page is where you control how your server connects to a shared cluster. From here you can set your cluster ID, enable or disable cluster features, and configure what players are allowed to transfer between servers.

2. Set your cluster ID

1. On the Cluster page, locate the cluster ID field.
2. Enter a unique cluster ID of your choice. This ID must be identical on every server that should be part of the same cluster.
3. Save your changes.

3. Configure transfer permissions

1. Still on the Cluster page, look for options that control what players can transfer between servers in the cluster.
2. You can typically control whether players may transfer their survivor, items, and tamed dinosaurs between servers.
3. Toggle the options that match how you want your cluster to work. For example, you might allow character transfers but restrict item transfers if you want each map to feel self-contained.
4. Save your changes once you are happy with the settings.

4. Repeat on every server in the cluster

1. Go back to your server list in the RiverHosting panel.
2. Open the next ARK: Survival Ascended server you want to add to the cluster.
3. Click Cluster in the left-hand menu.
4. Enter the same cluster ID you used on the first server.
5. Set the same transfer permissions.
6. Save and repeat for any remaining servers.

5. Start your servers and test

1. Once all servers in the cluster have been configured with the same cluster ID, start each server from the panel.
2. Join one of the servers in-game and look for the transfer option at an Obelisk, Supply Drop, or Tek Teleporter, depending on your game settings.
3. Attempt a transfer to confirm that the cluster is working correctly and that your character or items arrive on the destination server as expected.

Troubleshooting

• Transfer option is not appearing in-game: Make sure the cluster ID is set on all servers and that each server has been restarted after the changes were saved. Double-check that the IDs match exactly, with no extra spaces or differences in capitalisation.
• Character or items are lost after transfer: This can happen if cluster data has not synced yet. Wait a few minutes and check whether the items or character appear on the destination server. If the problem persists, contact support.
• Players cannot connect after changes: If the server fails to start after you updated the cluster settings, check the Console tab in the panel for any error messages. Restore the previous setting if needed and try again.
• Changes do not seem to apply: Make sure you stopped the server before editing the cluster settings and that you saved before starting the server again.

Need help?

If you get stuck or something does not look right, the RiverHosting support team is happy to help.