Use Beacon with ARK: Survival Evolved

Beacon is a separate program you run on your own computer to edit an ARK: Survival Evolved server's Game.ini and GameUserSettings.ini. Its own site describes it as an Ark server manager, with tools for editing loot drops and server config files. This guide shows how to move your ARK: Survival Evolved server's two files into Beacon and back using the File Manager.

Checked against Beacon 2.4.0.5 on its own site, October 2026. Beacon is not made or supported by us.

What Beacon can and cannot do here

Beacon works from the two ini files. It cannot restart your server, and it cannot reach into our panel on its own. You hand it the files, edit them, and put the result back. Settings that live on the Startup tab, such as the server name, passwords, Max Players, Map and mod IDs, go onto the launch line and win over the same key in the file. ARK ini settings explained: GameUserSettings.ini, Game.ini explains why, so change those in the Startup tab rather than in Beacon.

Take the files out

1. Open the Console tab and press Stop. ARK writes its settings back when it shuts down, so an edit made while it runs can be lost.
2. Open the File Manager and go to ShooterGame/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/.
3. Select GameUserSettings.ini and press Download. Do the same for Game.ini if the server has one. If there is no Game.ini, that is normal: it is created when you first save a breeding setting on the Server Settings tab, or you can leave it out. How to manage your server files covers downloading.

Keep an untouched copy of each file on your computer before you edit anything.

Import into Beacon

Beacon's import options include a single-player or local files route, or copy and paste. Beacon's help says the next screen accepts the contents of your Game.ini and GameUserSettings.ini, that both give it more to work with, and that only one is required.

1. In Beacon, open a project for your server.
2. Use Beacon's import button and choose the local files or copy and paste option.
3. Select the two files you downloaded, or paste their contents.
4. Make your changes in Beacon.

Put the files back

1. Export or copy the finished files from Beacon.
2. In the File Manager, go to ShooterGame/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/ and press Upload.
3. Choose Replace & overwrite when the file already exists.
4. Start the server from the Console tab.

Beacon over SFTP

Beacon's own help says it can import from and deploy to servers over FTP, FTP with TLS and SFTP. Your panel gives you SFTP details in Settings under SFTP connection, covered in How to connect over SFTP. Beacon's help also notes that some FTP servers accept a download but ignore an upload. We haven't tested Beacon's deploy against our SFTP, so the file route above is the one to rely on.

Common problems

1. Your changes vanished: the server was running when you uploaded the files. Stop it, upload again and start it.
2. Beacon asks for a sibling file: Beacon finds the second ini file next to the first when you drag one in. On a Mac you may have to pick the second file yourself.
3. A setting does nothing: it is also set on the Startup tab or in Additional Arguments, and that value wins.