How to Make a SA-MP Server in 2026

To make a SA-MP server in 2026, download the server files, put a compiled Pawn game mode (.amx) in the gamemodes folder, name it in the config file, let players reach UDP port 7777, and start the server. You can run the classic SA-MP 0.3.7-R2 server, or open.mp, a newer server that is backwards compatible with SA-MP game modes and clients and still gets releases. This guide covers both.

SA-MP server or open.mp server: which one to run

A few things changed since most SA-MP tutorials were written. The old sa-mp.com site shut down in September 2023. Its official successor is sa-mp.mp, run by SA-MP community members in cooperation with the open.mp team. Its "Create server" page still offers the SA-MP 0.3.7-R2 server for Windows and Linux, and right below it the open.mp server, with the line "Open.mp is fully compatible with SA-MP server!"

For a new server, open.mp is the sensible pick: your game mode and your players' clients keep working, and you get bug fixes. The setting network.allow_037_clients is true by default, so players on the regular SA-MP 0.3.7 client can join.

What you need before you start

• A PC copy of GTA San Andreas for every player. sa-mp.mp says the SA-MP client needs the v1.00 US/EU version and that the Steam version is not supported. The open.mp launcher is the alternative it links to.
• A machine that stays on. Windows, or Linux. On Linux the open.mp server is a 32-bit program, so its guide installs libc6:i386 and libatomic1:i386 first.
• A game mode. The server package includes a sample game mode to test with. For a real server you write your own in Pawn or start from an open-source one.
• Access to UDP port 7777 from the internet, which is the part that trips up most people at home.

How to make a SA-MP server step by step (open.mp)

1. Download the server. From the open.mp releases page, get open.mp-win-x86.zip for Windows or open.mp-linux-x86.tar.gz for Linux, and extract it.
2. Know the folders. gamemodes holds main scripts, filterscripts side scripts, plugins legacy plugins, components open.mp components, scriptfiles INI and data files, models custom models, and qawno the editor and includes.
3. Add your game mode. Put the .pwn source in gamemodes and the includes it needs, like sscanf2.inc or streamer.inc, in qawno/include.
4. Compile it. Open qawno/qawno.exe, press Ctrl+O to open your .pwn, replace #include <a_samp> with #include <open.mp>, and press F5. You get a .amx file.
5. Edit config.json. Set the server name, your game mode in main_scripts, plugins and filterscripts, and a strong RCON password.
6. Start it. Run omp-server.exe on Windows or ./omp-server on Linux, then connect to localhost:7777 to test.

A trimmed config.json for a roleplay server looks like this. Generate the full file with omp-server --default-config.

{
  "name": "Grove Street Roleplay",
  "language": "English",
  "max_players": 100,
  "password": "",
  "network": {
    "port": 7777
  },
  "pawn": {
    "main_scripts": ["myrp 1"],
    "side_scripts": ["filterscripts/admin"],
    "legacy_plugins": ["mysql", "streamer"]
  },
  "rcon": {
    "enable": false,
    "password": "pick-a-long-random-password"
  }
}

Already have a SA-MP server.cfg? Run omp-server --dump-config in the server folder and open.mp converts it to config.json for you.

The classic SA-MP server.cfg explained

If you stay on the original SA-MP server, everything lives in server.cfg next to samp-server.exe. These are the lines you will touch, with the defaults from the open.mp docs:

echo Executing Server Config...
hostname Grove Street Roleplay
language English
maxplayers 100
port 7777
gamemode0 myrp 1
filterscripts admin
plugins mysql streamer
announce 1
rcon_password pick-a-long-random-password

Gamemodes, filterscripts and plugins in Pawn

A SA-MP server is three kinds of files. The gamemode is the main script: roleplay, freeroam, deathmatch, cops and robbers, stunts. Filterscripts run next to it and add features like an admin system or a speedometer. Plugins add native code that Pawn can't do alone, such as MySQL, sscanf or a streamer. Use .dll plugins on Windows and .so plugins on Linux.

open.mp changes a few plugins. Its install guide says to use open.mp builds of Pawn.CMD, Pawn.RakNet and sampvoice and put them in components, not plugins. You no longer need YSF, because open.mp already has most of its natives, and FCNPC is replaced by the built-in NPC component. Check this list before you move an old server.

Many old game modes keep player accounts as INI files in scriptfiles. That folder is your player data: back it up before every change. Moving accounts to MySQL with the MySQL plugin is safer once the server grows.

Port 7777: why your friends can't join

The open.mp docs list the standard as port 7777, protocol UDP. Running at home, you must forward that port on your router to your PC, and your PC must stay on for anyone to play. Your public IP can also change, which breaks everyone's favorites. And a public server shows your home IP to every player, so one angry player can knock your whole house offline. That's where most home-hosted SA-MP servers die.

Running a GTA San Andreas roleplay server

Roleplay is still the most common kind of SA-MP community. A few habits keep one healthy:

• Use MySQL for accounts instead of INI files once you pass a few dozen regular players. It's easier to back up and query.
• Set language so players can find you with the browser filter.
• Keep the RCON password long and leave remote RCON off unless you need it. In open.mp, rcon.enable is false by default.
• Restart on a schedule so long-running scripts start clean each day.

If your community also plays GTA V, our comparison of QBCore vs ESX for FiveM covers the roleplay frameworks there, and what a dedicated server means explains why a server that runs on its own beats one on your PC.

Host your SA-MP server on TheGameHosting

SA-MP is one of the lightest servers there is. On a SA-MP server from TheGameHosting it needs just 1 GB of RAM, so it runs on our 2 GB plan for $1.90 USD a month, with the same hardware as the heaviest games:

• No port forwarding. The panel gives you an IP and port to share, and the server stays online 24/7 without your PC.
• DDoS protection included, so your home connection is never the target.
• File Manager and SFTP. Upload your .amx, filterscripts and plugins, or edit server.cfg in the browser.
• 2 databases included for the MySQL plugin, plus Backups for your scriptfiles and Schedules for daily restarts.
• Dallas or Amsterdam, with Location Changer to move closer to your players, on AMD Ryzen 9950X/7950X3D, DDR5 and Samsung NVMe.
• Game Changer lets you switch the same plan to Multi Theft Auto or another game later.

Want to run open.mp instead of the classic server? Ask us in chat and we'll tell you what your plan's Startup allows.

Your game mode and your community are the hard part. Keeping a SA-MP server online, reachable and protected shouldn't be. See our plans and pricing, use code FULL2026 for 15% off for life, and your server is ready about 60 seconds after payment.

FAQ

Hosting for these games

• SA-MP hosting1 GB is enough, plans from $1.90
• MTA:SA hostingSan Andreas with Lua resources
• FiveM hostingGTA V roleplay with ESX or Qbox