Discover how Edgegap works

Discover how Edgegap works

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PurrNet

PurrNet

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Last reviewed for accuracy

Last reviewed for accuracy

Last reviewed for accuracy

PurrNet: How to integrate and host dedicated servers, and add Matchmaking to your multiplayer game

PurrNet: How to integrate and host dedicated servers, and add Matchmaking to your multiplayer game

This guide shows you how to host a game built with PurrNet on Edgegap's dedicated game servers, then add matchmaking so players are grouped and connected to a server near them automatically.

Once your game server is containerized, Edgegap deploys it worldwide to 615+ Edge Cloud locations (on-demand) from a simple API call and billed exclusively on usage: no entire server to rent, provision or keep running between matches. For persistent servers of reserved capacity, Edgegap offers Private Fleets. Edgegap's Matchmaking builds on top of that and is optional.

This guide covers:

  1. Preparing Unity, PurrNet, your Edgegap account and a containerization tool

  2. Connecting your coding agent to Edgegap (optional)

  3. Getting your PurrNet game ready for dedicated servers

  4. Building and containerizing your game server

  5. Deploying a test server and connecting to it

  6. Adding matchmaking (optional)

  7. Testing the full loop with two players

You can do it two ways, and mix them:

  • With a coding agent. Connect Claude Code, Cursor or another agent to the Edgegap MCP server and its agent skills. The agent edits your project, builds and containerizes the server, deploys it and writes the matchmaking code. You handle the clicks in Unity and the Edgegap dashboard, and playtest.

  • By hand. Every step below also works without an agent.

For building and containerizing the server, Edgegap's automated game server build tool plugin for Unity is optional. PurrNet installs it for you from its own package window. It builds your server, containerizes it and deploys it to the cloud from buttons in the Unity Editor, the quickest way to see your server online for the first time (step 4, Option A).

Here, we use PurrNet's Incremental sample, a small resource-collecting game. Edgegap's agent skill was run end to end on our fork of it. Any PurrNet project works the same way. Using another netcode? See Unity Engine for every option.

No credit card required. Free tier includes the resources to deploy a real game server.

No credit card required. Free tier includes the resources to deploy a real game server.

Step-by-Step Guide

Detailed Integration Steps

1. Before you start

  • A free Edgegap account. Verify your email. No credit card is needed to test.

  • Unity Engine with the Linux build modules installed. Edgegap recommends an LTS version.

    • Add these modules from Unity Hub: Linux Build Support (Mono), Linux Build Support (IL2CPP) and Linux Dedicated Server Build Support. Restart Unity after adding them.

    • We use Unity 6.3 LTS. The newest non-LTS releases can break netcode packages, so stay on LTS for anything you ship.

  • PurrNet in your project, with a scene that works with a host and a client locally. See PurrNet's documentation.

  • A containerization tool, running. We recommend Docker Desktop, installed and running while you build.

    • Other container tools work with Edgegap too, but this guide only covers Docker.

  • For the agent path: an Edgegap API token, from Dashboard → User Settings → Tokens. It is organization-wide, so treat it like a password: never put it in your project, your game client or a chat.

Git: Unity needs a Git client (2.14.0 or newer) on your PATH to install packages from a Git URL, such as PurrNet's Edgegap integration. macOS usually has one already (Xcode Command Line Tools); on Windows, install Git.

2. Connect your coding agent to Edgegap

Skip this step if you're doing everything by hand.

The Edgegap MCP server lets your agent create apps and versions, deploy servers, read logs and generate matchmaker configurations on your account. The agent skills give it the tested PurrNet workflow, PurrNet-ready C# templates, the Dockerfile and the known pitfalls.

Claude Code (run in your own terminal, so the token never passes through the chat):

claude mcp add --transport http edgegap https://mcp.edgegap.dev/mcp -H "Authorization: token YOUR_EDGEGAP_API_TOKEN" --scope user

Then install the skills: /plugin marketplace add edgegap/edgegap-agent-skills, then /plugin install edgegap@edgegap. Restart the session.

Cursor, VS Code and other clients that send headers: add https://mcp.edgegap.dev/mcp with the header Authorization: token YOUR_EDGEGAP_API_TOKEN, and install the skills with npx skills add edgegap/edgegap-agent-skills --skill "*".

Claude Desktop: custom connectors can't send the header, so use the local server instead (Node 18+): { "mcpServers": { "edgegap": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "@edgegap/mcp"] } } }. It asks for the token on first use.

Check it works:

"List my Edgegap apps."

An empty list is fine. An error about the token usually means the header reads token token ....

3. Get your PurrNet server ready for dedicated hosting

On Edgegap, no player hosts the match. A headless dedicated server owns the game, so the dedicated server must start on its own, listen on a fixed port and stop when the match is over.

With your agent:

"Load the edgegap-purrnet skill and make this PurrNet project dedicated-server ready: the server build starts the server headless on 0.0.0.0:5000, clients connect to an address they get at runtime, server-side logic doesn't depend on a host, and the server stops itself when the match ends. Add the Edgegap bootstrap, server lifecycle and matchmaking client. Then check it still works locally with one server and two clients."

The agent's templates add themselves when the game starts, so your scenes and prefabs don't change, and the Editor keeps PurrNet's host-and-clone workflow.

By hand, on your NetworkManager and code:

  • Start flags. PurrNet's Start Server Flags and Start Client Flags start a server and a client automatically. Keep the server flag for server builds, and remove the client build flag if clients connect to an address they only learn at runtime.

  • UDP Transport: PurrNet's default port is 5000/UDP. The Auto Setup Edgegap Server Port option (agent skills may refer to it as Adapt To Edgegap) sets the server's port from the Edgegap deployment, so the app version can use another port.

  • [ObserversRpc] that sets up server state: add runLocally: true. Without it, the method never runs on a dedicated server, which has no local client: in the Incremental sample, the server spawned no resources at all.

  • Spawn players for each connected client (PurrNet's PlayerSpawner), not for a host.

  • Guard client-only code (cameras, UI, input, audio) so the headless server skips it.

  • Make sure your PurrNet scene is enabled in Build Settings. Only enabled scenes get built.

Test locally first: one build as the server, two clients connecting to 127.0.0.1:5000. Check that the server's world exists (spawned objects, scores), not only that clients connect.

4. Build and containerize your server

Edgegap runs your Linux server build inside a container. Use either option, or both: for example, the plugin for your first deploy and your agent for every build after that.

Option A (optional): Edgegap's automated game server build tool plugin for Unity. The quickest way to a first cloud deploy, all from buttons. It uses Docker to containerize your server. The video below shows this path.

  1. In Unity, open Tools → PurrNet → PurrNet Packages. If an update shows next to Core, select Update All. Under Integrations, select Edgegap, then Install Release. PurrNet installs Edgegap's plugin.

  2. Open Tools → Edgegap Server Hosting, sign in, and paste the token it gives you under Connect your Edgegap Account. Select Validate Token.

  3. Select Build Server. The build lands in Builds/EdgegapServer/ServerBuild.

  4. With Docker running, select Validate, then Containerize with Docker. Optionally, Deploy Local Container and connect a client to it.

  5. Select Upload Image and Create App Version. In the browser, set the port to 5000, UDP, named gameport. Submit.

Option B: ask your agent.

"Build the Linux dedicated server, containerize it with the edgegap-purrnet Dockerfile for linux/amd64, push it to my Edgegap Container Registry with a new tag, then create the app and app version with port 5000 UDP named gameport."

The agent asks you to run docker login registry.edgegap.com yourself, with the username and token from the Container Registry page, so those credentials stay out of the chat. Make sure the app version has the registry credentials set: without them, deployments fail with "Unable to pull image from registry".

Use a new image tag for every build, never latest.

Here's our video tutorial for Edgegap's plugin with PurrNet, using PurrNet's Incremental sample:

5. Deploy a test server and connect

Start one server by hand to prove the image, the port and your netcode work before adding matchmaking. Any of these works:

  • From the plugin: choose your app and version, then select Deploy to Cloud.

  • From the dashboard: open your app version in the Edgegap dashboard, select Deploy, pick a location close to you, and deploy.

  • From your agent: "Deploy my latest Edgegap version near me, wait until it's ready, show me the logs, and give me the address and external port."

When the deployment is Ready, copy its Host URL and External Port, and set them as your client's address and port on the UDP Transport (or in the agent's connect panel), then connect two clients. The external port changes on every deployment, so read it each time. The server can take up to a minute after Ready to accept players.

Stop the deployment when you're done (Stop Last Deployment in the plugin, or ask your agent). The free tier runs one deployment at a time, and a forgotten test server blocks matchmaking.

Here, you picked the location and handed out the address. To group players and start a server near them automatically, add a matchmaker.

6. Add matchmaking

Edgegap's matchmaker is a hosted service: players send a ticket, it groups them by your rules (match size, teams, latency, skill, mode), deploys your server near them and returns the address to every client.

With your agent:

"Generate an Edgegap matchmaker configuration for my app version: one team of 2 to 4 players. Save it as matchmaker-config.json."

Then, in the dashboard (this step has no API):

  1. Open Matchmaker and select Create Matchmaker.

  2. Name it, upload matchmaker-config.json, and select Create and Start.

  3. When it's ONLINE, copy the API URL and the Auth Token. The Auth Token is safe to ship in your game client: it gives no access to your Edgegap account.

Back with your agent:

"Turn on the Edgegap matchmaker in EdgegapSettings with this API URL and Auth Token, show Find Match in the connect panel (or wire my own Play button to FindMatch), then rebuild and push the server, create a new app version and tell me what to update in the matchmaker."

By hand: follow the Unity matchmaking guide in our documentation.

When you ship a new server build, update application.version in the matchmaker configuration (Stop, Edit, Start), or matches keep deploying the old build.

7. Test the full loop with two players

  1. Make sure no test deployment is still running.

  2. Run two client builds (or the Editor plus a ParrelSync clone).

  3. Select Find Match in both. The status goes from searching to match found to connected, both on the same server. Test with two players: a lone ticket can wait a long time.

  4. Leave the match. The server logs that it's stopping, and the deployment disappears from the dashboard. That self-stop is what keeps your bill at zero when nobody plays.

On the free tier, the matchmaker stops 3 hours after each start (restart it from the dashboard), deployments stop after 60 minutes, and one deployment runs at a time.

Next Steps

Next Steps

Working with another Unity netcode? See Unity Engine. Prefer lobbies players browse? See the Server Browser for Unity.

Going live? Ask your agent to run the edgegap-launch skill's checklist: version rollouts, restart policy, maximum duration, cost control. For competitive games, tighten PurrNet's network rules so gameplay runs on the server.

Stuck? Ask your agent to load edgegap-troubleshoot, or ask our team and other studios on the Edgegap Discord.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about hosting a PurrNet game on Edgegap's dedicated servers, with or without matchmaking.

Does PurrNet support dedicated servers?

Yes. Build for Linux Dedicated Server and let the server start on its own with PurrNet's Start Server Flags, or a script. Code that relied on a host, such as [ObserversRpc] methods that set up server state, needs runLocally: true to run on a dedicated server.

Which port does PurrNet use on Edgegap?

PurrNet's UDP Transport defaults to 5000 over UDP. Set the same port on your Edgegap app version, named gameport, or turn on Auto Setup Edgegap Server Port (agent skills may call it Adapt To Edgegap) to take the port from the deployment. Players connect to the external port Edgegap assigns to each deployment.

Do I need the Edgegap plugin to host a PurrNet game?

No. PurrNet installs it from its package window, and it's the quickest way to build, containerize and deploy from the Unity Editor. A coding agent connected to the Edgegap MCP server, or your own Docker build, works too.

Why does my PurrNet game work with a host but not on a dedicated server?

A dedicated server has no local client, so [ObserversRpc] methods only run on clients. If one sets up server state, such as a random seed or spawned objects, add runLocally: true. Also check that players spawn for remote clients, not for a host.

How much does it cost to host a PurrNet game server?

Testing is free, with no credit card. After that, Edge Cloud bills per vCPU per minute only while servers run, so a server that stops at the end of each match costs nothing between matches.

Clients

Learn more from clients who integrated Edgegap

31 case studies are available from studios that moved to Edgegap from another platform.

Key reasons why they chose Edgegap

Discover the impact of Edgegap's automated game server orchestration for a flawless multiplayer experience.

Cost

Pricing

Optimize costs and performance with hybrid orchestration

Optimize costs and performance with hybrid orchestration

Optimize costs and performance with hybrid orchestration

Edge Cloud

On-Demand

$0.00115

/ vCPU

/ MINUTE

Billed by the Minute, Only on Usage

Pay only when players play. 0 active servers = $0

Deploy game servers worldwide, per instance, to all 615+ edge cloud locations. Zero commitment.

Simply add a credit card.

Edge Cloud

On-Demand

$0.00115

/ vCPU

/ MINUTE

Billed by the Minute, Only on Usage

Pay only when players play. 0 active servers = $0

Deploy game servers worldwide, per instance, to all 615+ edge cloud locations. Zero commitment.

Simply add a credit card.

Private Fleet (Bare Metal)

Reserved Capacity

$0.0282

/ vCPU

/ HOUR

Billed Monthly, Always On

$280 per host/month (12 mo rate), or $350 monthly

Optimize the cost effectiveness of your game server with egress-free hosting of Private Fleets.

Persistent, available 24/7, exclusive to your studio.

Private Fleet (Bare Metal)

Reserved Capacity

$0.0282

/ vCPU

/ HOUR

Billed Monthly, Always On

$280 per host/month (12 mo rate), or $350 monthly

Optimize the cost effectiveness of your game server with egress-free hosting of Private Fleets.

Persistent, available 24/7, exclusive to your studio.

Your bill varies per rate and usage; which can vary per game type, player count, & more.

Your bill varies per rate and usage; which can vary per game type, player count, & more.

Model your usage with our estimate calculator ->

Model your usage with our estimate calculator ->

Edgegap's features & price: detailed comparison between Edge Cloud & Private Fleets

Edgegap's features & price: detailed comparison between Edge Cloud & Private Fleets

COMPARE

Free Trial

Edge Cloud

Private Fleets

FEATURES

Analytics & Monitoring

Billing Alarms

Click to Expand

28 more rows

Unlocks

Capabilities are unlocked when a credit card is added to the account.

COMPARE

Free Trial

Edge Cloud

Private Fleets

FEATURES

Analytics & Monitoring

Billing Alarms

Click to Expand

28 more rows

Unlocks

Capabilities are unlocked when a credit card is added to the account.

COMPARE

Free Trial

Edge Cloud

Private Fleets

FEATURES

Analytics & Monitoring

Billing Alarms

Click to Expand

28 more rows

Unlocks

Capabilities are unlocked when a credit card is added to the account.