Fistful of Frags Server (Docker)

This repository provides a Dockerized Fistful of Frags game server suitable for running a FoF server in a clean, reproducible way.
The image is designed for headless operation, automatically downloads and updates the game server via SteamCMD (anonymous login, app 295230), supports file overlaying using OverlayFS, and includes optional SourceMod/MetaMod support.

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Features

• Fistful of Frags game server support (Shootout, Teamplay/Objectives, Break Bad, Elimination, Versus, Co-op)
• Runs the 32-bit Source SDK 2013 dedicated server (srcds_linux)
• Automatically downloads and updates the game server via SteamCMD, including the first install on a fresh SteamCMD
• Optional SourceMod/MetaMod installation
• Supports file overlaying using OverlayFS (no file copying required)
• Updates the game server on every start, with optional file validation

Docker Compose Example

services:
  fof-server:
    image: lancommander/fistfuloffrags:latest
    container_name: my-fof-server

    # Expose game server ports
    ports:
      - "27015:27015/udp"  # Game server port
      - "27015:27015/tcp"  # RCON
      - "27020:27020/udp"  # SourceTV port (optional)

    # Bind mounts
    volumes:
      - ./config:/config      # Game server configuration and overlay directory

    environment:
      START_ARGS: "-game fof -console +maxplayers 20 +map fof_fistful"
      INSTALL_SOURCEMOD: "true"              # SourceMod/MetaMod (default: true)

    user: root

    # For overlayfs support
    cap_add:
      - SYS_ADMIN
    security_opt:
      - apparmor:unconfined

    restart: unless-stopped

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Directory Layout (Host)

.
└── config/
    ├── Server/            # Game files downloaded by SteamCMD (auto-created, about 3.3 GB)
    │   └── fof/           # Fistful of Frags game directory
    ├── Overlay/           # Files to overlay on game directory (optional)
    │   └── fof/           # Fistful of Frags overlay directory
    │       ├── addons/    # SourceMod/MetaMod installation location
    │       │   ├── sourcemod/
    │       │   │   ├── plugins/     # Place your .smx plugin files here
    │       │   │   ├── configs/     # SourceMod configuration files
    │       │   │   └── ...
    │       │   └── metamod/
    │       ├── maps/      # Custom maps
    │       ├── cfg/       # Server configuration files (server.cfg, etc.)
    │       └── ...        # Any other files you want to overlay
    ├── Merged/            # Overlayfs merged view (auto-created, if overlayfs enabled)
    ├── .overlay-work/     # Overlayfs work directory (auto-created)
    ├── Scripts/
    │   └── Hooks/         # Script files in this directory get automatically executed if registered to a hook
    └── ...                # Your game server configuration files

The config directory must be writable by Docker. The Server directory is automatically created and populated by SteamCMD on first startup.

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Configuration

Custom Scripts

You can create custom scripts in the /config/Scripts/Hooks/{HookName} directory to execute at various points in the container's startup. This is useful for:

• Installing additional dependencies
• Setting up environment variables
• Downloading additional files
• Modifying configuration before the game server starts

All scripts should be PowerShell scripts.

File Overlaying

The overlay directory (/config/Overlay) allows you to overlay files on top of the game directory without copying files. This is useful for:

• Replacing game files (maps, scripts, assets)
• Adding custom content
• Modifying game files without touching the base installation

How it works:

• Files in /config/Overlay will appear in the merged view at /config/Merged
• If a file exists in both /config/Server and /config/Overlay, the version in /config/Overlay takes precedence
• The game server runs from the merged directory

Requirements:

• Container must run with --cap-add SYS_ADMIN or --privileged flag

Example overlay structure:

/config/Overlay/
└── fof/
    ├── cfg/
    │   └── server.cfg
    ├── maps/
    │   └── fof_custom.bsp
    └── mapcycle.txt

server.cfg and RCON

The stock fof/cfg/server.cfg runs on every map load and sets rcon_password "", sv_lan 0, the game mode and the bot settings. Because it runs after the command line, it overrides +rcon_password and +sv_lan in START_ARGS. Put your own server.cfg in /config/Overlay/fof/cfg/ (start from a copy of the stock one) and set those cvars there.

Game modes and maps

fof_sv_currentmode in server.cfg selects the game mode: 1 Shootout (default), 2 Teamplay/Objectives, 3 Break Bad, 4 Elimination, 5 Versus, 6 Co-op. mp_teamplay and fof_sv_maxteams (2-4) set the teams. The game ships one map rotation per kind of map (mapcycle.txt for the fof_ Shootout maps, mapcycle_tp.txt, mapcycle_vs.txt and others); set mapcyclefile or overlay your own fof/mapcycle.txt to change it. Bots are built in and controlled by the fof_sv_bot_* cvars. See Documentation/Docker.md for the full list.

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SourceMod Installation

This image includes support for automatically installing SourceMod and MetaMod:Source. SourceMod is a powerful administration plugin framework for Source engine games.

Enabling SourceMod

SourceMod installation is enabled by default (INSTALL_SOURCEMOD="true"). Set it to "false" to skip it:

environment:
  INSTALL_SOURCEMOD: "false"

When enabled, the container will automatically:

• Install MetaMod:Source (required dependency for SourceMod)
• Install SourceMod
• Place all files in the overlay directory (/config/Overlay/fof/addons/)

Fistful of Frags loads the generic Source SDK 2013 builds (metamod.2.sdk2013.so, sourcemod.2.sdk2013.so).

Installing Plugins

Once SourceMod is installed, you can add custom plugins by placing .smx files in:

/config/Overlay/fof/addons/sourcemod/plugins/

Example:

# Place your plugin file
cp my_plugin.smx ./config/Overlay/fof/addons/sourcemod/plugins/

# Restart the container to load the plugin
docker restart my-fof-server

SourceMod Configuration

SourceMod configuration files should be placed in:

/config/Overlay/fof/addons/sourcemod/configs/

Common configuration files:

• admins_simple.ini - Admin user configuration
• core.cfg - Core SourceMod settings
• database.cfg - Database configuration (if using database features)

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Default
STEAM_APP_ID	Steam app id of the dedicated server	295230
STEAM_VALIDATE	Validate the game files when SteamCMD updates on startup (true/false)	true
START_EXE	Server executable (relative to the game directory)	srcds_run
START_ARGS	Arguments used to start the game server	"-game fof -console +maxplayers 20 +map fof_fistful"
GAME_MOD	Game directory that SourceMod/MetaMod are installed into	fof
INSTALL_SOURCEMOD	Enable SourceMod/MetaMod installation (true/false)	true
SOURCEMOD_MAJOR_VERSION	SourceMod release branch	1.12
SOURCEMOD_VERSION	SourceMod version to install	1.12.0-git7259
SOURCEMOD_URL	Override the SourceMod download URL	(unset)
METAMOD_MAJOR_VERSION	MetaMod:Source release branch	1.12
METAMOD_VERSION	MetaMod version to install	1.12.0-git1229
METAMOD_URL	Override the MetaMod download URL	(unset)
HTTP_FILESERVER_ENABLED	Serve custom content over HTTP (FastDL) on port 80	true
HTTP_FILESERVER_WEB_ROOT	Directory served by the HTTP file server	/config/Merged/fof
HTTP_FILESERVER_FILE_PATTERN	Regex of request paths the file server allows	maps, materials, models and sound files

STEAM_VALIDATE

SteamCMD updates the game server on every container start. With STEAM_VALIDATE set to true (the default) it also checks every game file, which takes longer; set it to false for faster restarts.

START_ARGS

Arguments passed to the game server executable at startup. Default example:

START_ARGS="-game fof -console +maxplayers 20 +map fof_fistful"

You can customize this with additional server parameters:

START_ARGS="-game fof -console +maxplayers 16 +map tp_station +mapcyclefile mapcycle_tp.txt"

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Running the Server

Basic run (with automatic updates)

mkdir -p config

docker run --rm -it \
  --user root \
  --cap-add SYS_ADMIN \
  --security-opt apparmor:unconfined \
  -p 27015:27015/udp \
  -p 27015:27015/tcp \
  -v "$(pwd)/config:/config" \
  -e START_ARGS="-game fof -console +maxplayers 20 +map fof_fistful" \
  lancommander/fistfuloffrags:latest

Without SourceMod

docker run --rm -it \
  --user root \
  --cap-add SYS_ADMIN \
  --security-opt apparmor:unconfined \
  -p 27015:27015/udp \
  -v "$(pwd)/config:/config" \
  -e INSTALL_SOURCEMOD="false" \
  lancommander/fistfuloffrags:latest

Skip file validation on startup

docker run --rm -it \
  --user root \
  --cap-add SYS_ADMIN \
  --security-opt apparmor:unconfined \
  -p 27015:27015/udp \
  -v "$(pwd)/config:/config" \
  -e STEAM_VALIDATE="false" \
  lancommander/fistfuloffrags:latest

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OverlayFS Details

The container uses Linux OverlayFS to merge the server directory (/config/Server) with the overlay directory (/config/Overlay) into a merged view (/config/Merged). This allows you to:

1. Replace files without modifying the base game installation
2. Add files that don't exist in the base game
3. Avoid copying large files - OverlayFS is a union filesystem

Technical details:

• Lower layer: /config/Server (base game files from SteamCMD)
• Upper layer: /config/Overlay (your custom files)
• Merged view: /config/Merged (where the game server runs from)
• Work directory: /config/.overlay-work (required by OverlayFS)

If OverlayFS cannot be mounted (e.g., missing privileges), the container will fall back to using /config/Server directly and log a warning.

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Troubleshooting

OverlayFS not working

If you see warnings about OverlayFS, ensure your container has the required privileges:

# Option 1: Add SYS_ADMIN capability (recommended)
docker run --cap-add SYS_ADMIN --security-opt apparmor:unconfined ...

# Option 2: Use privileged mode (less secure)
docker run --privileged ...

Game server not starting

1. Verify START_ARGS contains the correct arguments for Fistful of Frags
2. Check container logs: docker logs <container-name>
3. Ensure the server directory was downloaded: check /config/Server/fof in the container
4. Verify the server configuration files are correct (e.g., server.cfg)

RCON rejects the password, or +sv_lan 1 has no effect

The stock fof/cfg/server.cfg sets rcon_password "" and sv_lan 0 on every map load, after the command line. Set them in your own /config/Overlay/fof/cfg/server.cfg. RCON listens on the container's IP address, not on 127.0.0.1.

Clients can't join: version mismatch

The image always installs the newest server build from Steam (the public branch is the only one). A client running an older or newer build than the server (compare PatchVersion in fof/steam.inf) may be rejected or fail to load the map. Update the client to the same build.

SourceMod not loading

1. Ensure INSTALL_SOURCEMOD is set to "true" (not just true without quotes in YAML)
2. Check that SourceMod was installed: verify /config/Overlay/fof/addons/sourcemod exists
3. Verify MetaMod is installed: check for /config/Overlay/fof/addons/metamod.vdf
4. Run meta list and sm plugins list over RCON
5. Ensure plugins are compiled .smx files (not .sp source files)

ERROR! Failed to install app '295230' (Missing configuration)

A fresh SteamCMD can fail the first install with this error until it has refreshed the app info. The PreSteamInstallGame/10-BootstrapInstall.ps1 hook runs app_info_update 1 and the install in one SteamCMD session when Server/steamapps/appmanifest_295230.acf doesn't exist yet. If the first install was interrupted, delete that file and restart the container.

Harmless startup messages

dlopen failed trying to load: .../.steam/sdk32/steamclient.so and the CApplicationManager::GetMountVolume: invalid index assertions appear on every start; the server then loads its local steamclient.so and runs normally.

Permission errors

If you encounter permission errors:

1. Ensure mounted volumes are writable
2. Check file ownership in the container
3. Review logs for specific permission error messages

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License

SteamCMD and game servers are distributed under their respective licenses. This repository contains only Docker build logic and helper scripts licensed under MIT.