I do not think so. In the end, players need to find the IP to make a connection to the server. So, without that nothing works. It is the nature of TCP/IP protocols.

As Weasel said, there's no way. And why would it, the issue is not the known IP but the services running on your server that might be vulnerable and not protected. So: Learn firewalling.

Does steam networking works on CS2 dedicated servers?
It does exactly that, but i think it only works on listen servers.

Clients still know the public IP of the server no matter what - otherwise communication is not possible.

Just ask yourself the question: Am I able to phone a person without knowing their phone number?
If you have some magical unicorn that can enable you to do this - fine, then you also might be able to hide a servers IP from the clients. If not, you're ♥♥♥♥ out of luck.

Talking server administration in general: Yes, there's ways. haproxy, lvs, nginx, ... do this all the time, but not for reasons of "being more private". Instead it's for loadbalancing, data protection (aka not showing the server who's actually coming in) and high availability. I doubt there's a single person with more than two brain cells in IT who thinks the server needs more privacy. Security is a different topic, but there's better ways (firewalling, DPI, IDS) than using a proxy, for two reasons:

1. Most of the time the software that is actually used by the client is the spot where breaches take place. The source engine had their fair share of issues in that regard too. Since you forward everything on purpose to the server (otherwise the connection wouldn't work), even 300 layers of proxy in front of it would help you a single time (but would make the game perform so slow you'd actually be dead before you even see you've spawned).
2. Every layer of proxy is software, and software has issues/bugs. With more software in front of your precious server, there's actually more stuff that can go south and be leveraged into a breach. That's why in Linux there's something called the KISS principle - Keep It Simple, Stupid. Do exactly what you have to do to make your stuff work reliably, nothing more, and make it easy to comprehend.

In the end, from my professional IT background and also in terms of teaching that stuff, I'll give you the advice: If you have no clue what you're doing, don't host a server. ESPECIALLY not in your home. If you want to learn how to do it, use some cheap VM at some hoster and try with standard software first, aka not some docker container oddjob but something out of your distros repository, and try to understand why and how things work there (apache2/nginx are a good place to start, mariadb/postgres/slapd is not). That helps you a lot more than downloading some bloated container, spawning it and have it do magic stuff to your network until it works somehow. Dig into systemd-networkd, try to find out what nftables does and how (not firewalld, I'm talking groundwork not fancy abstraction layer) and read something about network protocols. Yes, it's a very tedious trip, but trust me on that one: If you know that afterwards, people do pay you hefty sums just to call you employee...

I think using proxy server is the only way here. They are cheap, you can buy some fast proxy for a month to try things out.

P.S. hosting something like cs from my home, I would be concerned too. This is literally the situation where "I can find you by IP" is not just a kids rambling

Originally posted by idunerg:

I think using proxy server is the only way here. They are cheap, you can buy some fast proxy for a month to try things out.

P.S. hosting something like cs from my home, I would be concerned too. This is literally the situation where "I can find you by IP" is not just a kids rambling

can't i use steam proxy? like, in argentina there are server like 50 miles from my home. so it would be perfect to use steam servers as proxy.

Once again: Why proxy? You don't drive from Miami to Washington DC via Bejing, do you?

Instead of buying a proxy, buy a server and host there directly.

ok

Originally posted by Metal_Warrior:

Just ask yourself the question: Am I able to phone a person without knowing their phone number?
If you have some magical unicorn that can enable you to do this - fine, then you also might be able to hide a servers IP from the clients. If not, you're ♥♥♥♥ out of luck.

Talking server administration in general: Yes, there's ways. haproxy, lvs, nginx, ... do this all the time, but not for reasons of "being more private". Instead it's for loadbalancing, data protection (aka not showing the server who's actually coming in) and high availability. I doubt there's a single person with more than two brain cells in IT who thinks the server needs more privacy. Security is a different topic, but there's better ways (firewalling, DPI, IDS) than using a proxy, for two reasons:

1. Most of the time the software that is actually used by the client is the spot where breaches take place. The source engine had their fair share of issues in that regard too. Since you forward everything on purpose to the server (otherwise the connection wouldn't work), even 300 layers of proxy in front of it would help you a single time (but would make the game perform so slow you'd actually be dead before you even see you've spawned).
2. Every layer of proxy is software, and software has issues/bugs. With more software in front of your precious server, there's actually more stuff that can go south and be leveraged into a breach. That's why in Linux there's something called the KISS principle - Keep It Simple, Stupid. Do exactly what you have to do to make your stuff work reliably, nothing more, and make it easy to comprehend.

In the end, from my professional IT background and also in terms of teaching that stuff, I'll give you the advice: If you have no clue what you're doing, don't host a server. ESPECIALLY not in your home. If you want to learn how to do it, use some cheap VM at some hoster and try with standard software first, aka not some docker container oddjob but something out of your distros repository, and try to understand why and how things work there (apache2/nginx are a good place to start, mariadb/postgres/slapd is not). That helps you a lot more than downloading some bloated container, spawning it and have it do magic stuff to your network until it works somehow. Dig into systemd-networkd, try to find out what nftables does and how (not firewalld, I'm talking groundwork not fancy abstraction layer) and read something about network protocols. Yes, it's a very tedious trip, but trust me on that one: If you know that afterwards, people do pay you hefty sums just to call you employee...

ok

Originally posted by WL Weasel Ⓢ (Probably AFK):

Clients still know the public IP of the server no matter what - otherwise communication is not possible.

cloudflare does proxy. it is just expensive. it has really low latency too. i just asked if steam gave proxy trough the actual already existing proxy server they already use for the servers...

and proxy aren't calling a phone without knowing the number. is calling a different number, and this phone is facing a different phone. thus. connecting the call.

-enablefakeip as a launch option gives you a proxy IP using steam relay, at least for TF2. I have no idea if it works for source games in general or not

Originally posted by Metal_Warrior:

Once again: Why proxy? You don't drive from Miami to Washington DC via Bejing, do you?

Instead of buying a proxy, buy a server and host there directly.

Good point, if its really cheaper for you. I just happen to know provider who's proxies are like 0.1 euro per address

here is some gpt options for ya :)
If you are playing with some known group or people, who's willing to use ZeroTier, that might be an option for you then:
https://chatgpt.com/share/0866aa58-720a-4d82-b4b9-1ac28b7bca84

Yes, you can use ZeroTier to create a virtual network and host your CS2 server without spending any money. Here's a step-by-step guide to help you set up ZeroTier and configure your CS2 server:


### Step-by-Step Guide to Using ZeroTier

1. **Sign Up and Install ZeroTier:**
- Go to the [ZeroTier website](https://www.zerotier.com/) and sign up for a free account.
- Download and install the ZeroTier client on your server machine.

2. **Create a ZeroTier Network:**
- Log in to the ZeroTier Central (https://my.zerotier.com/).
- Click on "Create a Network."
- Note the Network ID, which you'll use to join the network.

3. **Configure the ZeroTier Network:**
- Click on the newly created network to configure it.
- Under the "Members" tab, you’ll see a list of devices connected to your network. At this stage, it should be empty.

4. **Join the Network:**
- On your server machine, open the ZeroTier client.
- Click "Join Network" and enter the Network ID from step 2.
- The server machine will appear in the "Members" list on ZeroTier Central. Approve the device by clicking the checkbox.

5. **Install ZeroTier on Player Machines:**
- Each player needs to install the ZeroTier client on their machine.
- Players should join the same network using the Network ID.
- Approve each player’s device in ZeroTier Central.

6. **Configure the CS2 Server:**
- Once all devices are approved, each machine will have a virtual IP address assigned by ZeroTier.
- Find the virtual IP address of your server machine from the ZeroTier client or ZeroTier Central.

7. **Run the CS2 Server:**
- Start your CS2 server on the server machine.
- Players should connect to the CS2 server using the virtual IP address assigned by ZeroTier.

### Example Commands for Starting the Server

- On the server machine, navigate to the directory where your CS2 server files are located.
- Run the server using the virtual IP address:

```sh
srcds.exe -game csgo -console -usercon +game_type 0 +game_mode 1 +map de_dust2 -ip [ZeroTier Virtual IP]
```

### Connecting to the Server

- Players should connect to the server using the virtual IP address of the server machine:

```sh
connect [ZeroTier Virtual IP]
```

### Additional Tips

- Ensure your firewall allows traffic on the necessary ports for the game server.
- Regularly update both ZeroTier and your game server to ensure compatibility and security.

By following these steps, you can set up and host a CS2 server using ZeroTier without spending any money, while effectively masking your real IP address.

OK