sboxns.com
Open source Network Storage for player saves, leaderboards and server-side game logic. Install on your own machine or a cheap VPS, then connect your game through a free HTTPS name.
No sboxcool signup. No subscription. No mandatory telemetry.
A VPS around $5/month can be a starting point for a small game. You pay your provider, not us. Capacity and prices depend on your workload and provider.
On a Linux VPS with sudo access, the tunnel command installs the server, creates a project and API keys, gives it a free HTTPS name and starts the service.
Signed DNS names use addresses such as NAME.n1.sboxns.com. Players connect directly to your public IP. Ports 443 and the HTTP verification port must be reachable.
The DNS registry is live. Installer support is not yet available in a published release. Use the tunnel command below for the current release, or follow the signed DNS instructions when running a build that includes sbox-ns dns.
Cloudflare Tunnel connects out from your machine, so nothing needs to be opened. Your name is NAME.sboxns.com.
curl -fsSL https://github.com/sbox-cool/sbox-network-storage-server/releases/latest/download/install.sh \
| sudo env SBOX_NS_PROJECT="My Game" SBOX_NS_TUNNEL=1 shHave your own domain? Install without SBOX_NS_TUNNEL=1, set SBOX_NS_PUBLIC_URL="https://ns.example.com", and configure a certificate or HTTPS reverse proxy. Windows, Docker and PostgreSQL are covered in the self-hosting guide.
Only to create your name and to update it when your IP changes. Once your name exists, players reach your server without going through sboxcool's servers: with a public IP they connect to you directly and Bunny DNS answers the lookup; with a tunnel, Cloudflare carries the traffic to you. If sboxcool.com goes down, your existing name keeps working.
The installer prints your project ID, public key, secret key and HTTPS address. That is all the configuration a first game needs. To see them again or add a project later:
sudo sbox-ns quickstart "My Game"
sudo sbox-ns doctordoctor checks the database, ports, certificate and that your name points at this server.
Visit your HTTPS address and sign in at /login. For the first sign-in, create a single-use link on the server:
sudo sbox-ns admin login-linkInstall the official Network Storage library, then open Editor > Network Storage > Setup and enter the project ID, public key, secret key and your HTTPS address as the Base URL. Save, then push your collections, endpoints and workflows with Editor > Network Storage > Sync Tool. A successful sync confirms the editor can reach your server.
In game code, only the public key is used:
NetworkStorage.Configure(
"YOUR_PROJECT_ID",
"sbox_ns_YOUR_PUBLIC_KEY",
"https://YOUR_NAME.n1.sboxns.com" );The secret key belongs only in editor tooling or trusted servers, never in a published game. Runtime player records live in SQLite or PostgreSQL on your server.
Explore a real server running generated sample data: player progress, inventories, world state and backend definitions. The demo is read-only, so every button that would change anything is disabled server-side. No login needed.
Save data keyed by player, shared world records, queries and leaderboards.
Endpoints and workflows keep authoritative game logic off the client.
CLI commands, JSON output and an allowlisted stdio MCP server for local or SSH-based management.
Start with SQLite. Use PostgreSQL when you need it. Export your configuration and data for backups or migration.
The server is AGPL-3.0 open source and pre-1.0 software. Keep backups and read release notes before updating.
sboxns.com gives your server a stable name derived from its own key, so nobody else can claim or change it. With a public IP your name points straight at your server and it gets its own Let's Encrypt certificate. Without one, a Cloudflare Tunnel connects from the inside, so you do not need to expose any port.
Both are optional. You can use your own domain, certificate or reverse proxy instead. sboxns.com is a sister landing page of sboxcool.com, not a shared database or a central admin panel.
Live from the sboxns.com registry. Capacity grows as we add zones.
Visit https://YOUR_NAME/login to sign in and /dashboard to manage your server. There is no /admin/login route. For initial setup or passwordless access, run sbox-ns admin login-link on your server and open its single-use link.
The server does not require a sboxcool account, payment, email registration or usage reports. Anonymous install statistics and security emails are separate opt-ins. Your database stays on your machine.
Creating a hosted name sends registration metadata (your name, public key and, for public-IP names, your IP address) to sboxcool. Public-IP names publish your server's IP in DNS. Tunnel names route requests through Cloudflare, whose connector has its own crash reporting. For an independent deployment, use your own HTTPS setup and leave optional services disabled.
Each subdomain belongs to an independently operated server. Contact that game's operator about its player data. For hosted-name abuse, contact support with the hostname and evidence. Read the acceptable-use policy and privacy policy.
Network Storage documentation covers the library, YAML Source, endpoints, workflows and game integration.
MCP and agent guide covers operating your server with an AI assistant. Contributions and reproducible bug reports are welcome on GitHub.
