Set up Aperture

Choose Create account. Enter your email, username and password, then use the confirmation link sent to your email before connecting your first machine. Sign in with your account email whenever you return.

Choose an available name for your workspace. You can own one at a time, including a workspace in setup or inactive. It can hold multiple machines and game servers. Name reservations expire after seven days, so run the installer before then to start setup.

Use a separate game host you control. A fresh installation is the simplest starting point. Supported hosts need:

• Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04, or Debian 12 or 13.
• 64-bit x86 (amd64) or ARM64 hardware. Choose game images that support your host’s architecture.
• systemd, cgroup v2, and root or sudo access.
• At least 8 GiB of free disk for setup, plus the CPU, memory and storage your games and backups need.

The installer adds required packages and Docker when needed. It reuses a working Docker installation; a Podman alias is not a Docker substitute. It will not replace an active Wings installation. Back up existing data before using a host that already runs services.

Confirm your email, then copy the installation command from your workspace. Paste it into a terminal on the machine that will host your servers. Running it starts the hosted panel setup; reserving a name alone doesn’t start a panel. The command is short-lived and can only be used once. Keep it private and run it only on your own machine.

Keep the terminal open until installation finishes. If it’s interrupted, use Copy resume command in your account and run it on the same machine. Do not claim the same panel from a different machine. Your account shows progress and any setup errors.

Allow outbound DNS, HTTPS on TCP 443, and TCP 7443 to relay.aperture.sh. The installer connects management, SFTP and game routes through this outbound connection. No router port forwarding is needed.

Players use the game address and ports shown in your panel. TCP and UDP traffic is relayed to your machine, including behind NAT; game processes and files stay there.

Once the browser connection works, create your game server and test its assigned address and ports from outside your machine’s network.

When verification completes, choose Open workspace in your account. It signs you into your panel. Create a server, choose its game software and manage its console, files, backups and schedules.

Each customer account can own one workspace at a time. A name reservation, an installation in progress and an inactive workspace all count toward that limit. You can connect multiple machines and manage multiple game servers within your workspace.

• Seven-day name reservation: your name is held without running a hosted panel. Confirm your email and run the machine installer to start setup. Reservations and unfinished setup attempts expire if you do not complete them.
• 31 days without a working node: the workspace becomes inactive and its hosted process stops. Any authenticated, reachable Wings node keeps it active, even with zero running game servers. An account visit or button click alone does not count. Incomplete monitoring and Aperture outages pause inactivity decisions.
• A further 365 days to recover: after the workspace becomes inactive, its hosted configuration and name are held for 365 days. Choose Resume in your account and reconnect a working node before the displayed removal deadline. A temporary connection check does not by itself extend that deadline.
• Permanent removal and name release: after the recovery period, retained Aperture-hosted workspace configuration is permanently removed. The name passes through cleanup and quarantine before another account can claim it. A new owner receives a fresh tenant identity with none of the previous owner’s data.

Game files on your own machines are left untouched. Local files cannot replace deleted panel settings, users or server-management metadata, so keep independent exports and game backups. Your Aperture account remains separate from workspace removal.

The workspace shows exact deadlines. We send in-app and email reminders before inactivity and permanent removal. Existing workspaces receive a fresh grace period when the policy launches; an unknown observation is never treated as proof that a customer abandoned a workspace.

Can I have more than one machine?

Yes. One account owns one workspace, and that workspace can contain multiple connected machines and game servers.

Do I need to keep a game server running?

No. A verified, reachable Wings node is enough, even when every game server is stopped. If one of several nodes remains working, the workspace stays active.

What happens if I return after a long break?

If the 365-day recovery period has not ended, choose Resume in your account and reconnect a working machine. Your settings and name are held during that period. Once permanent removal has completed, those hosted settings cannot be recovered through Resume.

Will Aperture delete files from my machine?

This inactivity policy removes hosted workspace configuration only. It leaves game files on customer machines untouched. Keep your own backups and export important panel records before the removal deadline.

Create and manage game backups in your panel. The Local backup option stores them on the connected game host, not in managed cloud storage. Download important backups and keep an independent copy elsewhere.

A local backup can help recover a game or an unsuccessful change, but cannot recover a lost host or disk. Aperture’s private control-plane recovery snapshots cover hosted account and panel state, not your game files.

Use Forgot your password? on the account page to request a reset email. Hosting and account support is at Aperture support; the local ticket inbox inside your panel belongs to that panel’s operators. Never put passwords, installation codes or private keys into a ticket.