Hosting an Arma 3 dedicated server is taxing on the underlying hardware. The rule of thumb is that the more players are active at the same time and the more mods you want to use for your server, the more resources you need to plan for. For a simple co-op adventure, you can get away with a leaner hardware setup than for a multiplayer server where 16 or more players are in action together or against each other.
In the official Arma 3 Wiki, Bohemian Studios lists the following minimum requirements:
- CPU (processor): 2.4 gigahertz (dual core)
- RAM (working memory): 2 gigabytes
- Hard disk space: 32 gigabyte HDD
In the same place, the development team recommends the following hardware for all Arma 3 server scenarios that are intended to go beyond hosting a simple co-op adventure:
- CPU (processor): 3.5 gigahertz (quad-core)
- RAM (working memory): 4 gigabytes
- Hard drive storage: 32 gigabyte SSD
However, the performance for running the Arma 3 dedicated server software isn’t the only thing you need to consider when it comes to the hardware for your server. The operating system of your choice also requires resources that should be planned for from the start. For Windows Server 2019, for example, the following additional requirements need to be covered:
- 1.4 GHz processor (64-bit)
- 512 MB or 2 GB memory (without or with graphical user interface)
- 32 or 36 GB hard disk space (without or with graphical user interface)