> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/pterodactyl/wings/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Requirements

> System, hardware, and network requirements for running Pterodactyl Wings

Before installing Wings, ensure your system meets the following requirements. Wings is designed to run on modern Linux distributions with Docker support.

## Operating System Requirements

Wings supports the following Linux distributions:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Supported Systems" icon="linux">
    * Ubuntu 20.04+
    * Debian 11+
    * CentOS 8+ / Rocky Linux 8+
    * Alpine Linux (with modifications)
  </Card>

  <Card title="Architecture" icon="microchip">
    * x86\_64 (amd64)
    * ARM64 (aarch64)
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

<Note>
  Wings is built with Go 1.24+ and requires a Linux kernel with Docker support. Alpine Linux users need to use the `adduser` command syntax (see config/config.go:530).
</Note>

## Docker Requirements

Wings requires Docker to manage game server containers.

### Docker Version

* **Minimum**: Docker 20.10+
* **Recommended**: Docker 24.0+
* **Docker Compose**: Not required for Wings operation

### Required Docker Features

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Container Runtime">
    Wings uses the Docker Engine API to create and manage containers. Ensure the Docker daemon is running and accessible.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Network Support">
    Wings creates a custom Docker network (default: `pterodactyl_nw`) using the bridge driver. The default configuration uses:

    * IPv4: `172.18.0.0/16` with gateway `172.18.0.1`
    * IPv6: `fdba:17c8:6c94::/64` with gateway `fdba:17c8:6c94::1011`
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Volume Mounts">
    Wings mounts server data directories into containers. Ensure your filesystem supports bind mounts.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Hardware Requirements

### Minimum Requirements

| Component   | Requirement              |
| ----------- | ------------------------ |
| **CPU**     | 1 core (2+ recommended)  |
| **RAM**     | 1 GB (2 GB+ recommended) |
| **Storage** | 10 GB free space         |
| **Network** | 100 Mbps                 |

### Recommended Requirements

| Component   | Requirement                       |
| ----------- | --------------------------------- |
| **CPU**     | 4+ cores                          |
| **RAM**     | 4 GB+ (depends on hosted servers) |
| **Storage** | SSD with 50 GB+ free space        |
| **Network** | 1 Gbps                            |

<Warning>
  Memory requirements scale with the number of servers. Each game server requires its own memory allocation plus Wings overhead (default: 5-15% depending on server memory, see config/config\_docker.go:154).
</Warning>

## Network Requirements

### Required Ports

Wings requires the following ports to be accessible:

| Port        | Protocol | Purpose                    |
| ----------- | -------- | -------------------------- |
| **8080**    | TCP      | Wings API (configurable)   |
| **2022**    | TCP      | SFTP server (configurable) |
| **Dynamic** | TCP/UDP  | Game server allocations    |

<Info>
  The Wings API port (default: 8080) must be accessible from the Panel server. The SFTP port (default: 2022) should be accessible to users who need file access.
</Info>

### Firewall Configuration

Ensure your firewall allows:

1. **Inbound connections** to Wings API port from Panel IP
2. **Inbound connections** to SFTP port from user IPs
3. **Inbound/outbound connections** on game server allocation ports
4. **Outbound connections** for Docker image pulls

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash UFW (Ubuntu/Debian) theme={null}
  # Allow Wings API
  sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp

  # Allow SFTP
  sudo ufw allow 2022/tcp

  # Allow game server ports (example range)
  sudo ufw allow 25565:25665/tcp
  sudo ufw allow 25565:25665/udp
  ```

  ```bash Firewalld (CentOS/Rocky) theme={null}
  # Allow Wings API
  sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=8080/tcp

  # Allow SFTP
  sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=2022/tcp

  # Allow game server ports (example range)
  sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=25565-25665/tcp
  sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=25565-25665/udp

  # Reload firewall
  sudo firewall-cmd --reload
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## System User Requirements

Wings automatically creates a system user for managing server files:

* **Default username**: `pterodactyl`
* **Default UID/GID**: 988 (when running in Docker)
* **Shell**: `/usr/sbin/nologin` or `/sbin/nologin`

<Info>
  The user creation is handled automatically during Wings startup (see config/config.go:480). On Alpine Linux, the user is created with `adduser -S` instead of `useradd`.
</Info>

## Storage Requirements

Wings uses several directories for operation:

| Directory    | Default Location                | Purpose             |
| ------------ | ------------------------------- | ------------------- |
| **Root**     | `/var/lib/pterodactyl`          | Base data directory |
| **Servers**  | `/var/lib/pterodactyl/volumes`  | Server files        |
| **Backups**  | `/var/lib/pterodactyl/backups`  | Local backups       |
| **Archives** | `/var/lib/pterodactyl/archives` | Server transfers    |
| **Logs**     | `/var/log/pterodactyl`          | Wings logs          |
| **Temp**     | `/tmp/pterodactyl`              | Temporary files     |

<Warning>
  Ensure these directories are on a filesystem with adequate space. Server data can grow significantly depending on the games hosted.
</Warning>

## Optional Requirements

### SSL/TLS Certificates

For production environments, configure SSL/TLS:

* **Self-signed certificates**: Suitable for testing
* **Let's Encrypt**: Auto-TLS support built into Wings
* **Custom certificates**: Manual SSL configuration

### Log Rotation

Wings automatically configures log rotation if `/etc/logrotate.d/` exists (see config/config.go:695). The default configuration:

* Rotates logs at 10 MB
* Compresses old logs
* Keeps logs for 7 days

### SELinux

If using SELinux, ensure proper contexts for Wings directories, especially:

* `/run/wings/etc` (passwd files)
* `/run/wings/machine-id` (machine-id files)

These directories are mounted into containers and require appropriate SELinux contexts.

## Checking Your System

Verify your system meets the requirements:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash Check Docker theme={null}
  # Check Docker version
  docker --version

  # Verify Docker is running
  sudo systemctl status docker

  # Test Docker functionality
  sudo docker run hello-world
  ```

  ```bash Check System Resources theme={null}
  # Check available memory
  free -h

  # Check available disk space
  df -h

  # Check CPU cores
  nproc
  ```

  ```bash Check Network Connectivity theme={null}
  # Check if ports are available
  sudo ss -tulpn | grep -E ':(8080|2022)'

  # Verify internet connectivity
  curl -I https://github.com
  ```
</CodeGroup>

<Check>
  Once your system meets all requirements, proceed to [Installing Wings](/installation/installing).
</Check>