Top 5 No-Code Chatbot Builders for Small Businesses

Have you ever wondered why ARK: Survival Evolved is so popular among the masses? The question is simple - the world is massive, the challenges are tough, and teaming up with friends brings it all to life. But what if you're tired of lag, trolls, or losing progress on shared public servers? This is why you need to host your own ARK dedicated server. In this tutorial, you'll learn how to host an ARK server on your own machine or through a cloud provider like Hostman. We'll walk through everything you need—from setup to launch. Ark: Survival Evolved servers list Key Takeaways A dedicated ARK server gives you full control over settings, players, mods, and performance. You can host your own ARK server on Windows or Linux using SteamCMD. ARK servers require solid hardware—at least 16 GB RAM and a fast CPU are recommended. Hosting through cloud providers like Hostman can simplify setup and improve uptime. With the right configuration, your ARK server can run smoothly, even with custom maps and mods. What Is an ARK Dedicated Server? An ARK dedicated server is a private environment where your game world runs independently of the default multiplayer options. Instead of relying on Studio Wildcard’s shared servers, you run your own—from your PC or a remote cloud instance. That means you can control the experience all by yourself, only limited by your own morals. You can host PvE or PvP sessions, manage mods, control who joins, and set your own rules. For groups that want a consistent, customizable experience, it’s the best way to play. Benefits of Playing ARK: Survival Evolved Online While ARK is a good game for solo leveling experience, the game truly shines in multiplayer. Building a base, taming dinosaurs, and exploring tropical maps becomes even more rewarding with others. Here’s why: Shared workload: More fun when you play with your friends. Faster progression: Gather resources, craft tools, and level up faster in cooperation with friends. Social connection: It's more fun to build, battle, and explore. PvP opportunities: Challenge others in combat or form alliances. Knowledge sharing: Let the new players learn quickly from experienced survivors. Multiplayer isn't just about more people—it's about better gameplay, deeper strategy, and shared stories that keep you coming back. Why Do You Need an ARK Dedicated Server? It’s not always useful to rely on public servers since they can lead to a traumatizing experience in ARK: Survival Evolved. A lot of external factors can ruin your game session, among them—lags, cheaters, trolls, server wipes. If you choose to run your own ARK server you become more worry-free of these problems if you have a desire to play peacefully. You can set your own rules, choose who gets access, and configure performance settings based on your needs. Want to tame dinos faster? Adjust the multipliers. Prefer PvE over PvP? You decide. Plus, your game world will stay active even when you’re not logged in. Hosting your own server (especially with Hostman’s VPS Server) helps you to stop relying on your own (or someone elses) hardware, which is often the case in peer-hosted multiplayer games. It can be frustrating when the host logs out or their machine crashes, meaning that session ends for everyone. A dedicated setup avoids this entirely. An example of how to setup your own rule on Ark dedicated server How To Setup an ARK Game Server: Detailed Guide Setting up an ARK dedicated server is pretty simple. Let’s show you some useful steps. Step 1: Prepare Your Server Before anything else, make sure your system meets the recommended ark server requirements: CPU: Quad-core, 3.5 GHz or higher RAM: At least 16 GB (more if using mods) Storage: 50 GB SSD minimum Upload Bandwidth: 20 Mbps+ You can use Windows or Linux, but many prefer Linux for its stability and lower resource consumption. Make sure your OS is 64-bit and kept up to date. Step 2: Install SteamCMD SteamCMD is the command-line tool used to install game server files. To install SteamCMD on Linux: sudo apt update && sudo apt install steamcmd On Windows: Download SteamCMD from the official site. Extract it to C:\steamcmd. Run steamcmd.exe. Step 3: Install ARK Server Files Create a folder for the ARK server installation: mkdir ark-server && cd ark-server Launch SteamCMD and download the ARK server using the anonymous login: steamcmd +login anonymous +force_install_dir ./ark-server +app_update 376030 validate +quit Use 2430930 if you want to install ARK: Survival Ascended instead of the classic version. Step 4: Configure the Server Once installed, navigate to: cd ark-server/ShooterGame/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/ Or on Windows: C:\ark-server\ShooterGame\Saved\Config\WindowsServer\ Create and edit these two files: GameUserSettings.ini Game.ini Basic settings to add: [ServerSettings] ServerAdminPassword=YourAdminPass ServerPassword=OptionalPlayerPass SessionName=HostmanARKServer Add any gameplay tweaks here as needed (e.g., dino taming speed, resource multipliers). Step 5: Open Required Ports Make sure your firewall and hosting provider allow traffic through these ports: UDP 7777 – Game port UDP 27015 – Query port UDP 27020 – RCON port (optional) On Linux: sudo ufw allow 7777/udp sudo ufw allow 27015/udp sudo ufw allow 27020/udp Step 6: Start the ARK Server You can launch the server using a startup script.  For Linux: ./ShooterGame/Binaries/Linux/ShooterGameServer TheIsland?SessionName=HostmanARKServer?ServerPassword=MyPass?ServerAdminPassword=MyAdminPass?listen -server -log For Windows, create a batch file like this: start ShooterGameServer.exe TheIsland?SessionName=HostmanARKServer?ServerPassword=MyPass?ServerAdminPassword=MyAdminPass?QueryPort=27015?Port=7777?listen Double-click the .bat file to start your server. Step 7: Join Your ARK Server To connect: Launch ARK: Survival Evolved Click Join ARK Set filter to Unofficial Search your server name or IP address If your server doesn’t appear, go to Steam → View → Servers → Favorites and manually add: your.server.ip:27015 Now you’re ready to enter your world! Conclusion Running your own ark dedicated server gives you full control over your ARK: Survival Evolved experience. This is way better if you want to dedicate your precious time to your beloved game, where you want to build a small and warm community of players. If you're just getting started, consider launching your ARK server on a reliable cloud provider. A VPS from Hostman, for example, allows you to scale resources as your community grows, while enjoying a simplified deployment process and responsive support. FAQ What are the minimum ARK server requirements? For smooth gameplay, your server should have at least a quad-core CPU (3.5 GHz or higher), 16 GB of RAM, and an SSD with 50 GB or more of free space. A stable internet connection with at least 20 Mbps upload speed is also essential. Can I host an ARK server on my own PC? Yes, you can self-host an ARK server from your own machine, but this works best for small groups and limited sessions.  How many players can join my ARK dedicated server? The player limit depends on your hardware and internet bandwidth. With proper specs (16 GB RAM and above), you can comfortably support 10–30 players. Is hosting an ARK server free? You can host it for free on your own hardware, but you’ll cover electricity, bandwidth, and maintenance costs.

GitOps is a new way of managing cloud infrastructure and deploying applications. Built on some familiar and recognizable developer workflows, GitOps helps you automate infrastructure changes, improve system reliability, and simplify continuous delivery. In this tutorial, you’ll learn what GitOps is, how it works, the tools behind it, and how to implement a GitOps pipeline using Kubernetes and Hostman-compatible workflows. GitOps working scheme Key Takeaways GitOps uses Git as the single source of truth for infrastructure and deployment. It relies on declarative configurations and automatic reconciliation. GitOps enables auditability, rollback, and faster deployments. It works particularly well with Kubernetes and cloud-native environments. Tools like Argo CD, Flux, and Helm are commonly used in GitOps pipelines. What Is GitOps? GitOps is a set of practices that uses Git repositories to manage both application code and infrastructure configurations. With its help, developers can get rid of using traditional manual revisions or ad hoc scripts, GitOps relies on Git as the authoritative source for your system’s desired state. This means your cluster configuration, deployment manifests, Helm charts, and more are stored and managed within a single Git repo. So, when you need to update infrastructure or release a new application version, you simply commit a change to Git. GitOps controllers then detect the change and automatically update the live environment to match. This shift brings the principles of software development—such as version control, collaboration, and CI/CD—to operations teams. GitOps is especially valuable in cloud-native environments, where teams work with Kubernetes or similar orchestration tools. GitOps Definition GitOps is a kind of workflow where infrastructure is treated as code (not as a full app or environment), stored in Git. It also reconciles with the actual running environment. This ensures consistency, traceability, and security throughout the deployment lifecycle. How Does GitOps Work? GitOps was created as the main tool to control your apps and infrastructure like the unified entity, which you control from a single Git repository. But how does it work? It’s simple - continuous reconciliation. A GitOps controller constantly checks for differences between the actual state of your infrastructure and the desired state stored in Git. If the live state drifts (due to unnecessary or planned changes) the controller detects the inconsistency and automatically reverts the environment back to the last known perfect state as defined in Git. This is something that makes GitOps a very useful tool. What Are the Main GitOps Tools? GitOps relies on several open-source tools that integrate with your existing CI/CD stack. Here's a quick overview of the most popular options: Argo CD Argo CD is a declarative continuous delivery tool built for Kubernetes. It syncs your manifests from Git to your clusters and helps you visualize deployment status. Flux Flux automates Kubernetes deployments using Git as the source of truth. It's lightweight and integrates well with Helm charts. Helm Helm is a Kubernetes package manager. It makes application definitions simpler and is often used in GitOps to manage complex deployments. Terraform Let’s not forget that Terraform is not GitOps-native, It’s mainly used in GitOps pipelines for managing infrastructure outside Kubernetes, for example DNS. Quick Overview of the GitOps Workflow A typical GitOps workflow involves several tightly integrated steps that form a reliable deployment pipeline. Let’s walk through the process from code commit to live deployment. A developer writes code and pushes it to a Git repository. A CI pipeline builds the code, creates a container image, and pushes it to a container registry. A change is made to a Kubernetes manifest or Helm chart in the Git repository. A GitOps controller (e.g., Argo CD or Flux) detects the change and applies it to the cluster. The cluster state is now aligned with the desired state declared in Git. The separation between CI and CD in this model ensures that your team remains focused on writing and testing code, while deployment and environment reconciliation are fully automated. This reduces risk, accelerates delivery, and improves infrastructure transparency. Benefits of GitOps GitOps offers several advantages for modern DevOps teams: Developer productivity: If you are already familiar with Git, you can easily apply your knowledge. Auditability: You can track and backup every change that was made during the development. Rollback support: You can easily revert changes at any moment if you need to.. Security: You can control access of your repositories all by yourself, without someone crushing into your code. Faster recovery: Everything is "on the air live”, so if you need to backup your file faster. How to Set Up a GitOps Pipeline Here’s a basic example of setting up a GitOps pipeline using Argo CD on a Kubernetes cluster. For Hostman, you can adapt these steps using custom infrastructure. Step 1: Install Argo CD Create a namespace for Argo CD: kubectl create namespace argocd Install Argo CD: kubectl apply -n argocd -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/argoproj/argo-cd/stable/manifests/install.yaml Step 2: Access the Argo CD UI Forward the Argo CD API server port: kubectl port-forward svc/argocd-server -n argocd 8080:443 Visit https://localhost:8080 in your browser. Login with the default admin user and password (retrieved from the secret). How to Use GitOps with Kubernetes Now let’s connect your Git repository to Argo CD to start syncing Kubernetes manifests. Step 1: Define Your App Configuration In your Git repo, create a Kubernetes manifest, for example deployment.yaml: apiVersion: apps/v1 kind: Deployment metadata: name: hostman-web spec: replicas: 2 selector: matchLabels: app: hostman-web template: metadata: labels: app: hostman-web spec: containers: - name: web image: hostman/web-app:latest Commit and push the file to Git. Step 2: Create the Argo CD Application Use the Argo CD CLI or web UI to create a new application: argocd app create hostman-web \ --repo https://github.com/your-user/your-repo.git \ --path ./k8s \ --dest-server https://kubernetes.default.svc \ --dest-namespace default Synchronize the app: argocd app sync hostman-web Argo CD will now monitor your repo and update the deployment automatically. Are There Disadvantages of GitOps? While GitOps offers many benefits, there are some challenges to consider: Git conflicts: When multiple teams edit code it can lead to some troubleshooting. Secret management: Git is a more “social” tool, when it comes to storing your secrets, so it’s better to use something else. Complexity at scale: Managing many environments and repositories sometimes becomes chaotic without proper management. Planning ahead and using a modular approach (e.g., mono or multi-repo strategies) can help mitigate these issues. Summary GitOps the bringer of power of Git to your infrastructures. GitOps is seeing your infrastructure as code and automates reconciliation, also let’s not forget that this instrument can enhance visibility, consistency, and deployment speed of your state of art work. FAQ What exactly is GitOps? GitOps is a tool to manage infrastructure and deployments using Git as the single source of truth. Is GitOps only for Kubernetes? While GitOps is a perfect fit for Kubernetes (because of its declarative nature), it’s not limited to it. You can apply GitOps principles to other infrastructure types too. What tools do I need to start with GitOps? Popular GitOps tools include Argo CD, Flux, and Jenkins X. If you're using Hostman, you can easily integrate Git-based workflows with Kubernetes and start automating deployments right away. Do I need to change how I write code? Not really. GitOps works with the Git workflows you're already using — like branches, pull requests, and commits. What changes is how those commits impact your infrastructure: once merged, your environment syncs with your repo automatically.  

As a popular orchestration container tool, Kubernetes (K8s) powers over 90% of global workloads, making it an important instrument in infrastructure development. However, its complexity and resource consumption aren't always good—especially for lightweight environments. That’s where K3s comes in, offering a streamlined alternative.  In this guide we compare K3s and K8s, helping you choose the right fit for your use case—whether it's enterprise-scale deployments or low-footprint edge clusters. Key Takeaways K3s keeps it light. If you're working with limited resources—like a Raspberry Pi, old device, or just need something quick for testing—K3s is your friend. It's super easy to install, doesn't eat up much memory. K8s brings the muscle. When you’re dealing with more complex systems that need to scale reliably across multiple nodes and stay highly available, standard Kubernetes (K8s) is built for that. What’s the real difference? K3s is all about simplicity and speed. K8s is all about power and control. They both run Kubernetes under the hood—it’s just a matter of how much you need to customize and scale. What is K8s? K8s is short for Kubernetes. It is a widely used option in professional production environments for managing microservices-based and large-scale containerized workloads. Originally developed by Google and now maintained by the CNCF.  Standard Kubernetes is a modular tool and needs some manual touches, before getting deployed, such as the API server, scheduler, controller manager, etc. While this architecture provides powerful control and flexibility, it also adds significant operational complexity. K8s is an ideal instrument for big  teams with DevOps pipelines, and the resources to manage and maintain grand infrastructure. Let’s not forget that, K8s fully integrates well with cloud providers like AWS (via EKS), Google Cloud (via GKE), and Azure (via AKS), and supports a broad ecosystem of extensions and third-party tools for monitoring, logging, service meshes, and more. Kubernetes (K8s) working scheme Advantages and Disadvantages of K8s Advantages Full documentation and community support: From Helm charts to service meshes, there’s a huge toolbox and community behind it. Advanced features: Load balancing, autoscaling, RBAC, pod disruption budgets—you name it. Cloud-native integrations: Easily integrates with major cloud providers and lets you build hybrid or multi-cloud setups. Flexibility: You have control over every layer of your infrastructure. Disadvantages Complex setup and maintenance: Requires expertise to install, configure, and operate effectively. Resource-hungry: Demands a minimum of 2 GB RAM per node for smooth operation. Operational overhead: Requires active monitoring, frequent updates, and manual scaling strategies if not managed via cloud services. Steep learning curve: Can be overwhelming for teams without prior Kubernetes experience. What is K3s? Now enter K3s—Kubernetes’ leaner cousin. Built by Rancher Labs and now maintained by SUSE, K3s is everything you love about Kubernetes—but packed into a smaller, easier-to-manage package. This one’s designed to provide a fully functional Kubernetes experience, but at the same time, it’s trying to reduce resource consumption, so your device won’t suffer from extensive workload. K3s is a single binary—usually under 100MB—that includes the Kubernetes control plane, container runtime (containerd), networking (via Flannel), ingress (via Traefik), and even a Helm controller. Out of the box, it uses SQLite for the cluster datastore, but you can also connect it to MySQL, PostgreSQL, or etcd if you want HA. By default, K3s uses SQLite as its datastore instead of etcd, although it can be configured to use MySQL, PostgreSQL, or external etcd clusters for enhanced high availability. It also includes: containerd as the default container runtime Flannel as the Container Network Interface (CNI) Traefik as the default ingress controller A built-in Helm controller for deploying charts Kubernetes (K3s) working scheme explained Advantages and Disadvantages of K3s Advantages Lightweight and efficient: Minimal resource consumption allows it to run on devices with as little as 512 MB RAM. Quick setup: You can deploy a single-node cluster with a one-line install script. Ideal for development and edge scenarios: Works well in places where full-scale Kubernetes would be excessive or impractical. Lower operational burden: Fewer moving parts make it easier to maintain. Full Kubernetes compatibility: Supports standard manifests, kubectl, Helm charts, and the Kubernetes API. Disadvantages Limited out-of-the-box HA: Full HA requires external database setup and additional configuration. Security trade-offs: Some enterprise-grade features are disabled by default to conserve resources. Smaller ecosystem: Though growing, K3s has fewer prebuilt integrations and community add-ons compared to standard Kubernetes. Not intended for large, multi-tenant environments: Better suited for simpler or single-purpose deployments. K8s vs K3s Both K8s and K3s developed CNCF-certified Kubernetes distributions. However, despite almost common origin and almost the same purposes, these two tools have very different functions and target different environments. K8s (Kubernetes) is a more complex container orchestration platform designed for vast ecosystems with the possibility of extension, and very suitable for large teams. It provides full control over networking, security, and infrastructure integrations. Sounds like an ideal solution for big companies, doesn't it? On the other hand, K3s is specifically engineered to be more available for less powerful machines, and overall easier to use. The thing is, K3s doesn’t need the operational complexity of Kubernetes that much. It is possible by consolidating components into a single binary and including sensible defaults like containerd, Flannel, and Traefik.  Let’s not forget that, the main difference between K3s and K8s is not in capability—K3s supports the full Kubernetes API—but in setup, performance, and operating environment. If your team has a need for fast deployment and minimal headache, K3s is a strong candidate. For those managing large-scale, mission-critical systems with complex architectures, K8s is a better fit. Here’s a quick comparison to summarize the key differences: Feature K8s (Kubernetes) K3s Purpose Enterprise workloads, production-scale Edge, IoT, dev/test, low-resource Installation Manual, multi-component setup One-line install, single binary Resource Requirements 2 GB+ RAM per node 512 MB RAM minimum Datastore etcd (required) SQLite by default (etcd optional) Control Plane Architecture Multiple processes and services Combined into a single binary Add-ons User-installed Includes containerd, Flannel, Traefik Multi-tenancy Yes Limited; designed for single-tenant HA Support Built-in Requires external database Best for Complex, large-scale deployments Light, fast, and simple setups How to Choose the Right Option for Your Needs Before you decide what’s best for you, K3s or Kubernetes, you need to understand your goals and what tools you have to make your plans real. If you are willing to build a scalable application that requires high resource consumption like networking, multi-tenancy, and enterprise integrations, K8s is the better option. It excels in large production clusters with diverse workloads and complex operational requirements. However, if you are: Working with resource-constrained edge devices Running CI/CD pipelines where clusters are created and destroyed quickly Developing proof-of-concept projects Managing a single-purpose application or internal tool Then K3s will likely serve your needs better. Both solutions are good and can even be used in your work together! For example, you can use K8s in production and K3s for development and testing environments. Pretty cool, right?  Conclusion Kubernetes is a great tool for your modern infrastructure, but you need to be careful in choosing the right option for you. Depending on your needs, K3s or K8s can offer distinct advantages. K3s provides a more simplified solution ideal for fast-moving teams or if you don't have access to hi-tech infrastructure. K8s, on the other hand, remains the only solution for enterprises and big companies that need more advanced capabilities. If you’re interested in using Kubernetes, check Hostman’s Kubernetes Service—it’s cheap and pretty powerful. FAQ What is the main difference between K3s and Kubernetes (K8s)? K3s is a lightweight version of Kubernetes, designed for resource-constrained devices, packaging all core components into a single binary. Kubernetes is a full-featured platform suited for large-scale enterprise deployments. Is K3s a full Kubernetes distribution?   Yes, K3s is certified by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation as a conformant Kubernetes distribution, fully supporting Kubernetes APIs and tools. Can I use K3s in production?   Definitely! K3s is used in production across various sectors for edge computing, IoT, local development clusters, and continuous integration. What are the system requirements for K3s vs. K8s?   K3s requires only 512 MB of RAM and one virtual CPU, ideal for low-power environments. In contrast, standard Kubernetes requires at least 2 GB of RAM and more resources for its control plane. Can I migrate from K3s to full Kubernetes later?  Yes, migration is straightforward due to API compatibility, though you should account for differences in configurations. When should I choose K3s over Kubernetes?   Choose K3s for low-resource settings, quick deployments, or edge scenarios. Opt for Kubernetes for high availability, scalability, and enterprise-grade features.