Rust guide

RustRelay FakePlayer: On vs. Off

RustRelay is built into Rust and forwards server network packets to an operator-provided HTTP endpoint. The April 2, 2026 Spring Clean release added command-line arguments for enabling RustRelay on servers. The official RustRelay documentation warns that much of the feature remains subject to change…

RustRelay is built into Rust and forwards server network packets to an operator-provided HTTP endpoint. The April 2, 2026 Spring Clean release added command-line arguments for enabling RustRelay on servers.

The official RustRelay documentation warns that much of the feature remains subject to change. For ongoing operational context, you can follow sourced Rust coverage on TOP OF GAMES.

FakePlayer behavior

Setting Documented behavior
relay.cfg_fakeplayer false Forwards per-connection traffic for every online player, resulting in one duplicate stream per connected player.
relay.cfg_fakeplayer true Registers one fake spectator connection and forwards only packets destined for that connection, resulting in one stream instead of N copies.

relay.cfg_fakeplayer defaults to false. Facepunch recommends enabling it unless the recipient specifically needs raw per-connection traffic.

Applying the setting

Set the convar and restart the relay:

relay.cfg_fakeplayer true
relay.restart
relay.status

Changing the fake-player convar stops the relay. relay.restart starts or restarts it with the updated configuration, while relay.status prints a status report. RustRelay saves its configuration in cfg/relay_cfg.json.

Authentication and packet options

relay.cfg_server_auth_token configures a bearer token sent with every request. HTTP requests carry it in the Authorization header, and the /ws/ingest handshake can also carry it through the access_token query parameter. The recipient must reject requests without a valid token.

relay.cfg_encryptpackets defaults to false. Console-message and console-command packets are always encrypted. Voice-packet forwarding, controlled by relay.cfg_sendvoicedata, also defaults to false, with the official documentation citing legal reasons.

Practical choice

Enable FakePlayer when the recipient does not require raw per-connection traffic. Keep it disabled when that traffic is specifically required.

Sources