[GUIDE] TF2 Servers on Cloud

Hello forum enjoyers

This is a guide about how to run Team Fortress 2 servers on cloud technology.

What you need to know:

Running a TF2 server on the cloud is (sometimes) the cheapest option you have - $0.06/hr on Linode.
There are some barriers to doing this easily; I have removed them. You can follow this guide to set one up in simple steps.
Linode is the cloud provider I recommend for North American users after extensive testing. Similar methods will work with other providers (AWS Fargate, Kamatera)
Check out this repository for all the details.

What's the catch?

You must turn on your server only when you need it

Before you do this, know that you pay for the server as long as the "Linode" exists. You must delete it to turn it off. While these servers are cheap to run, they are not cheap if you leave them on when you aren't using them.

Your customization options will be limited, as each new Linode does not retain any data once they are gone, so this is really just for ease of use to play comp.

Here are the simplest detailed instructions:

Create a new account at https://login.linode.com/signup
On the left panel, under COMPUTE, go to StackScripts. Top right "Create StackScript", call it tf2server. No description needed, select Target Images -> "Ubuntu 22.04 LTS". Copy the contents of this bash script into the Script box. Edit any passwords and API keys on these lines before you save it. Revision note not needed.
Once your script is created, you can then see a button at the top right "Deploy New Linode", click this when you want to create a new server. Make sure you are under the "StackScript" tab and have tf2server selected. Select the Region (Chicago, IL us-ord recommended), and the Plan (Dedicated 4 GB recommended, don't go higher it's overkill already). Finally add a Root Password, this only affects the computer the server is running on, you will not give out this password. Then, click "Create Linode".
Your server will take 1-2 minutes to turn green on Linode & 3-10 more minutes for the TF2 server to come up, be a bit patient. (Dev note: I am certain this can be optimized but I will leave it to others smarter than I)
You can find the IP on the Linode page at the top under "Public IP Addresses" and you can use this to connect. Just the one that's formatted like: "123.0.0.111". For example:
```
connect 123.0.0.111; password "xyz123";
```
Once you are done with your server, click the 3 dots at the top right and select "Delete".

Special thanks to melkortf for maintaining the docker image this relies on!