The server cannot start and crashes with errors

[vasannikov32]

Describe the bug

I can't start the server following the guide. One error follows another. First, after successful authorization via Steam, the command “docker compose up -d” returns the error “STEAM_USER and STEAM_PASS data are missing” even though authorization was successful after the command “docker compose run --rm -it steam-auth setup.” And if I add these variables manually to docker-compose.yaml, it will complain about the lack of a 2FA code (steam guard). If I add it manually to docker-compose.yaml, the launch will return an application launch error.

Following the guide completely, it is not possible to start the server at all. I suspect that this is due to some error that incorrectly transmits data about an existing Steam session to the container. Another option in the guide is simply not mentioned. I could not find any solutions, nor could I fix it myself.

Steps to reproduce

I am using Debian 13.

1. sudo apt update && sudo apt-get full-upgrade -y
2. git clone
3. cd server
4. cp .env.example .env
5. Fill in the .env file:
   STEAM_USERNAME=""
   STEAM_PASSWORD=""
   VNC_PASSWORD=""
6. sudo docker compose run --rm -it steam-auth setup
7. sudo docker compose up -d
8. nothing works
9. logs from “sudo docker compose logs -f” return the error “STEAM_USER and STEAM_PASS data are missing”

And then this error cannot be resolved and causes others. It's as if something is wrong.

Expected behavior

I thought that by simply following the guide in README.md, I would be able to set up my server as promised. I don't understand why it didn't work. I'm very sad about this.

Additional context

No response

Final checks

• Read the contribution guide.
• Check existing issues.

[vasannikov32]

My guess is that for some reason the container is not using the successful Steam authorization data. Also, as far as I understand, this problem cannot be solved by simply mounting the json file via the docker-compose.yaml file, because the problem is not that this data is not mounted, but that the container expects other data for the first server launch.

Or perhaps the guide does not mention certain aspects. For example, what permissions should be granted to local files and directories, and what hardware and operating systems should be used for successful launch.

[vasannikov32]

Tried to use STEAM_REFRESH_TOKEN variable in .env file. Didn't help at all. Seems like this release is completely broken...

[Zed201]

Same error here

[vasannikov32]

UPD+FIX

The latest build is broken. I ve changed the IMAGE_VERSION for “preview” and started the server successfully. All previously installed or running containers and images should be removed first. While running the preview build you will also get a bunch of errors, but the server starts correctly and seems stable for me.

[Rufus1123]

The Dockerfile seems to be exporting the wrong environment variable names (STEAM_USERNAME and STEAM_PASSWORD instead of STEAM_USER and STEAM_PASS). I updated my dockerfile to

    if [ -f /run/secrets/steam_username ]; then export STEAM_USER="$(cat /run/secrets/steam_username)"; fi && \
    if [ -f /run/secrets/steam_password ]; then export STEAM_PASS="$(cat /run/secrets/steam_password)"; fi && \

This solved the error for me.

Edit: Nevermind. I think I still had preview on for the image_version when it worked last time

[JulianVallee]

UPD+FIX

The latest build is broken. I ve changed the IMAGE_VERSION for “preview” and started the server successfully. All previously installed or running containers and images should be removed first. While running the preview build you will also get a bunch of errors, but the server starts correctly and seems stable for me.

Just chiming in to confirm, and let you know that I'm still working on a stable release :) in the meantime preview is the way to go, thanks for letting others know!