What Rust+ Is & Pairing
Rust+ is Facepunch's FREE official mobile app that keeps you connected to your server from your phone -- raid alarms, remote switches, storage checks, a live map, and team chat. You don't need it to play, but for defending a base it's close to essential.
Setup is quick: - Install Rust+ from your phone's app store and sign in with Steam. - Join a server that has Rust+ enabled. - In game, press ESC -> Rust+ -> Pair With Server. The server pops up in the app; tap Pair Server and you're connected.
That one pairing already unlocks the map, team chat, and server info -- the smart-device features come once you place and pair the electrical components below.
Core Features
Even before any electronics, the paired app gives you:
- Server info: live player count, map size, and last-wipe time at a glance.
- Live map: monument locations, server events, and your TEAM members' positions. Treat it as a delayed reference, not a live radar -- positions update with a lag, so it won't catch a real-time push.
- Team chat: the in-game team chat and the app's chat are synced both ways, so you can talk to your team from your phone. Teammate names show grey when offline and green when in-game (a handy way to see who's actually on).
This alone makes Rust+ worth pairing -- you can keep an eye on the server and coordinate without being at your PC.
Smart Switch
The Smart Switch works like a normal in-game switch but can ALSO be toggled remotely from the app. Pair any smart device the same way: open the placed device's radial menu, choose "Pair this device with Rust+", name it on your phone, and confirm.
Once paired you flip it on/off from the app and watch it react almost instantly in game (a destroyed device shows a red no-response icon). Uses: power your base lights on before you log in, energise turrets, or -- the big one -- at the first hint of an offline raid, tap your registered switches to bring defences online from anywhere. Note only players with TC authorisation can operate a switch, so guard who's authed.
Smart Alarm — Raid Alerts
The Smart Alarm is the headline defensive feature: whenever it receives power, it sends a push notification to your phone. Set its message (title + text) by looking at it with a Wire Tool and pressing E (you need TC auth) -- name them per location ("North Wall", "Loot Room") so you know exactly what tripped.
To build a proper raid alarm, give it an uninterruptible power source -- a Solar Panel or Wind Turbine plus a Battery so it stays on 24/7 even if your other power dips. Wire an HBHF sensor (set to detect unauthorised players) into the alarm and you get a phone alert the moment someone's at your base, online or off. It's the single best reason to run Rust+: advance warning of a raid while you're away.
Storage Monitor & Staying Secure
The Storage Monitor attaches to a Tool Cupboard, Large Wood Box, or Vending Machine and lets you read its contents from the app -- and on a TC it also shows your UPKEEP timer, so you can confirm from your phone that your base won't decay before you next log in. (Technically it pulses 1 rW whenever an inventory slot fills or empties.) Put one on your TC at minimum.
Security matters, because Rust+ grants real visibility into your base: - Protect your Steam account with two-factor authentication -- Rust+ is only as secure as your Steam login. - Never share your app credentials, and revoke pairing on servers you've stopped playing. - Treat smart switches like your tool cupboard: anyone with TC auth plus the app can flip them, so keep your auth list tight.
Keep them secret, keep them safe -- a compromised Rust+ is a window straight into your base.