Valve keeps one long table of every console command and variable in Counter-Strike 2, with a default value and a set of flags beside each entry. That flag column is the part most guides skip, and it is the part that decides whether the line in your server config actually does anything.
How to read the table
The table has four columns: the command name, its default value, its flags, and a short description. The flags column carries labels such as sv, cl, rep, nf, cheat and release. Valve's page does not define each label, so treat them as Valve's internal markers rather than a spec. The one that matters for a server admin is cheat.
A cheat-flagged command does not run on a server where cheats are off. The clearest example is fov_cs_debug, whose own description on the page reads "Sets the view fov if cheats are on." The familiar ones are flagged the same way: noclip, god, notarget and ent_create all carry the cheat flag.
The contrast is worth knowing. weapon_accuracy_nospread and weapon_accuracy_forcespread carry no cheat flag at all, so they behave differently from the commands above even though they sound similar. sv_cheats itself is described as "Allow cheats on server".
Server-side defaults worth knowing
- mp_roundtime defaults to 3 minutes per round
- mp_freezetime defaults to 5 seconds
- mp_buytime defaults to 45 seconds
- mp_startmoney defaults to 1000
- mp_maxrounds defaults to 15 rounds before the server changes map
- mp_limitteams defaults to 2, the maximum player difference between teams
- sv_alltalk defaults to off, and sv_deadtalk defaults to on
What changed on the server side in October
Valve's October 14 update added a startup requirement: round backup files now need the game server startup flag -allow_round_backup_files. If you run a server that relied on round backups without the flag, that is the line to add to your launch options.
Practical notes
- Test on your own server, not on Valve matchmaking. Cheat-flagged commands are refused there by design.
- A command that silently does nothing is usually a cheat flag or a wrong default, not a broken install.
- Read the description text as well as the flags. Valve qualifies several entries in plain language, and that is where the real answer usually sits.
Valve Developer Community, list of Counter-Strike 2 console commands and variables
Valve, Counter-Strike 2 update notes