How to Set Up a 7 Days to Die Dedicated Server

A 7 Days to Die dedicated server keeps your world alive between sessions, so the base, the loot and the next horde night do not wait for whoever hosted. There are two ways to run one: by hand on your own machine, or managed on Flux. Decide one thing first: will anyone play on PS5 or Xbox?

First: PC only, or PC and console?

A server that console players can join has to follow The Fun Pimps' crossplay rules, and they decide a lot of the setup:

  • At most 8 players.
  • A world size of at most 8192.
  • No mods: the server must be vanilla.
  • EAC (Easy Anti-Cheat) always on.
  • The stable build only, never experimental.
  • Listed publicly, so consoles can find it.

Break any one of them and consoles simply stop seeing the server. A PC-only server has none of those limits: more players, mods and overhauls, and the experimental build if you want it.

Option 1: on your own machine

  1. Install the 7 Days to Die dedicated server with SteamCMD.
  2. Edit serverconfig.xml: the server name, a password, difficulty, day length, blood moon, loot and the rest of the options.
  3. Open the game port, 26900 by default, and the other ports the dedicated server uses, in your firewall, and forward them on your router.
  4. Start the server, and keep the machine on for as long as anyone wants to play.
  5. Updating, restarting and backing up the world are then yours to do by hand.

Option 2: managed on Flux

Deploy a 7 Days to Die server on the Flux decentralized cloud with the ports opened and routed for you, DDoS protection included, and a dashboard with an admin console, a Server Settings editor, a Mods tab on the PC plans, a file manager and downloadable backups. Plans start at $5.99 a month.

  1. Pick Crossplay 8GB if anyone plays on PS5 or Xbox, or PC 12GB or PC 16GB for a PC group.
  2. Choose a region close to your players.
  3. Deploy. The first start downloads the server from Steam, so give it a few minutes.
  4. Open Server Settings to name the server, set a password if you want one, and choose the difficulty and the rest.
  5. Connect with the address and port 26900 shown in the dashboard.
Deploy a 7 Days to Die server →

What the managed server does on its own

  • Updates the game from Steam on every start: stable, or on the PC plans the latest experimental build.
  • Backs up the world before every start, while nothing is running, so each backup is consistent. You keep 0, 2 or 5.
  • Restarts daily at a time you pick, in your timezone, warning players in chat first.
  • Restarts itself in place if it crashes.
  • Saves the world every time it stops.

Frequently asked questions

Is the 7 Days to Die dedicated server free?

The server software is a free download with SteamCMD; what costs money is the machine that runs it, around the clock.

Can console players join a dedicated server?

Yes, if the server follows The Fun Pimps' crossplay rules: at most 8 players, a world size of at most 8192, no mods, EAC on, the stable build, and listed publicly. On Flux that is the Crossplay 8GB plan.

Where are the 7 Days to Die server settings?

In serverconfig.xml. On Flux the dashboard's Server Settings tab edits it from the browser.

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