Survival Guide

7 Days to Die

Detailed connection, admin, file, settings, mods, backup, wipe, and troubleshooting notes for 7 Days to Die dedicated servers.

Connect & First Checks

Before editing files

Use Join Game and search by server name, or connect by IP/port if available.
Make sure EAC setting matches the client. EAC-enabled clients cannot join nonmatching configurations.
If the server has mods, every client usually needs matching client-side mods unless the mod is server-side only.

Stop server before edits

serverconfig.xml	Primary configuration: name, password, region, max players, world, game name, difficulty, loot, Blood Moon, EAC, telnet/web settings.
Saves/<World>/<GameName>	World and player save data. GameName is the save identity.
Mods	Server mod folder. XML-only server-side mods may not require client installs; asset/code mods usually do.
serveradmin.xml	Admin, moderator, whitelist/ban permissions depending on template/game version.

High-use values

ServerName	Browser name.
ServerPassword	Private server password.
ServerMaxPlayerCount	Player cap. Match purchased slots.
GameWorld	World preset or generated world.
GameName	Save name. Changing it starts a different save.
GameDifficulty	Difficulty level.
DayNightLength / DayLightLength	Day duration and daylight hours.
BloodMoonFrequency / BloodMoonRange	Horde night cadence and randomness.
EACEnabled	Anti-cheat toggle. Must match client expectation.

Staff access

Edit serveradmin.xml or use console commands if panel exposes them.
Assign permission levels carefully; lower numbers are more powerful in many 7 Days configs.
Restart after manual serveradmin.xml edits.

Install carefully

Stop server before uploading mods.
Each mod should live in its own folder under Mods with a ModInfo.xml inside.
If startup fails, remove the newest mod first and check logs for missing dependencies.

Protect player data

Back up serverconfig.xml, serveradmin.xml, Mods, and the save folder before game updates or world changes.
Changing GameName starts a new save without deleting the old one.
For a wipe, stop server and archive/remove the save folder for that GameWorld/GameName.

Common tickets

Server vanished after world change	GameWorld/GameName mismatch or world generation still running. Check console.
Mods not loading	Folder nesting is wrong; ModInfo.xml is not one level below Mods/modname.
Players cannot join	EAC mismatch, wrong password, client mod mismatch, or wrong port.
Changes not applied	XML syntax error or edited while server was running.

Docs and sources