7 Days to Die Server Hosting

What a Dedicated 7 Days to Die Server Changes

In co-op hosted from your own game, the world closes when the host does. That is awkward in a game built around a seven day countdown, where the group wants to scavenge on Tuesday, fortify on Thursday and face the horde together at the weekend. A dedicated server keeps the world available to everyone, on their own schedule, without one player's PC acting as the doorway.

It also changes what you can do. A dedicated server can use a world generated at a size your laptop would struggle with, keep a long save running for months, load modlets for the whole group and, since version 2.0, accept console players too. Running it in a data centre gives it a fixed address, steady bandwidth and someone to call when something goes wrong.

Crossplay Servers: The Official Requirements

Crossplay reached 7 Days to Die in the 1.2 Winter Patch in December 2024, at first only for peer-to-peer games. Version 2.0, Storm's Brewing, brought it to dedicated servers in June 2025, along with a list of server requirements that still applies.

PC players can join regardless of these settings, so the rules only bite when someone in the group is on PS5 or Xbox Series X|S. The Fun Pimps also note that console players only see servers whose settings and region suit their console, and their earlier crossplay notes limited consoles to worlds of 8K or smaller. Our 8 slot plan exists for exactly this group.

Sandbox Presets and the Sandbox Code

Version 3.0, Dead Hot Summer, changed how a server's rules are stored. Difficulty, blood moon frequency, day and daylight length, XP multiplier, loot abundance, loot respawn, air drop frequency and roughly twenty more settings were removed from serverconfig.xml. They now live in a single SandboxCode property, a string you build in the game's Sandbox Options menu.

• Presets: official bundles of settings, with Adventurer as the default. Every server from us has them ready to select.
• Custom codes: build your own rules in the menu, copy the code and paste it into the Config Editor.
• After creation: some settings are fixed once the world exists; others can still be changed with setgamepref in the console.

Worlds: Navezgane, Random Gen and Pre-generated Maps

The GameWorld setting chooses between Navezgane, the hand-made map, and a randomly generated world built from a seed and a size. Random worlds come in the officially supported sizes of 6K, 8K and 10K, and the game also ships with pre-generated maps from 4K to 10K, named Pregen04kA through Pregen10kD.

To use a pre-generated map, choose Pregen/Custom as the game world in the Config Editor and enter the map name in both the world name and game name fields. The first start on a new map can take up to an hour while it is prepared. Watch the Web Console, leave the server running until it reports a successful log on, and resist the urge to restart midway, because an interrupted generation has to start again.

Slots, World Size and Memory

Player count and world size together decide how much memory a server needs. Our order form recommends 8GB or more for a 6K world, 8GB to 12GB for 8K and 12GB to 16GB for 10K. Every plan includes a RAM tier that sits on or above those figures for the world size it is likely to run: 10GB on 8 slots, 12GB on 12, 14GB on 16, 16GB on 24 and 20GB on 30.

Mods and long saves push usage up over time. Use the memory graph in the panel on a blood moon night, when every player is active at once, and step up a tier from the client area if it sits close to the limit. Up to 100 slots and 32GB are available on the order form.

Admins and Permission Levels

Admin rights are kept in serveradmin.xml. Each entry names a player's platform and ID with a permission level, where 0 is full control and higher numbers grant less.

1. Stop the server and open serveradmin.xml in the Config Editor.
2. Choose the player's platform and enter their Steam64 ID, or their EOS ID if they play on console or Epic.
3. Set the permission level, 0 for a full admin.
4. Start the server; admins can now use the console commands in game.

Console players do not have a Steam ID. Ask them to join while you watch the Web Console: their EOS ID appears in the log, and you add it without the EOS_ prefix.

Mods, EAC and Overhauls on a PC Server

7 Days to Die mods go in a Mods folder, one folder per mod with a ModInfo.xml inside. XML-only modlets are pushed to players when they connect, which makes them easy to share. Mods that bring new icons, models or sounds must also be installed on each player's PC, and mods with custom code (DLL files) need Easy Anti-Cheat switched off on the server and the players' side.

• Turn crossplay off before adding mods; consoles cannot join a modded server.
• Upload mods to the Mods folder with the File Manager or SFTP.
• Match the game version the mod was made for, using the Mod Manager to install a Legacy build if needed.
• Start the server and read the log for errors before inviting players.

Overhaul mods replace large parts of the game and usually come with their own pre-generated worlds. Our knowledge base lists the world names for Darkness Falls, for example, which go into the same Pregen/Custom fields as the official maps.

Moving a Save and Keeping Backups

A single-player or home-hosted world moves across in two parts. The save itself is in your Saves folder (on Windows usually under AppData, Roaming, 7DaysToDie). A random-gen world also has a folder in GeneratedWorlds. Zip each one, upload it to the matching folder on the server, extract it and point the Config Editor at the same world and game name.

Once the world is live, protect it. Take a backup before a version change or a new mod, schedule automatic backups in the panel, and remember we keep offsite copies for the last 7 days as well. A Discord webhook in Service Settings will tell the group whenever the server restarts or updates.

What to Compare Before You Rent a 7 Days to Die Server

Seven things that separate a good 7 Days to Die host from a cheap one.

1. A real crossplay optionIf console friends are involved, check the host offers an 8 slot server and lets you set the crossplay and EAC options.
2. Memory for your world sizeCompare the RAM included against the world you plan to run, not just the slot count.
3. Sandbox Code supportMake sure you can pick presets and paste a custom code without filing a ticket.
4. Version controlMods lag behind updates. Being able to install an older build yourself saves a lot of waiting.
5. World uploadsCheck you get file access, so an existing save and its generated world can move with you.
6. Location and pingTest the latency from where your players live; it matters more than raw hardware when the horde arrives.
7. Backups and termsLook for backups you can restore yourself, offsite copies, and no setup fees or minimum term.

7 Days to Die Server Glossary

Blood moon

The horde night the game is named for, on a cycle set by the sandbox settings.

Sandbox Code

A single string that holds a world's gameplay rules since version 3.0.

Preset

An official bundle of sandbox settings; Adventurer is the default.

RWG

Random World Generation, which builds a new map from a seed and a size.

Navezgane

The game's hand-made map.

Pregen map

A pre-generated world shipped with the game, from Pregen04kA to Pregen10kD.

EAC

Easy Anti-Cheat, required for crossplay and switched off for code mods.

EOS ID

The Epic Online Services ID that identifies console and Epic players in admin files.

Modlet

A small mod, usually XML only, that changes a few parts of the game.

serveradmin.xml

The file that lists admins, their IDs and permission levels.

7 Days to Die Server Help and Next Steps

Official pages and our own guides.

• Crossplay server requirements, The Fun PimpsThe settings console players need.
• V3.0 Dead Hot Summer release notesThe move to sandbox presets and codes.
• Sandbox presets and custom codes on our serversStep by step in the Config Editor.
• Gaming Deluxe control panelWhat the panel does and where to log in.
• Our server locations
• Contact support24/7 help with worlds, mods and crossplay.