The complete guide · 7 min read
Valheim Server Hosting Explained: A Complete Guide
This guide explains how a hosted Valheim server works after the 1.0 release, from choosing a backend and a plan to admin files, world modifiers, mods and backups. It is written for the person in the group who always ends up running the server.
By Matthew Griffin, Owner, Gaming DeluxePublished · Updated
In this guide
- What a Dedicated Valheim Server Does
- Valheim 1.0, the Deep North and Your World
- Crossplay or Steam: Choosing a Backend
- How Many Slots and How Much RAM
- Admin Lists, Bans and Private Servers
- World Modifiers and Difficulty on a Server
- Running Mods on a Valheim Server
- Saves, Backups and Moving a World
- What to Compare Before You Rent a Valheim Server
- Valheim Server Glossary
- Valheim Server Help and Next Steps
What a Dedicated Valheim Server Does
In Valheim, a world only exists while somebody is hosting it. Start a game from your own PC and the world closes the moment you quit, taking the evening with it for everyone else. A dedicated server is a separate program, the Valheim Dedicated Server tool on Steam, that keeps the world running around the clock. Friends in other time zones can farm, sail and build while you sleep, and nobody has to wait for the host to come online.
You can run that program at home, and Iron Gate documents how. It means leaving a PC switched on, forwarding ports on your router when you use the Steam backend, and sharing your home upload with every player. Renting a server moves all of that into a data centre: the world gets a fixed address and steady bandwidth, and there is a support team to contact when something breaks at midnight.
Valheim 1.0, the Deep North and Your World
Valheim entered Early Access on 2 February 2021 and reached version 1.0 on 9 September 2026. The headline addition is the Deep North biome, alongside achievements and new console versions for PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2. Iron Gate has kept patching since launch, with patch 1.0.17 on 6 October 2026 the newest at the time of writing.
Two details matter most to a server owner. The first is world generation: Valheim only adds new terrain and structures to areas that have never been explored, so a well-travelled older world may miss parts of the new content. The second is achievements: they only count progress made on 1.0, and most dev commands flag the world and the character as cheated, which blocks achievements from then on.
- Keep your old world: everything you built is safe, and unexplored areas still receive the new content.
- Start a fresh world: Iron Gate's recommendation for the best 1.0 experience, and the cleanest way to chase achievements.
- Do both: back up the old world, start a new one, and switch between them by changing the world name in the launch line.
Crossplay or Steam: Choosing a Backend
Every Valheim dedicated server runs on one of two networks, and the choice decides who can join and how they find you.
| Setting | Steam backend | Crossplay backend |
|---|---|---|
| Who can join | Steam players only | Players on every platform Valheim supports |
| How players connect | Server list, or IP and port | Join code, server list, or public IP and port |
| Port forwarding at home | Needed | Not needed, traffic runs through a relay |
| How to turn it on | Default | The -crossplay launch option |
On a hosted server the port question disappears, because our network is already open. That leaves one real decision. If anyone in your group plays on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch 2 or the Microsoft Store version, turn crossplay on. If everyone is on Steam either backend works, and plenty of PC groups simply stay on Steam.
How Many Slots and How Much RAM
Valheim is designed for 1 to 10 players, and Iron Gate confirmed that 1.0 keeps that limit. For most groups the 10 slot plan is the whole answer: it matches the game, needs no mods and comes with 10GB of memory.
Larger communities can go beyond ten with Valheim Plus or a BepInEx plugin, installed in one click from the Mod Manager. Our 24, 32, 48 and 64 slot plans exist for exactly that. A world with 30 people online behaves very differently from one with 8: more bases are loaded at once, more creatures are active, and there are usually more mods in the mix. That is why each bigger plan comes with more RAM: 12GB on 24 slots, 14GB on 32, 16GB on 48 and 20GB on 64.
Rather than guessing, use the memory graph in the panel. If it sits close to your allocation at your busiest time of day, move up a tier; the order form goes up to 32GB.
Admin Lists, Bans and Private Servers
Valheim handles permissions with three plain text files stored next to your worlds: adminlist.txt, bannedlist.txt and permittedlist.txt. Each line holds one Platform User ID, written as the platform name, an underscore and the user number. Players can read their own ID from the F2 panel in game, and the server log records it whenever someone connects.
- Open the File Manager in the panel and find the three list files.
- Paste each admin's Platform User ID into adminlist.txt, one per line.
- Restart the server so the new lists are definitely loaded.
- In game, admins press F5 to open the console and use kick, ban, unban and banned.
For a private world you have two tools. Setting the server to non-public hides it from the server list, so only people with the address or join code can find it. The permitted list goes further: as soon as one ID is on it, anyone who is not listed is refused, so add the whole group in one go.
World Modifiers and Difficulty on a Server
World modifiers let a group tune Valheim without any mods. On a dedicated server they are launch options, which you edit in the Commandline Manager instead of the in-game world menu.
| Launch option | What it controls | Accepted values |
|---|---|---|
| -preset | A complete difficulty profile | normal, casual, easy, hard, hardcore, immersive, hammer |
| -modifier combat | How tough fights are | veryeasy, easy, hard, veryhard |
| -modifier deathpenalty | What you lose when you die | casual, veryeasy, easy, hard, hardcore |
| -modifier resources | How much you gather | muchless, less, more, muchmore, most |
| -modifier raids | How often bases are attacked | none, muchless, less, more, muchmore |
| -modifier portals | Portal rules | casual, hard, veryhard |
| -setkey | On or off switches | nobuildcost, playerevents, passivemobs, nomap |
Running Mods on a Valheim Server
Iron Gate does not support mods officially, and Valheim has no Steam Workshop. The PC community fills the gap with BepInEx, a loader that adds a plugins folder to both the game and the server. Most mods are published on Thunderstore, where the BepInEx pack for Valheim is the usual starting point.
- Install the loader first: a BepInEx plugin or Valheim Plus from the Mod Manager.
- Add further mods by uploading them to the plugins folder with the File Manager or SFTP.
- Check whether each mod is server-side only or must also be installed by every player.
- Restart, then read the log for errors before you invite the group.
Mods plus game updates are the classic cause of a lost evening. Before you update the server after a Valheim patch, check each mod's page for a compatible build, take a backup, and update the mods together with the game.
Saves, Backups and Moving a World
By default the server writes the world to disk every 30 minutes and keeps four automatic backups: one about two hours old and three taken twelve hours apart. Each of these intervals can be changed with launch options. On top of that, our Backup Manager takes snapshots whenever you ask, and offsite copies are kept for the last 7 days.
Moving a world from single player or from another host is a file copy. Stop the server, upload the world files, make sure the world name in the launch line matches the file name, and start it again. Characters are saved on each player's own device, so everyone arrives with their own gear.
What to Compare Before You Rent a Valheim Server
Valheim hosting offers look alike at first glance. These are the details that decide how the server feels in week six, not on day one.
- Slots against the real player capA 20 slot server is still a 10 player server unless the host helps you install a player-limit mod. Ask how they handle it.
- RAM included in the priceCheck how much memory the base price includes and what an upgrade costs. A cheap plan without enough RAM for your world is a false saving.
- Locations you can testLook for a data centre close to most of your group and run a ping test, because latency shapes how combat feels more than raw CPU does.
- Crossplay controlsMake sure you can set the crossplay option and read the join code yourself, especially if anyone plays on console.
- Backups you can restoreFind out whether you can restore a backup without a ticket, and how far back the offsite copies go.
- Mod tools and file accessA mod manager saves time, but SFTP and a file manager matter more once your mod list grows.
- Billing termsCompare monthly and longer cycles, and check for setup fees and minimum terms.
Valheim Server Glossary
- Dedicated server
- A separate program that runs a Valheim world without anyone playing on the host machine.
- Backend
- The network a server uses: Steam (Steam players only) or crossplay (every platform, through PlayFab).
- Join code
- A short code shown in the pause menu of a crossplay server, which friends paste under Add server.
- Platform User ID
- A player's ID, written as platform_number, used in the admin, banned and permitted lists.
- World modifiers
- Built-in settings for combat, death penalty, resources, raids and portals.
- Preset
- A ready-made set of world modifiers, such as casual, hard or hammer.
- BepInEx
- The mod loader most Valheim mods depend on.
- Valheim Plus
- A long-running BepInEx mod that changes many server and gameplay settings, including the player limit.
- Slots
- How many players can be online on the server at the same time.
- Forsaken Ones
- Valheim's bosses. Each one you defeat opens the next stage of progression.
- Deep North
- The biome added in Valheim 1.0.
Valheim Server Help and Next Steps
Useful pages for setting up and running your world.
- Iron Gate's guide to dedicated serversLaunch options, admin files and backups, straight from the developer.
- Valheim 1.0 FAQPlayer limit, saves, achievements and crossplay at 1.0.
- BepInEx pack for Valheim on ThunderstoreThe loader most mods need.
- Gaming Deluxe control panelWhat the panel does and how to log in.
- Our server locations
- Contact support24/7 help with setup, mods and moving worlds.
How this guide was made: researched from Iron Gate's own documentation and the Steam store page, drafted with AI assistance, checked against our live order form for every plan, price and location, and reviewed by Matthew Griffin before publishing. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
