The complete guide · 5 min read
Craftopia Server Hosting: The Complete Guide
This guide covers running a Craftopia dedicated server: what the game asks of a server, how Pocketpair's server has changed, the settings file, moving a world, mods, memory and looking after saves during Early Access. It is written for whoever in the group ends up as the server owner.
By Matthew Griffin, Owner, Gaming DeluxePublished · Updated
In this guide
- What Craftopia Asks of a Server
- How Craftopia's Dedicated Server Has Changed
- The Settings File, Explained
- Moving an Existing World to the Server
- Players, Slots and Memory
- House Rules for a Shared World
- Mods, Patches and Early Access
- Running the World Day to Day
- What to Compare Before You Rent a Craftopia Server
- Craftopia Server Glossary
- Craftopia Server Help and Next Steps
What Craftopia Asks of a Server
Pocketpair describes Craftopia as a multiplayer open-world survival action game that combines the things its developers enjoyed in other games. You chop trees and mine stone, fight hunger, grow more than 20 crops, catch monsters with a Monster Prism and keep them as pets, fish, and dive into dungeons that change shape each visit and end in a boss fight.
Then it adds machines. Gathering can be automated, belt conveyors carry items between machines, and a world that starts as a campfire can end as a factory. That is the part that matters for hosting: automation keeps working as long as the world is loaded, so a dedicated server keeps a group's progress moving in a way a home PC that switches off at night cannot.
- Survival: hunger, crafting and building across connected islands.
- Farming: 20+ crops and agricultural machines for large fields.
- Taming: most animals and monsters can become pets.
- Automation: item gathering, belts and full factories.
How Craftopia's Dedicated Server Has Changed
The dedicated server arrived on 23 June 2021, labelled experimental, with Pocketpair promising to keep raising the number of players it could carry. Over the following months it gained a command line interface, Creative Mode support and settings for a password, a maximum player count and a save data folder. In December 2021 its save data and settings moved from AppData to the same folder as the game itself.
When Craftopia moved to a seamless world in 2023, the dedicated server was taken offline while it was rebuilt. Pocketpair said in July 2023 that it was not ready in time for that update, and on 21 December 2023 the Desert and Dedicated Server update opened it again on a trial basis. Fixes since then have stopped log files growing over time, fixed enemies standing still and saved players' starting positions correctly.
The Settings File, Explained
Most of what you decide about your server lives in its settings file. Since the December 2021 patches it holds the password, the maximum number of players and the path to the save data folder, and since September 2021 it can set the game mode: Normal, Free Build or Playable Creative Mode.
- Stop the server from the panel.
- Open the settings file in the File Manager.
- Set the password and the player limit for your group.
- Choose the game mode you want.
- Save, start the server and check the console for errors.
Changes to the file only take effect after a restart, so make them at a time when nobody is mid-dungeon.
Moving an Existing World to the Server
Many groups start Craftopia on one player's PC and move once it becomes the group's main game. Copy the world's save from that PC, upload it to the server's save folder over SFTP, and make sure the settings file points at it. Keep the original copy until everyone has logged in and checked their gear.
Make sure the PC and the server are on the same game version before you move. A save from the alpha-unstable branch may not load on the main build, and Pocketpair warns that branch can affect save data.
Players, Slots and Memory
Our order form sells Craftopia with 7 player slots, which suits the friend groups most Craftopia worlds are built for. Pocketpair's December 2021 patch allowed multiplayer worlds to be set from 2 up to 128 players, so the game can be configured larger; if your community needs more than our plan offers, ask our support team before ordering.
Because the slot count is fixed, the plans differ by memory. The free 5GB tier handles a fresh world, 8GB suits an established one with bigger bases and pets, and 12GB gives factories and machines room to run. Change tier from the client area at any time; the world stays where it is.
House Rules for a Shared World
A shared world goes more smoothly with a few agreements. Decide who may take from shared chests, whether pets and vehicles are communal, and which areas are kept for farms or factories. A short pinned message in your group chat saves the arguments that start when one player dismantles another player's conveyor line.
Mods, Patches and Early Access
Craftopia supports the Steam Workshop. Mods are part of the fun, but they are also the most common reason a world misbehaves after a patch. Keep a list of what you have installed, make sure every player has the same set, and after each game update check that each mod still works. Pocketpair's February 2026 patch improved mod detection, a reminder that this area changes too.
Craftopia is in Early Access until its planned Version 1.0 in 2027. In practice that means frequent patches, a separate alpha-unstable branch for testing new content, and the occasional change that needs a fresh look at your settings. A backup before each update is the cheapest insurance you can buy.
Running the World Day to Day
A small Craftopia server needs very little admin. Restart it at a quiet hour, use the say command to warn players a few minutes before, and check the version command after an update to confirm the server matches what players have. Give a trusted friend a sub user login so the server can be restarted when you are away.
We keep offsite backups of the last 7 days, restorable from the panel. Take your own snapshot before a big build session, a mod change or a patch, and nobody has to rebuild a factory from memory.
What to Compare Before You Rent a Craftopia Server
A co-op world is a long-term home. These details matter more than the headline price.
- Memory you can grow intoAutomation-heavy worlds need more RAM over time. Check you can move tier without losing the world.
- Full file accessYou need the settings file and the saves, so SFTP and a file manager matter.
- Player countCheck how many slots the plan really includes and whether your group fits.
- Backups you can restoreEarly Access patches are frequent. Make sure you can roll back yourself.
- Location near your groupRun a ping test first and choose the closest location for most players.
- Billing termsCompare monthly and longer cycles, and look for setup fees and minimum terms.
Craftopia Server Glossary
- Dedicated server
- Pocketpair's standalone server program that runs a Craftopia world without a player hosting it.
- Seamless world
- The connected world Craftopia moved to in 2023, which paused the dedicated server until December that year.
- Settings file
- The dedicated server's configuration, holding the password, player limit, save folder and game mode.
- Creative Mode
- A mode with Normal, Free Build and Playable options, supported on dedicated servers since 2021.
- Monster Prism
- The item you throw at a creature to catch it as a pet.
- Alpha-unstable
- Pocketpair's test branch with new content early, which may affect save data.
- say
- A dedicated server command that sends a message to every player.
- version
- A dedicated server command, added in 2025, that shows the current game version.
Craftopia Server Help and Next Steps
Useful pages for setting up and running your server.
- Craftopia on SteamFeatures, requirements and Workshop.
- Craftopia news and patch notesEvery update, including dedicated server fixes.
- Palworld server hostingPocketpair's creature survival game.
- Gaming Deluxe control panelWhat the panel does and how to log in.
- Our server locations
- Contact support24/7 help with settings, saves and mods.
How this guide was made: researched from the game's Steam page and Pocketpair's own Steam announcements and patch notes, 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.
Sources, checked 23 October 2026:
- Craftopia on Steam (Pocketpair, Early Access 4 September 2020, Windows, online and LAN co-op, Steam Workshop, features)
- Pocketpair, Craftopia 1.0 - The Future of Craftopia (4 September 2026: Version 1.0 planned for 2027), Steam announcement
- Pocketpair patch notes on Steam: dedicated server released (23 June 2021), CLI and Creative Mode (30 September 2021), password, player limit and save path, players 2 to 128 (15 and 17 December 2021), say command (21 May 2022), Development Status (1 July 2023), Desert and Dedicated Server update (21 December 2023), log and enemy fixes (22 January 2024), cache clearing (14 March 2025), version command (9 September 2025), mod detection (13 February 2026)
- Gaming Deluxe order form, Craftopia (pid 405; one slot size, 7, plus memory tiers and locations)
