How to Set Up a 7 Days to Die Server

7 Days to Die is best played with friends surviving blood moon hordes together, and a dedicated server keeps the world persistent so your base and progress survive between sessions. Here's how to host one on Linux.

Sizing your server

The game simulates a large voxel world plus zombie hordes:

• 2–4 players: 6 GB RAM.
• 6–8 players: 8–12 GB RAM.
• Horde nights spike CPU as dozens of zombies path at once, so fast cores help.

Step 1: Install SteamCMD

sudo add-apt-repository multiverse -y
sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
sudo apt update
sudo apt install steamcmd screen -y

Step 2: Download the server

sudo adduser --disabled-password sdtd
sudo su - sdtd
steamcmd +force_install_dir ./7dtd +login anonymous +app_update 294420 validate +quit

App ID 294420 is the 7 Days to Die dedicated server.

Step 3: Configure serverconfig.xml

Copy the sample config and edit the key values:

cd 7dtd
cp serverconfig.xml myserver.xml

Important properties inside myserver.xml:

• ServerName and ServerPassword.
• ServerMaxPlayerCount — realistic for your RAM.
• GameWorld — Navezgane (handcrafted) or RWG (random gen).
• GameDifficulty (0–5).
• BloodMoonFrequency — how often horde nights hit (default 7 days).
• ServerAdminFileName — controls who has admin rights.

Step 4: Start the server

screen -S sdtd
./startserver.sh -configfile=myserver.xml

First launch generates the world if you chose RWG, which takes a few minutes. Detach with Ctrl+A then D.

Step 5: Open the ports

7 Days to Die uses UDP ports 26900–26903:

sudo ufw allow 26900:26903/udp

Port 26900 is also used over TCP for the server browser, so allow that too if you want it listed publicly.

Step 6: Connect

In game, choose Join a Game → Connect to IP, enter your VPS IP and port 26900, and the password if set.

The web control panel

7 Days to Die includes a built-in web admin panel and telnet console. Enable them in the config (ControlPanelEnabled and TelnetEnabled) with strong passwords, and you can manage players, view the map and run commands from a browser without SSH.

Backups and world data

Your save lives under ~/.local/share/7DaysToDie/Saves/. Back it up before each restart, especially before a major game update — 7 Days to Die's alpha/beta updates sometimes require a world wipe, so keep a copy of anything you care about:

cp -r ~/.local/share/7DaysToDie/Saves ~/backups/7dtd-$(date +%F)

Mods with the Mods folder

Drop mods into the Mods folder on the server (and matching client mods where required). Popular overhauls like Darkness Falls change RAM needs significantly, so size up when running big modpacks.

Tuning difficulty and horde nights

The whole tone of a 7 Days to Die server comes from a handful of config values. Beyond GameDifficulty, the ones players feel most are BloodMoonFrequency (default 7 days between hordes), BloodMoonEnemyCount (how many zombies per player on horde night), DayNightLength and the LootAbundance and XPMultiplier percentages. For a harder server, raise the horde count and drop loot abundance; for a casual co-op night, do the reverse. Change these before the world is well established, since some settings only fully apply to new saves.

Common issues

• Server not listed publicly: set ServerVisibility=2 and open the TCP browser port alongside the UDP game ports.
• World generation is slow: RWG maps take minutes to build on first launch — use Navezgane for an instant start.
• Wiped progress after an update: major 7 Days to Die updates can require a new world, so back up your save before patching.

The simple option

Horde nights are the stress test — dozens of zombies pathfinding at once hammer CPU and disk. Nxeon's NVMe VPS with fast cores keeps blood moons smooth for the whole group, and full root lets you run mods and the web panel however you like. A one-click 7 Days to Die deploy handles SteamCMD and the base config to get you surviving faster.