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Getting started with your 7 Days to Die server

This guide takes you from your order to your first connection: choosing a plan, getting around the Game Panel, joining from the game and making the first settings. The other pages of this section then cover configuration, administration, mods and maps in detail.

Choosing a plan​

YorkHost offers 7 Days to Die server hosting on AMD Ryzen or Intel CPUs, NVMe storage, with Anti-DDoS protection and 7/7 support on Discord. Four plans are available:

PlanvCoresRAMIndicative priceBest for
Wanderer26 GB€1.99/monthSmall group, vanilla, small map
Survivor38 GB€3.99/monthGroup of friends, modlets, 8k map
Raider416 GB€7.99/monthOverhauls, large maps, active community
Warlord632 GB€14.99/monthCommunity server with 20+ players, heavy overhauls
Up-to-date pricing

The reference prices and specifications are the ones shown on the 7 Days to Die page of the YorkHost website at the time of ordering.

How much RAM do you need?​

7 Days to Die is a memory-hungry game. Three factors weigh more than the number of players:

  • Map size: a 10k or 16k map uses much more memory than a 6k or 8k map.
  • Mods: an overhaul such as Darkness Falls adds a lot of content and increases memory usage.
  • Random world generation (RWG): generating the world on first start causes a large RAM spike. See Maps and worlds.

When in doubt, start with a 6k or 8k map and upgrade if the RAM is constantly maxed out.

Accessing the Game Panel​

Your server is managed from the Game Panel (Wisp):

  1. Log in to your Game Panel:
  2. Select your 7 Days to Die server
  3. You land on the Console: this is where you start, stop and restart the server, and follow its startup in real time

The most useful tabs for 7 Days to Die:

TabUse
ConsoleStart / stop the server, read the logs, type server commands
FilesFile manager: serverconfig.xml, Mods/ folder, maps, saves
StartupStartup parameters exposed by the panel
BackupsServer backups
SchedulesScheduled tasks, for example an automatic restart

To transfer large files (pregenerated maps, overhauls), SFTP access is more convenient than the web file manager. The credentials are in Settings → SFTP Details: see SFTP extension for VSCode or use a client such as FileZilla or WinSCP.

Longer first start

On the very first launch, the server has to generate or load the world. With a randomly generated map (RWG), this can take several minutes. Let the console run without restarting until generation is complete.

Finding the IP address and port​

The connection address is shown in the Game Panel, on your server's page, in the IP:PORT format.

The game's default port is 26900, but at YorkHost the port is assigned by the panel and may be different. Always use the one shown in the panel. 7 Days to Die also uses a few consecutive UDP ports: opening the required ports is handled on our side (see Are all ports open?).

Do not change ServerPort manually

Do not change the ServerPort value in serverconfig.xml: the server must listen on the port assigned by the panel, otherwise it will be unreachable.

Joining the server from the game​

Once the panel console has settled (the server has finished loading the world):

  1. Launch 7 Days to Die
  2. Click Join a Game
  3. Use the Connect to IP button at the bottom of the server list
  4. Enter the IP and port shown in the panel
  5. Enter the password if you set one

You can also search for your server by name in the server list, if its visibility is public (ServerVisibility set to 2).

Same version as the server

The client must be on the same version as the server. If Steam updated your game but not the server (or the other way around), the connection is refused. See Troubleshooting.

The first three things to set up​

  1. Name and password: set ServerName and ServerPassword in serverconfig.xml, see Configure serverconfig.xml.
  2. Your admin rights: add yourself to serveradmin.xml or use the admin add command, see Become an admin.
  3. The world: choose between Navezgane, a generated world (RWG) or a pregenerated map before starting the real game, see Maps and worlds.

Going further​

Need help?

Our team is available 7 days a week on Discord or through your client area.