7 Days to Die Server Settings Explained: How to Edit serverconfig.xml Safely

Most dedicated-server settings for 7 Days to Die are controlled by one XML file, serverconfig.xml. Stop the server, change only the text inside each setting’s value="…", save a backup, and restart. The names and defaults can change between game versions, so use the comments and values in the stock file shipped with your installation as the authority.

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This guide explains what the commonly used settings do, gives practical public, private, casual, hardcore and low-spec profiles, and covers the security, mod and crossplay choices that are easiest to get wrong.

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What serverconfig.xml controls

A dedicated server reads its settings from an XML file named serverconfig.xml. It controls identity, access, world generation, difficulty, loot, Blood Moon hordes, player limits, networking, administration and performance. A hosted server normally exposes this file through its control panel or file manager; a self-hosted installation keeps it beside the dedicated-server files.

XML is strict. The Valve Developer Wiki’s description of the file (which documents version 1.3 b9 and is therefore outdated) warns that you should change only the data in the value= portion of a line. Preserve the element name, quotation marks, brackets and overall structure. For example, change <property name="GameDifficulty" value="2"/> to another number, not to a different element or a free-form sentence.

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Defaults quoted in hosting guides are useful starting points, not universal guarantees. They may describe a different Alpha or current release, a host’s template or an old installation. Before changing anything, open the stock file that belongs to your exact server build and read the comment beside the setting.

How to change a setting without breaking the server

1. Stop the server completely. Use the host’s Stop button or shut down the dedicated-server process. Editing while it is running can be overwritten when the process exits.
2. Locate the active file. Find serverconfig.xml in the installation or the host’s configuration area. If a launch script specifies another file with -configfile, that file is the one being read.
3. Make a dated backup. Copy the file before each planned change, for example serverconfig-2026-10-14.xml. Keep a known-good copy outside the game directory as well.
4. Open it as plain text. Use an editor that does not add rich-text formatting. Search for the exact name= attribute rather than scrolling and accidentally editing a neighboring line.
5. Change only the value. Keep the setting name and XML punctuation untouched. Use the data type shown in the file: numbers for numeric settings, true/false for switches and the documented text for names or paths.
6. Save as XML text. Do not let the editor append .txt, convert the encoding unexpectedly or replace quotation marks with typographic quotes.
7. Start the server and check the log. An XML parse error, unknown property or rejected value normally appears during startup. Stop, restore the backup and correct the line if the process fails to load.
8. Test from a client. Check the browser listing, password prompt, world, difficulty and a short play session before announcing the server publicly.

Some hosting guides recommend copying the default file to a new name such as myserver.xml and adding -configfile myserver.xml to the launch command. That workflow depends on the host’s script and has not been standardized by an up-to-date official reference; confirm the exact argument and path in your installation before relying on it.

Identity, visibility and player access

These values determine what players see and who can connect. The table describes meanings reported by current hosting guides; the comments in your own file take precedence where they differ.

Public server

Set a descriptive ServerName, leave ServerPassword blank only if you accept unrestricted joins, and use the public value shown in your file for ServerVisibility. Keep the player cap realistic for the CPU, memory and bandwidth available. A visible server also needs the game port reachable through the host firewall; a listing alone does not make a blocked port connectable.

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Private or friends-only server

Use a strong, unique ServerPassword and select the friends-only or unlisted value documented in your file. Do not assume that adding a password automatically hides the server: the conflicting visibility mappings above mean the numeric value must be checked against the local comments.

World and gameplay settings

Changing a world safely

Changing GameWorld on an existing save does not magically convert the current map. Back up the save first and expect a new world or a reset procedure when moving between Navezgane and RWG. Keep the same world name and seed when continuity matters, and record any seed or generation options outside the XML so you can reproduce the map.

Casual profile

• Use GameDifficulty near the lower end of the 0–5 range.
• Keep LootAbundance at 100 or raise it toward the 100–150 range suggested by the guide.
• Leave BloodMoonEnemyCount at the stock value until players know how the server performs.
• Choose Navezgane for a fixed map or set GameWorld to RWG deliberately for procedural exploration.

Hardcore profile

• Move GameDifficulty toward 5 after confirming the in-game name of that tier.
• Reduce LootAbundance toward 75 if the group wants scarcer supplies.
• Raise the Blood Moon count in small increments, testing a full horde night before another increase.
• Keep a recoverable backup because a severe difficulty change can make an established save unpleasant or impractical for new players.

Performance: the settings that matter most

MaxSpawnedZombies

MaxSpawnedZombies is the server-wide cap on simultaneously spawned zombies and is described by hosting guides as the largest single performance lever. A commonly reported default is 64. Values above roughly 80 are said to risk frame-rate drops and lag, but the safe ceiling depends on simulation load, player count, world activity and hardware.

Lower the cap first when players report rubber-banding, delayed AI or a host CPU pinned near full utilization. Change one variable at a time, restart, then test with the normal number of players and a Blood Moon. Raising the cap does not automatically improve gameplay: it trades headroom for more simultaneous AI work.

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SaveGameFolder

SaveGameFolder can point saves to a secondary, faster drive. Moving saves may reduce storage latency, but the destination must be writable by the server account and included in your backup plan. A fast drive cannot compensate for an incorrect path; confirm that a new save appears in the intended directory after restarting.

Other practical limits

Player count, Blood Moon enemy count and world activity multiply the work created by each zombie. If a low-spec host struggles, reduce the zombie cap before lowering unrelated gameplay settings, then reduce the Blood Moon count or player cap if needed. Monitor the server log and operating-system CPU, memory and disk usage rather than relying on a single player’s frame rate.

Telnet, dashboard and administrative exposure

Telnet console

TelnetPassword and TelnetPort govern the Telnet administration console. One unnamed guide in search results claimed Telnet is enabled with no password by default, but that default is unverified. Treat an exposed, unauthenticated console as a security emergency: set a strong password, restrict the port to trusted addresses or disable Telnet according to the comments in your file and your host’s controls.

After changing a Telnet setting, test locally first. If the console is unreachable, verify the port, firewall rule and bind address; do not open a second public port simply to work around an unknown configuration.

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Web dashboard

Hosting guides report that the web dashboard is off by default and uses port 8080 when enabled, but this has not been confirmed against a current primary reference. If your build provides dashboard properties, require authentication, bind it to a private interface or firewall it to an administrator allow-list, and avoid exposing it directly to the internet. Check the startup log for the actual listening port.

Mods, anti-cheat and crossplay

Mod requirements are not universal

Guides disagree about EACEnabled: one says overhaul mods require false, while another says DLL-based mods require it to be false. Those statements are not authoritative for every mod. Follow the exact installation notes for the mod and its current game version, and test on a copy of the save. Disabling anti-cheat changes who can join and can remove compatibility with unmodded clients.

Reported crossplay combination

One guide reports the following combination for Xbox/PS5 crossplay:

• EACEnabled set to true.
• ServerVisibility set to 2.
• No mods installed.
• ServerDisabledNetworkProtocols not containing LiteNetLib.
• XPMultiplier selected from 25 through 300 in steps of 25.

These requirements are version-sensitive and conflict with some mod advice. Treat them as a checklist to test, not a guarantee. Start with an unmodded copy, confirm that every platform can see and join it, then add no modifications unless the mod author explicitly supports that crossplay setup.

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Version changes and how to verify a setting

The Valve wiki page commonly referenced for this file describes v1.3 b9, not a current release. A hosting page mentions a “V3.0” and a SandboxCode element; another says the SaveData tag was removed in Alpha 21. Neither claim has been verified against an official, current reference. Do not paste an old complete configuration over a new installation.

Use this verification routine after every game update:

1. Generate or locate a fresh stock serverconfig.xml for the new build.
2. Compare property names and comments with your backed-up custom file.
3. Copy only settings that still exist, preserving the new file’s structure and comments.
4. Check the startup log for deprecated, unknown or ignored properties.
5. Join with a test account and verify access, world, loot, Blood Moon and administration behavior.

If a setting is absent, renamed or accompanied by a new comment, use the new file’s spelling and allowed values rather than importing the old line.

Common failures and fixes

The server will not start

• Restore the last backup to rule out malformed XML.
• Check for a missing quote, angle bracket or closing slash on the edited line.
• Confirm that numeric fields contain numbers and Boolean fields contain the exact form shown in the stock file.
• Look for duplicate properties created by pasting a second line.

The change appears to do nothing

• Make sure the server was stopped before saving and restarted afterward.
• Confirm that the launch command is not reading a different file through -configfile.
• Check whether a hosting panel regenerates the XML from its own settings; change the value in that panel or disable regeneration.
• Verify the result in a new session. Some world-generation changes affect a new world rather than an existing save.

Players cannot connect

• Confirm the displayed ServerName, password and visibility value match your intended audience.
• Open the reported game port (commonly UDP 26900) in the host firewall and router, including any adjacent ports the installation uses.
• Check that the server process is listening on the expected interface and that the host is not behind an unreachable carrier-grade NAT.
• For crossplay, remove mods, use the platform-compatible anti-cheat and protocol settings, and test again from an unmodded copy.

The server lags during a horde night

• Reduce MaxSpawnedZombies from the current value, with 64 as a commonly reported baseline.
• Lower BloodMoonEnemyCount if the spike occurs only during the seventh-night event.
• Temporarily reduce the player cap to determine whether simultaneous players are the trigger.
• Move SaveGameFolder to a faster writable drive if disk activity, rather than CPU, is the bottleneck.

Recommended change order

For a new server, change settings in this order so each test has a clear cause:

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1. Set name, password, visibility, port and player limit.
2. Select Navezgane or RWG before generating the world.
3. Choose difficulty and loot for the group.
4. Set a conservative zombie cap and test normal exploration.
5. Configure Telnet or the dashboard with authentication and network restrictions.
6. Apply mod or crossplay requirements only after the vanilla server works.
7. Run a backup and a complete join test after every restart.

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