October DealsAmazon USOctober deal check: compare before you payAmazon US: current deals, useful picks and tech finds.Check DealsPC HealthRecommendedCrashes, freezes, slowdowns? Check your PC nowSpot repairable issues before they interrupt work.Check PCOctober DealsAmazon USDeal season is back - check today's better picksAmazon US: current deals, useful picks and tech finds.See Picks×
Skip to content
World desk10 min

How to Ban or Unban a Player on a Core Keeper Server

Ban or unban Core Keeper players from the in-game Manage Players menu, or administer a stopped dedicated server through PlayerBans.json using the player’s SteamID and valid JSON.
Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

For a live Core Keeper session, an administrator can ban a player from Esc → Manage Players: select the player, click the red action icon beside the name, and confirm Yes. To reverse it, open the same menu, select the name in Banned Players, click the red icon, and confirm. On a dedicated server that is offline, use the server’s PlayerBans.json file instead; stop the server first and edit the SteamID record without breaking the JSON.

The exact capitalization of menu labels and the location or fields in configuration files can vary by game version and hosting provider. The procedures below separate the dependable in-game workflow from file-based administration and identify where you should verify your installation.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

Choose the method that fits your server

Core Keeper provides two practical moderation paths. The in-game menu is the safest choice when the server is running and you can log in with administrator privileges. A PlayerBans.json edit is useful when the server is stopped, the player is offline, or your host gives you file access but not a usable in-game session.

Method When to use it What you need Main risk
In-game menu Immediate action during a live session Administrator access and the player list Menu wording can differ slightly between versions
PlayerBans.json Offline administration or a stopped dedicated server Host file access, the correct server folder and the player’s SteamID A wrong path, wrong ID or invalid JSON can leave the ban unchanged or prevent the file from loading

Slash commands are not a dependable third option. Community instructions disagree about /ban, /unban and /kick, including which identifier a command would accept. Other guides report that Core Keeper has no command console, RCON interface or ban commands and expects moderation from the pause menu. Use the menu or the ban file unless your exact version and hosting documentation explicitly confirms a command.

#1 Best Overall
Sale
TOZO A1 Wireless Earbuds Bluetooth 5.3 Light Weight in Ear Headphones | IPX5 Waterproof,2 Mics for AI Calls,Immersive Premium Sound Bass Headset with Charging Case,32 EQ via App Black
  • [Ultra-Lightweight Ear Buds Designed for Small Ears] Each earbud weighs only 3.7g and features a compact, ergonomic in-ear design made especially for small ears. Secure, low-profile, and comfortable for workouts, all-day wear or overnight sleeping.The ultra-slim profile sits flush in your ear with no hard edges poking or rubbing, so you can even sleep on your side without discomfort.
  • [Immersive Stereo Sound with TOZO OrigX Technology] TOZO OrigX tuning delivers clear vocals, balanced mids, and natural stereo sound for music, podcasts, and videos.
  • [Long Battery Life for Daily Use] Get up to 7 hours of playtime on a single charge, with up to 32 hours total using the charging case—ideal for workdays, commuting, and extended listening sessions.
  • [Bluetooth 5.3 & Stable Connection] Bluetooth 5.3 provides fast pairing, stable wireless performance, and reduced dropouts as you move around home or office.
  • [Deep Bass with Clear Vocals] High-performance drivers produce punchy bass while keeping vocals clean and detailed for everyday listening.

Check administrator access before trying to moderate

The Manage Players controls are available to an administrator, not automatically to every person who joins. On a dedicated server, administrator status is associated with your SteamID in Admins.json. Hosting guides also report that the first player to log in may receive administrator access automatically, but treat that as an implementation behavior rather than a guarantee for every version or host.

Confirm your SteamID is an administrator

  1. Stop the server if you need to inspect its files. Do not edit configuration files while the process is actively writing them.
  2. Locate Admins.json in the server’s DedicatedServer area. The directory name and panel layout vary by host; some providers expose a path such as /core-keeper/DedicatedServer/, while another installation may place the file below a save folder.
  3. Open a copy of the file and look for the adminList section. Reported entries contain fields such as an index, privileges, name and SteamID.
  4. Compare the SteamID in the entry with the account you use to join the server. A character name alone is not a reliable permission check.
  5. Save a backup before changing the list. If you add an administrator, use the format already present in your file and preserve valid JSON punctuation.

If you cannot find Admins.json, ask your host where its Core Keeper DedicatedServer files are stored rather than creating a second file in a guessed directory. A correctly formatted file in the wrong folder has no effect.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

Ban a player while the server is running

This is the recommended route for a live incident because the game applies the action through its own interface and you do not have to hand-edit a configuration file.

  1. Join the world with the Steam account that has administrator rights.
  2. Press Esc to open the pause menu.
  3. Choose Manage Players. Some versions capitalize the second word differently, so use the equivalent player-management entry shown by your client.
  4. Find the offending account in the player list. Check the name carefully if several players have similar character names.
  5. Click the red action icon beside that player’s name.
  6. Read the confirmation dialog and select Yes to apply the ban.

The player should be removed according to the behavior of your server version. Record the player’s SteamID as part of your moderation notes if you may need to identify the same account later; names can change or be duplicated.

Rank #2
Sale
Smart Watch for Men Women Compatible with iPhone Samsung Android Phone 1.69 inch Full Touch Screen IP68 Waterproof Bluetooh Fitness Tracker Heart Rate/Sleep Monitor (Black)
  • 【IP68 Waterproof Multifunctinal Smart Watch】Torjalph fitness activity tracker smart watch is IP68 waterproof technology ,you can wear it when swimming,handwashing,it's rain-proof which means that you perform multiple exercise modes outside without worrying about sweat or rain corroding your fitness smart watch,and this watch equipped with a 230 mAh large capacity battery magnetic charging ,and this sports activity tracker watch can be used 5-7 days If fully charged.
  • 【Larger 1.83'' Full Screen Watch & Multi-dial Selection】1.83 inch full HD color touch screen smart watch for men / women provides excellent 240*284 resolution image quality ,This Bluetooth smart watch offers a better touch experience and remarkable immersion and ,more than 200 watch faces for you to choose from App"Da Fit ", you can change the dial style according to your mood to wear keeping the world on your wrist
  • 【Accurate Activity Tracker Smart Watch 】sports watch activity tracker uses sweat and dust resistant breathable silicone strap, our Fitness Tracker Smart Watch for Android iOS Phones supports 12 sports modes,walking,running,bicycle,swimming,badminton,basketball,football,rope skipping. This bluetooth calls smart watch for men women is lightweight and stylish, bringing more convenient and relaxing sports experience while also providing more protection.
  • 【Your 24 Hour Personal Daily Health Monitor】Fitness watch for women men full touch screen IP67 waterproof bluetooth smartwatch for Android iOS Phones with heart rate blood pressure monitor multifunction Andriod smart watch with steps counter sleep monitor sports fitness watch, monitoring blood oxygen saturation allows you to understand your physical condition in real time to track fitness progress ,to know your health status in time.
  • 【More Functions Bluetooth Call Smart Watch】This fitness activity smart watch full screen for iPhone and Android phones includes a bunch of new features including:The bluetooth smart watch can hang up the phone, receive and display WhatsAPP /Text /Facebook /Twitter /Messenger reminder.Support sedentary reminder, alarm clock, stopwatch, timer,weather information,music control, remote camera control compatible with Android 5.0 and above or iOS 9.0 and above smartphones.

If the player does not appear in the list

  • Verify that you joined with the account listed in Admins.json, not a different Steam account on the same machine.
  • Make sure you opened Manage Players from the server session, rather than a local or single-player game.
  • Ask the player to reconnect if the list is stale, then reopen the menu.
  • If the red control is missing, treat it as an administrator or version problem. Do not rely on an unverified chat command as a workaround.

Unban a player from the live game

You can reverse a ban from the same management screen without editing files.

  1. Press Esc while connected as an administrator.
  2. Open Manage Players.
  3. Switch to the Banned Players list.
  4. Locate the account you want to restore.
  5. Click the red action icon beside the name.
  6. Confirm with Yes.

Guides use both “Manage Players” and “Manage players,” and small label differences may occur in other builds. Look for the list specifically labeled for banned players rather than assuming the regular online-player list contains inactive accounts.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

Use PlayerBans.json on a dedicated server

File administration is appropriate when you have host-panel or filesystem access and can take the server offline. The file is keyed by SteamID rather than only by a character name, so obtain the correct SteamID before touching the ban list.

1. Stop the server completely

Use the host’s Stop or Shut down control and wait until the process is reported offline. Editing while the server is running can be overwritten when it saves, and a partially written file can become unusable. If the host offers a console, wait for its stopped status instead of relying on a browser page that merely appears idle.

Rank #3
New Bee Guitar Cable 10ft Electric Instrument Bass AMP Cord
  • [Low Noise High Fidelity] New bee guitar cord with 22AWG oxygen-free-copper center conductors provides enhanced signal transfer, the PVC insulation material and the high-density stranded copper double shield provide noise rejection for quiet operation
  • [Ideal for Choice] New bee 1/4 straight and right angle metal connectors, ensures a secure connection in any instrument, pedal, or amp jack. L shape great fro on stage guitar stands
  • [Wide Compatible] Suitable for mixer, power amplifier, microphone, effector, decoder, equalizer, electoronic organ, electric guitar, electric bass and other electronic equipments. Widely used in the installation of smart home, karaoke speaker, professional stage audio, etc
  • [Easy Disassemble] Making incidental repairs quick and easy! Very nice, flexible cable
  • [Dont Hesite to Order] 24 hours customer services and professional technology team are standing by

2. Find the correct file

Look for PlayerBans.json inside the Core Keeper DedicatedServer folder. There is no single path that applies to every provider: one host may expose /core-keeper/DedicatedServer/, while another may put the server files under a save directory. Use the file manager’s search function or the host’s current Core Keeper instructions.

Do not edit banlist.txt from a Palworld installation. That filename and workflow belong to Palworld and do not control Core Keeper bans.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

3. Make a backup

Download or duplicate the original PlayerBans.json before making any change. Keep the untouched copy outside the server folder and note the date. A backup gives you a recovery path if the edited file fails to load or removes more entries than intended.

4. Identify the matching SteamID

Open the file in a plain-text or code editor. Reported examples use a banList array containing a player name and a steamId; another example also includes crossPlatformId. Because field sets are not confirmed to be identical across hosts, preserve every field your own file contains. Match the SteamID, not just the displayed name.

Rank #4
BSIMB 15.6" Digital Family Calendar & Chore Chart, No Subscription Fees
  • Digital Family Calendar: BSIMB digital calendar wall touch screen puts an end to your chaotic life. Designed for busy families, the digital calendar keeps you organised and in step with your family. Assign different colours and tasks to each family member to make family scheduling easier and more intuitive.
  • Easy Setup and Auto-Sync: Plug in, connect to WLAN and auto-syn your electric calendar in minutes. Digital wall calendar compatible with Google calendar, iCloud calendar, Outlook calendar, Cozi calendar and Yahoo calendar. Add events directly on the device or through the ecalendar app. Electronic calendar stays current whether you're at work or traveling—no manual updates needed.
  • All-In-One Home Assistant: Smart calendar builds habits and encourage independence with personalised chores. Display daily meal plan to reduce the daily ‘What's for dinner?’ stress. To-do lists keep track of everything you want. Turning chores into valuable achievements with stars and rewards, making life easier and more enjoyable.
  • Manage Anytime Anywhere: BSIMB electronic calendar for family stay connected with the powerful ecalendar app. Access and manage your digital wall calendar anytime, anywhere with free features like stars & rewards, photo screensaver, chore charts, meals plans, to-do lists etc. Electronic planner paid features like Magic Import tailor advanced tools for users with special needs.
  • Stay in Touch with Loved Ones: Share photos or videos from your phone to electronic wall calendar with app, instantly update your life moment, and keep in touch with your family, especially those who are far away; you can also surprise your smart calendar digital wall by sending him a wish card; it's also great for keeping tech-illiterate elders in touch with the youngsters.

5. Remove or add only the intended record

To unban someone, remove that player’s object from the banList array while leaving every other object intact. To impose a file-based ban, add a record only when your host’s existing format or current documentation shows the exact structure expected by your server. Do not invent field names, change capitalization or paste an example from a different host without adapting it to the schema already in your file.

Keep commas correct: entries between two objects need commas, while the final object before the closing bracket does not. Do not add comments, trailing commas or smart quotation marks. JSON requires double quotes around property names and string values.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

6. Validate and restart

  1. Run the edited text through a JSON validator available in your editor or host panel. A validator should report valid JSON before you upload it.
  2. Upload or save the file in the same directory from which you downloaded it.
  3. Start the dedicated server and wait for it to finish loading.
  4. Connect with an administrator account and inspect Manage Players or the Banned Players list.
  5. Test with the affected account only after confirming that the server loaded the intended file.

An invalid file may cause the change to be ignored or prevent the server from reading the list after restart. If that happens, stop the server, restore the backup, and make a smaller, validated edit.

Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Support on Ko-Fi

How the ban list identifies people

A SteamID is the important key in the dedicated-server ban file. The character name shown in the menu is useful for recognition, but it is not sufficient for reliable file administration. A name can be mistyped, changed or shared by more than one person. When you document a moderation action, keep the SteamID, the date, the reason and whether the action was made in-game or by file.

Some host examples show both steamId and crossPlatformId. Do not delete an unfamiliar field merely because you do not use cross-platform accounts; retain the fields already generated by your server and let the current host documentation define which identifiers are required.

When the ban or unban appears not to work

The player can still join after an in-game ban

  • Confirm that the red-icon dialog was accepted with Yes, not canceled.
  • Check that you selected the intended account rather than a similarly named character.
  • Have the player disconnect and reconnect; a session that was already established may not reflect a permission change until the connection is renewed.
  • If the ban list remains empty after a restart, use the file method only after confirming administrator access and the correct server directory.

An edited file has no effect

  • Stop the server before editing and restart it after saving. A live process can overwrite your change.
  • Check that the filename is exactly PlayerBans.json, including capitalization and the .json extension.
  • Verify that you edited the active DedicatedServer folder rather than a backup, download or unused save.
  • Match the SteamID exactly. A character name or a partial identifier will not select the intended record.
  • Validate the JSON and compare its field names with the untouched backup.

The server fails to read the list after an edit

  1. Stop the server.
  2. Restore the known-good backup.
  3. Start the server and confirm that it loads normally.
  4. Copy the original file to a separate working location and redo one change at a time with a JSON validator.

If restoring the backup does not resolve the problem, contact the host with the server log and the original file. Avoid repeatedly changing multiple configuration files at once; that makes it harder to identify the bad path or syntax.

What’s actually slowing this PC down?

Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

You cannot see Manage Players

Check Admins.json and your SteamID first. If the file does not list you, use the host’s documented method for adding an administrator while the server is stopped. A missing menu is more likely to indicate permissions, a different game mode or a version-specific interface than a need for a slash command.

Commands, RCON and conflicting guides

Search results sometimes describe /kick, /ban and /unban, and one commonly repeated variant says that /ban accepts a Galaxy ID. Other independent instructions state that Core Keeper has no command console, no RCON and no kick or ban command. There is no consistently verified command syntax to recommend across current servers.

That conflict matters because sending an unsupported command can do nothing while an administrator assumes the account was removed. Treat the pause-menu controls and the server’s own PlayerBans.json as the dependable procedures. Only use a command when your installed version and host documentation explicitly display and support it.

Plan moderation safely

  • Back up before file changes. Keep the original ban and admin files outside the live directory.
  • Use the least disruptive method. Apply an urgent live ban from Manage Players; schedule file edits for a maintenance window.
  • Record SteamIDs. Names alone are poor audit data.
  • Limit administrator access. Every SteamID in Admins.json can potentially manage players, so remove entries that are no longer needed.
  • Communicate downtime. Tell players when a dedicated server will stop and restart for a configuration edit.
  • Verify after restarting. Recheck the Banned Players list and, when appropriate, have the affected account test access.

What is known about current versions

There is no confirmed 2026 change to the menu workflow, administrator files or ban-file format in the material available for this guide. An excerpt mentioning version 1.3.0.3 discusses console commands, but it is unattributed and does not establish a ban-system change. Before relying on an old file example, compare the labels in your client with the current official patch notes and your hosting provider’s Core Keeper documentation.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

Exact file paths and the complete set of JSON fields are implementation details that vary by host. The stable principles are to use an administrator account, identify players by SteamID, stop the server before editing, preserve the existing schema and validate JSON before restarting.

Quick verification checklist

  • You are connected with the Steam account that has administrator rights.
  • For a live action, you used Esc → Manage Players and confirmed the red-icon dialog.
  • For an unban, you looked under Banned Players rather than the ordinary player list.
  • For a file edit, the server was stopped and the active PlayerBans.json was backed up.
  • You matched the SteamID and preserved the fields already present in the file.
  • The edited JSON passed validation before restart.
  • You checked the result after the server loaded.

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Free tools Windows power users keep installed

One-click scans. No signup required.

Special offer. See more information about Outbyte and uninstall instructions. Please review EULA and Privacy policy.

More from the Wire

  1. World desk4 min
    How to Spot an AI Voice Scam Before Sending MoneyDon’t rely on how a caller sounds. Pause, call back through a known number, and verify the emergency with another trusted person before sending money.
  2. Mountain View desk4 min
    Google’s SynthID Detector: How to Check AI-Generated Images, Video and AudioGoogle’s SynthID Detector looks for an embedded watermark in supported images, video and audio. Here is what its results do—and do not—show.
  3. Redmond desk20 min
    How to create a link to File or Folder in Windows 11Windows 11 gives you several ways to point to a file or folder without moving or duplicating it. You can create a desktop shortcut,…
Recommended PC Tool
Recommended PC Tool
Windows Errors? Fix Them Before They SpreadFree repair scan
Crashes, No Sound, or Screen Glitches?Free driver scan

Two free Windows tools

One Free Minute Could Fix That PC

Before you go - each of these free tools takes about a minute and tackles what quietly slows a Windows PC down.

Special offer. View Outbyte info, uninstall instructions, EULA, and Privacy Policy.