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How to Configure the Missile Silo Timer on a Rust Server

Rust’s “missile silo timer” is the server wipe timer. This guide shows how to set its frequency, weekday, hour, timezone basis or one-off Unix timestamp, then apply and verify the configuration.
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On a Rust server, the setting commonly called the “missile silo timer” is the server wipe timer. Configure it with the wipetimer convars, choose a supported wipe tag (weekly, biweekly or monthly), apply the settings with server.readcfg, and confirm the result with PrintWipe. A Unix-timestamp override is available when you need one specific wipe instead of a repeating schedule.

What the “missile silo timer” actually controls

The missile silo is a monument associated with the wipe cycle, not a separate countdown system with its own independent calendar. Hosting panels and community guides often call the setting the “missile silo timer,” while the official Facepunch Rust Wiki calls it the Server Wipe Timer. The timer calculates the next wipe from the server’s wipe tag and the wipetimer settings.

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That distinction matters when you troubleshoot. Changing an unrelated monument, event or plugin setting will not change the server wipe schedule. Conversely, a correctly configured wipe timer may still produce no visible silo countdown if the map you generated does not contain the monument.

How Rust calculates the next wipe

The timer combines a recurring frequency with a day, hour and time-zone basis. A one-off Unix timestamp can override that recurring calculation.

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Input What it controls Accepted detail established by the available documentation
server.tags Recurring wipe frequency weekly, biweekly or monthly
wipetimer.wipeDayofWeek Weekday used by the recurring schedule Numbered from 0 through 6; the published mapping identifies Sunday as 0
wipetimer.wipeHourofDay Time of day 24-hour notation; decimal fractions are allowed, so 14.5 means 2:30 p.m.
wipetimer.wipeTimezone Time-zone basis for the day and hour Confirm the interpretation with your host because published guidance conflicts between local machine time and UTC
wipetimer.wipeUnixTimestampOverride One specific wipe instant Set to the Unix timestamp produced for the intended date and time
wipetimer.wipecronoverride Alternative override mechanism The convar is documented as an override, but its exact value syntax should be checked against the current Facepunch documentation

The default configuration is intended to align with force wipes, so an unmodified server often needs no timer change. If you are changing the calendar deliberately, set every component that matters rather than relying on a value inherited from an older configuration.

Check these details before editing

  • Confirm the panel console. You need a server console or configuration editor that accepts Rust server convars.
  • Identify the active configuration file. Some panels expose server.cfg; others use serverauto.cfg. The filename is host-specific.
  • Choose the frequency first. The wipe timer supports monthly, biweekly and weekly schedules. A custom word in the tag does not create a new interval.
  • Resolve the time zone. One published guide describes the timer as using the local machine clock, while another says the day and hour are interpreted as UTC. Ask your host which rule its current server image uses before converting a planned time.
  • Record the current values. Save a copy of the existing config so you can restore the previous schedule if the new one is wrong.
  • Check the map. The timer’s monument display depends on the generated map containing the missile silo. A missing monument is not, by itself, proof that the convars failed.

Configure a recurring wipe schedule

1. Set the wipe frequency tag

The timer reads the server wipe tag to determine whether the schedule is weekly, biweekly or monthly. For a weekly wipe, the commonly documented console sequence is:

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server.tags "weekly"
server.writecfg

Replace weekly with biweekly or monthly when that is the schedule you intend to run. server.writecfg writes the changed server setting to the configuration. If your panel has a separate save button, use it as well.

2. Set the weekday

Use wipetimer.wipeDayofWeek with the numeric day. The mapping reported in published setup guidance is:

Value Day
0 Sunday
1 Monday
2 Tuesday
3 Wednesday
4 Thursday
5 Friday
6 Saturday

The same guidance describes Thursday as the default. Because that mapping and default come from a search-summary attribution rather than a directly verified current page, check the live Facepunch documentation or your host’s current command reference if the weekday is critical.

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For example, a Thursday setting would be entered as:

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wipetimer.wipeDayofWeek 4

3. Set the hour and minute

wipetimer.wipeHourofDay uses a 24-hour clock and accepts decimal values. The documented example 14.5 represents 14:30, or 2:30 p.m. The decimal portion is a fraction of an hour, so half an hour is .5 and a quarter of an hour is .25.

wipetimer.wipeHourofDay 14.5

Do not enter a 12-hour clock suffix such as “PM.” Use the numeric value that corresponds to the clock basis your host confirms.

4. Set the time zone explicitly when supported

The convar is wipetimer.wipeTimezone. The evidence available for this setting does not establish one universal interpretation across hosting providers: one guide says the timer follows the server machine’s local time, while another says the day and hour use UTC. That conflict can shift a wipe to a different calendar day, not merely a different hour.

Use the time-zone value accepted by your host’s Rust image, for example:

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wipetimer.wipeTimezone <host-supported-time-zone>

The angle-bracket text is a placeholder for the value your host documents; it is not a literal value to paste. If your host does not expose this convar, document the host’s stated clock basis and convert the hour yourself.

5. Save and load the configuration

Place the convars in the configuration file your panel actually loads. Depending on the provider, that is commonly server.cfg or serverauto.cfg. After saving, apply the file with:

server.readcfg

One hosting setup specifically uses serverauto.cfg followed by server.readcfg, while other panels expose server.cfg. Do not assume that editing one file changes the other; verify the active filename in the panel’s file manager or documentation.

Use a one-off Unix timestamp instead

A recurring weekday and hour is appropriate for a normal weekly, biweekly or monthly wipe. For a special event, maintenance window or unusual launch date, use wipetimer.wipeUnixTimestampOverride. This overrides the recurring calculation for the specified wipe instant.

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  1. Decide the exact date, clock time and time zone for the wipe.
  2. Confirm with your host whether that time is interpreted as local machine time or UTC.
  3. Use a Unix-timestamp converter to turn the date and time into the numeric value accepted by the server.
  4. Enter the override in the active configuration, replacing the placeholder below with that value:
wipetimer.wipeUnixTimestampOverride <unix-timestamp>
  1. Save the file and run server.readcfg.
  2. Run PrintWipe to confirm that the server reports the intended wipe setup.

Use the timestamp override when you need one exact instant; do not combine it with a recurring schedule expecting both to fire independently. To return to the recurring schedule, remove the override entry or use the disabled value documented by your host, save the file and reload it. The exact disable syntax is host- and version-dependent.

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Verify the timer with PrintWipe

The verification command is:

PrintWipe

It prints the current wipe-timer setup. Check the reported frequency, weekday, hour and any override against the values in your configuration. Run it after server.readcfg, not immediately after editing a file that has not been loaded.

If the output says WipeTimer not found!, the documented explanation is that the monument is missing from the current map. Generate or load a map that contains the missile silo before using the monument display as a visual confirmation. A missing monument does not automatically invalidate the server-wide wipe schedule.

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Troubleshoot the common failure modes

The wipe occurs on the wrong hour

  • Check whether the host interprets wipetimer.wipeHourofDay as UTC or local machine time.
  • Recalculate the intended time after confirming that basis; do not simply add or subtract an offset without checking daylight-saving behavior on the host’s machine.
  • Run PrintWipe after reloading and compare its displayed value with the planned clock time.

The wipe occurs on the wrong day

  • Verify the numeric mapping, especially the Sunday-is-0 convention.
  • Check the time-zone basis. A late-night UTC wipe can fall on a different local calendar day.
  • Confirm that the frequency tag is the one you intended; weekly, biweekly and monthly schedules do not use the same interval.

The new frequency is ignored

  • Use one of the supported tags: weekly, biweekly or monthly.
  • Run server.writecfg after changing the tag.
  • Make sure you edited the active file, then run server.readcfg.
  • Use PrintWipe to see whether the loaded configuration still contains the previous tag.

The timestamp override has no effect

  • Check that the value is a Unix timestamp rather than a human-readable date.
  • Confirm that the override line is in the file the server reads.
  • Reload with server.readcfg and inspect the result with PrintWipe.
  • Remove stale recurring or override entries that your panel may be writing back over the manual change.

PrintWipe reports “WipeTimer not found!”

Check the map first. The reported condition is tied to the missile-silo monument being absent, so it can occur even when the timer convars are present. If the map should contain the monument, verify the generated map and then consult the current server documentation; the command names in older search summaries should not be treated as immutable across Rust updates.

Worked configuration examples

Weekly wipe at Thursday 14:30

This example uses the published Sunday-is-0 mapping and assumes your host confirms the intended time-zone basis. Thursday is represented by 4 and 14.5 represents 14:30.

server.tags "weekly"
wipetimer.wipeDayofWeek 4
wipetimer.wipeHourofDay 14.5
server.writecfg
server.readcfg
PrintWipe

Set wipetimer.wipeTimezone as a separate line only when your host documents the accepted value and behavior.

Biweekly wipe at a host-confirmed weekday and hour

Use the same procedure with the biweekly tag. The weekday number and decimal hour must match your chosen schedule:

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server.tags "biweekly"
wipetimer.wipeDayofWeek <day-number>
wipetimer.wipeHourofDay <24-hour-decimal>
server.writecfg
server.readcfg
PrintWipe

Replace both placeholders with actual values before loading the file.

One-off event wipe

Keep the normal recurring settings in place, add the timestamp override for the special wipe, reload and verify:

wipetimer.wipeUnixTimestampOverride <unix-timestamp>
server.readcfg
PrintWipe

After the event, remove or disable the override using the syntax documented for your server image so the recurring schedule can take over again.

Practical deployment checklist

  • Decide whether the wipe is weekly, biweekly, monthly or a one-off.
  • Use only the corresponding supported tag.
  • Confirm the day-number convention with current documentation if the date is important.
  • Convert the hour to 24-hour decimal notation.
  • Resolve UTC versus local machine time with the host.
  • Edit the active file: server.cfg or serverauto.cfg.
  • Run server.writecfg after changing the server tag.
  • Run server.readcfg to load saved convars.
  • Run PrintWipe and record the output.
  • If the output says WipeTimer not found!, check whether the map contains the missile silo.
  • After using a one-off override, remove or disable it before the next normal recurring cycle.

Final guidance

Configure the Rust missile silo timer as a server wipe schedule: select a supported wipe tag, set the day and decimal hour with the wipetimer convars, establish the correct time-zone basis with your host, save the active configuration and reload it. Use wipetimer.wipeUnixTimestampOverride only when a single exact wipe is needed, and always finish with PrintWipe. The monument’s presence on the map affects what the command can display, so a missing silo is a map issue rather than automatic evidence of a bad schedule.

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