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How to Install Harmony Mods on a Rust Server

A precise guide to installing, loading, updating, and removing native Harmony DLL mods on a Rust server, with the correct folder path, console commands, framework distinctions, and crash troubleshooting.

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For a native Rust Harmony mod, stop the server, place the mod’s .dll in a HarmonyMods folder beside RustDedicated.exe, start the server, and run harmony.load <Mod Name> in the server console. The DLL must match the Rust branch and the mod’s documented name. Native Harmony mods do not require uMod/Oxide or Carbon, although those are separate frameworks you may need for framework-specific plugins.

What a Harmony mod is—and which installation method you need

A Harmony mod is a server-side assembly that changes or extends Rust by applying runtime patches. A native Harmony mod is distributed as a DLL and is loaded by Rust’s Harmony command system. Its expected location is the server’s HarmonyMods directory, not the client’s Rust installation and not an oxide/plugins directory.

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Facepunch describes its Rust.HarmonyMods project as “Serverside harmony mods for Rust, aimed at staging servers currently.” That wording matters: treat native Harmony support as version-sensitive and do not assume that a DLL working on a staging server will remain compatible with every production Rust update.

uMod/Oxide and Carbon are different choices. uMod/Oxide loads plugins through its own plugin system. Carbon is a separate Rust framework built around Harmony and can run Oxide-compatible plugins. Installing either framework does not automatically make an arbitrary native Harmony DLL compatible; follow the release’s own requirements.

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Before you change the server

Confirm the mod’s requirements

  • Download the DLL from the mod author’s release page and read the supported Rust branch or version.
  • Determine the exact mod name expected by the release. The filename and the name used by harmony.load are not guaranteed to be identical.
  • Check whether the release is a native Harmony DLL, a uMod/Oxide plugin, or a Carbon plugin. Use the installation method for that type only.
  • Read any configuration, dependency, permission, or restart instructions supplied with the release.

Back up first

Make a copy of the server files and the server identity before installing or updating a mod. Keep the backup outside the live server directory so an accidental overwrite cannot remove both the working installation and the recovery copy.

Ensure you can reach the right locations

You need write access to the Rust server root, access to the server console, and permission to stop and start the service. Managed hosts may use different panel labels or file-manager layouts, but the underlying requirements are the same: locate the directory containing RustDedicated.exe and the console used to run Harmony commands.

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Install a native Harmony DLL step by step

  1. Stop the server. Use the hosting panel’s Stop control or stop the Rust service through your service manager. Wait until the process has exited before changing files.
  2. Open the server root. In the file manager or over your administration connection, find the directory containing RustDedicated.exe. Do not use the Rust client directory on your own computer.
  3. Create or open HarmonyMods. The folder must be named exactly HarmonyMods and must sit beside RustDedicated.exe. If it does not exist, create it in that server-root directory.
  4. Upload the DLL. Copy the mod’s .dll into HarmonyMods. Leave the filename unchanged unless the mod’s documentation explicitly tells you to rename it. Do not copy an archive, readme, or client-side file in place of the server assembly.
  5. Check the file placement. Before starting, verify that the final path is equivalent to <server root>/HarmonyMods/<mod file>.dll. A second nested folder, an oxide/plugins path, or a client installation will prevent native Harmony from finding it.
  6. Start the server. Start it from the host panel or service manager and wait until the console is usable. Starting too early, while files are still being copied, can produce an incomplete or misleading load attempt.
  7. Load the mod by its documented name. In the server console, run harmony.load <Mod Name>, replacing the placeholder with the exact name expected by that release. Keep capitalization, punctuation, and spacing as documented.
  8. Read the console output. Look for a successful Harmony load message and for errors naming a missing dependency, assembly, method, or incompatible Rust build. A completed upload is not proof that the mod is active.
  9. Apply the mod’s configuration. If the release includes a configuration file or additional console commands, follow those instructions only after the assembly loads. Some changes take effect immediately; others require a restart.

The documented workflow is a file deployment followed by a console load. If the server log does not confirm loading, treat the installation as unsuccessful until you have corrected the path, name, dependency, or version issue.

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How to load, unload, and remove a Harmony mod

Loading after a restart

When the DLL is already in HarmonyMods, start the server, wait for a usable console, and run harmony.load <Mod Name>. Harmony mods that have been loaded can persist across restarts according to the host documentation, so check the console after each restart rather than assuming that a newly uploaded file was loaded automatically.

Unloading without deleting a live DLL

The unload command is harmony.unload <Mod Name>. Use the exact release-specific mod name. Whether unloading is safe at runtime depends on what the mod patches, so follow the author’s removal procedure and watch the console for errors.

Permanent removal or replacement

Never replace or delete a Harmony DLL while the Rust process is running. A safe removal sequence is:

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  1. Follow the mod author’s instructions for unloading, using harmony.unload <Mod Name> when the release supports it.
  2. Stop the server completely.
  3. Delete or move the DLL while the server is offline, or disable it using the author’s documented method.
  4. Start the server and inspect the console. If the host’s procedure calls for an unload command after restart, run it then; otherwise, confirm that the assembly is no longer loaded.

For an update, use the same sequence: unload if supported, stop the server, replace the old DLL while offline, start the server, and load the new release. Carbon.RSM warns that changing a Harmony DLL while the server is running can cause Invalid IL exceptions and eventual crashes.

Native Harmony, uMod/Oxide, or Carbon?

Choose the system required by the plugin rather than installing every framework. The following distinctions prevent the most common misplaced-file and wrong-command errors.

Option What you install How it is managed Compatibility and ecosystem
Native Harmony A server-side Harmony DLL in HarmonyMods beside RustDedicated.exe. Use harmony.load <Mod Name> and harmony.unload <Mod Name> in the Rust console. Must match the current Rust branch and the DLL’s release notes. Facepunch’s reference project is currently aimed at staging servers, so production use requires particular caution.
uMod/Oxide The uMod/Oxide framework, then an Oxide-compatible plugin. Use the framework’s installation and plugin-management system. The official Rust guide documents the installation command umod install rust -P. Provides the Oxide plugin ecosystem, but it is not the native Harmony DLL path. An Oxide plugin belongs in the framework’s expected plugin location, not automatically in HarmonyMods.
Carbon The Carbon Rust framework and a Carbon- or Oxide-compatible plugin. Use Carbon’s commands, including the documented carbon.reload hot-reload command where supported. Carbon is built around Harmony and offers Oxide compatibility, but it remains a separate framework with its own files, commands, configuration, and support expectations.

Use native Harmony when

  • The author supplies a DLL specifically described as a native Rust Harmony mod.
  • The release instructions name the HarmonyMods directory and Harmony console commands.
  • You want to avoid adding a full plugin framework and the mod does not require one.

Use uMod/Oxide or Carbon when

  • The download is an Oxide or Carbon plugin rather than a native Harmony assembly.
  • You need the framework’s established plugin permissions, configuration conventions, or broader plugin ecosystem.
  • The framework’s current release explicitly supports your Rust branch and hosting environment.
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Troubleshoot the common failures

The console says the mod is not found

  • Confirm the DLL is in the server-root HarmonyMods folder beside RustDedicated.exe.
  • Check that you did not upload it to the client installation or an oxide/plugins directory.
  • Ensure the server was stopped while the file was copied and then restarted.
  • Use the exact mod name expected by the release, not a guessed filename or display name.

The load command fails even though the file is present

Read the complete server-console error. A present DLL can still fail because the command name is wrong, a dependency is missing, the assembly targets another Rust build, or the release expects Carbon or uMod/Oxide instead of native Harmony. Correct one condition at a time and restart only when the release requires it.

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The server crashes after a Rust update

Stop the server before replacing or deleting any DLL. Review the mod’s release notes and supported Rust branch, then install a build that explicitly targets the updated server. If no compatible build exists, remove the mod while the server is offline and run without it rather than repeatedly starting a known-incompatible assembly.

Invalid IL exceptions appear

An Invalid IL error after a file change is a warning to stop editing live assemblies. Shut down the server, restore the last known-good DLL from backup, and start again. Changing or deleting a Harmony DLL during execution can leave runtime patches in an unsafe state and may lead to a later crash.

The host’s folders or buttons have different names

Panel terminology varies. Look for a file manager rooted at the Rust server installation and identify the directory containing RustDedicated.exe. Then create or open HarmonyMods there and use the panel’s live console or remote-console equivalent for the Harmony commands. If the host does not provide root file access or console access, ask whether those permissions can be enabled; without them, native Harmony deployment may not be possible.

Compatibility and operating practices

Treat every Rust update as a compatibility check

Rust server updates can change the methods and assemblies that a Harmony patch targets. Before updating a production server, check the mod’s release notes, the supported Rust branch, and any staging guidance. The fact that a DLL loads once does not establish that it will survive the next server update.

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Test changes on a staging server

Because the Facepunch HarmonyMods project is described as staging-oriented, test a new DLL on a separate instance first when possible. Keep the same Rust branch, startup configuration, and mod version you intend to use in production, then review the console and basic gameplay behavior before promotion.

Keep an auditable change record

  • Record the DLL filename, release version, Rust server version, and installation date.
  • Save the previous working DLL before each replacement.
  • Note the exact load and unload commands used.
  • Keep console errors with the change record so a rollback has a known starting point.

This discipline makes it possible to identify whether a failure came from the file, the command name, a Rust update, or a framework mismatch instead of repeatedly changing several variables at once.

Quick verification checklist

  • The server was stopped before the DLL was copied, replaced, or removed.
  • The DLL is in HarmonyMods beside RustDedicated.exe.
  • The file is intended for the server’s Rust branch and is the correct framework type.
  • The server was started fully before the load command was entered.
  • harmony.load <Mod Name> used the exact documented mod name.
  • The console confirms loading and shows no unresolved dependency or compatibility error.
  • Any update or removal will be performed offline to avoid runtime assembly corruption.

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