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World desk10 min

How to Keep Your Day Count After a 7 Days to Die Server Restart

A normal 7 Days to Die restart should preserve the in-game day. This guide shows how to save and shut down safely, verify GameWorld and GameName paths, diagnose day-1 resets, and recover with backups.
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A normal 7 Days to Die server restart does not reset the in-game day. The day, time, weather and blood-moon counter are stored in the world save, primarily in main.ttp. A reset to day 1 almost always means the server started with a different GameWorld, GameName or save-root override, or that the established main.ttp was missing or not the file that loaded.

Save the world from the server console, shut the process down gracefully, and make sure the service starts with the same save location. Keep an untouched backup so a wrong-path launch or update can be reversed before anyone plays in the new world.

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What a restart should—and should not—change

Restarting the dedicated-server process is different from creating a new game. When the server loads the same playable save, it reads the existing world state and continues at the recorded day and time. The restart itself is not a day-counter reset mechanism.

The world-level state is held in main.ttp. That file includes the current day, time, weather state and blood-moon counter. Player inventories, buildings and other save data live in the same playable save directory, but main.ttp is the file to check when the calendar appears to have gone back to day 1.

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The critical condition is identity: the process must load the same world and save name after it comes back. If the launch configuration points somewhere else, the server may create a fresh save. A fresh save naturally begins on day 1, which can look like a restart erased progress even though the original directory is still intact.

Understand the save path before you restart

A single playable world is stored below this pattern:

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<saves-root>/<GameWorld>/<GameName>/

GameWorld identifies the world or terrain, while GameName identifies the particular playable save. Both names are part of the path. Changing either one can send the server to a different directory or cause it to create one.

What can change the saves root

The default root is not always the effective root. A server configuration or launch option can override it with UserDataFolder or SaveGameFolder. Hosting panels and service files may expose these settings under different labels, and a panel can generate a command line that differs from the value you expect. Check the actual configuration used to start the process, not only a template or an old note.

  • UserDataFolder: check whether it redirects the server’s user-data location.
  • SaveGameFolder: check whether it directly overrides where saves are read and written.
  • Effective save directory: resolve the override and then look for the complete GameWorld/GameName path beneath it.

Different game versions, mods and hosting implementations can expose these values differently. Do not assume that a path copied from another installation applies to your server. The path that matters is the one in the active startup configuration.

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Safe restart procedure

Use this sequence for a manual restart or as the model for an automated one. It protects the most recent writes and gives you a chance to catch a wrong save path before players continue.

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  1. Warn players and stop new activity. Announce the restart and ask players to leave buildings, vehicles and containers in a stable state. Do not begin maintenance while players are still making changes.
  2. Connect to an authenticated administration interface. Use the server console or an authenticated local-admin connection that can issue dedicated-server commands. A game client command that lacks server-admin permission will not provide the same guarantee.
  3. Run saveworld. Submit the command and wait until the server indicates that the save has completed. The forced save reduces the chance that the latest world changes are still only in memory.
  4. Run shutdown. This asks the server to close cleanly after the save. Do not replace it with a force-kill, task termination or abrupt machine reboot while files may be being written.
  5. Let the supervisor restart the process. If a service manager or hosting panel is configured for automatic recovery, allow it to start the server again. Starting a second copy manually can create a different working directory or lock conflict.
  6. Read the startup log. Confirm that the new process is using the intended GameWorld and GameName. If the log does not show those values, inspect the active launch command, service file or panel task rather than assuming the restart used the old settings.
  7. Verify before reopening the server. Check that the established save directory still contains its main.ttp and that the server has loaded that directory. Only then let players join.

The order matters. Running shutdown without first issuing saveworld can leave the newest progress unsaved. Killing the process during a write can leave a missing or stale world-state file, so a later launch may show an older day or fail to load the expected state.

How to verify that the same world loaded

Verification should compare configuration, directory and log evidence. A server can start successfully while loading the wrong save, so a clean process status alone is not proof.

Check the configuration values

  • Record the established GameWorld exactly, including capitalization and punctuation.
  • Record the established GameName exactly.
  • Determine whether UserDataFolder or SaveGameFolder is set.
  • Resolve the resulting <saves-root>/<GameWorld>/<GameName>/ directory before starting the service.

Check the directory

Open the resolved save folder and confirm that it is the long-used playable save, not a newly created directory with a similar name. The expected main.ttp should be present. Keep the server stopped if you are unsure; allowing players to build in a newly generated world makes later recovery and file comparison more confusing.

Check startup output

Read the first startup messages after the restart. Look for the world and save names, the effective data location, or equivalent labels supplied by your server version or host panel. If the output identifies a different name or root, stop the process immediately and correct the configuration before anyone connects.

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Why a server appears to reset to day 1

A changed GameName

This is the most common path mistake. A new save name creates or selects a different directory under the same world root. The original world remains under its old name, while the newly selected save starts at day 1.

A mismatched GameWorld

Changing the terrain or world identifier can select another world directory. Even if the save name looks familiar, the combined path is different when GameWorld changes.

An overridden save root

A newly added or changed UserDataFolder or SaveGameFolder can redirect the process to an empty location. This often happens after moving an installation, rebuilding a service definition or changing a panel’s data-directory setting.

A missing or stale main.ttp

If the expected file is absent, damaged or not the copy that was written by the established server, the world counter can appear wrong. An abrupt termination during a write is one reason recent state may not be available. A stale copy can also reflect an earlier day even though other files look familiar.

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A second installation or service definition

Running the server from a different installation can silently use another configuration and save root. This is especially easy to do when a panel task, a system service and a manual command all exist at the same time. Ensure that only the intended service starts the process.

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Recovery when the server starts at day 1

Stop before players make further changes. New activity in the wrong world creates additional files and can obscure which directory is the established save.

  1. Stop the running process gracefully if possible. If it has just launched and no one has joined, shut it down before making configuration changes.
  2. Capture the active startup settings. Record the values for GameWorld, GameName, UserDataFolder and SaveGameFolder exactly as the service used them.
  3. Locate the established save. Search the intended data root for the previous GameWorld/GameName directory. Do not rename or edit files while you are still identifying the correct copy.
  4. Confirm main.ttp. The established directory should contain the world-state file. Compare it with an untouched backup or snapshot if you have one.
  5. Restore the original identity. Set the active configuration back to the established world name, save name and effective root. If a panel generates its own launch command, save the change in the panel rather than editing a file that the panel will overwrite.
  6. Start once and inspect the log. Confirm the intended names and path before allowing connections.
  7. Use the backup if the original file is missing or unusable. Restore the last known-good copy into the correct save directory, preserving the directory names expected by the configuration.

Do not copy main.ttp from an unrelated world simply because it contains a higher day number. The file must belong to the same playable save; otherwise you can combine incompatible world state with other save files.

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Manual, panel and scheduled restarts compared

There is no universal command interface across hosting panels or operating systems. Choose a method by checking whether it can complete the save, close the process cleanly, return the service and expose enough logging to prove which save loaded.

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Restart method Save before shutdown Graceful termination Automatic return Log visibility Backup handling
Manual console restart Explicit: administrator runs saveworld Explicit: administrator runs shutdown Only if a supervisor is already configured Usually available directly in the console or service log Must be performed separately
Host-panel scheduled task Depends on whether the task sends saveworld and waits Depends on whether it uses shutdown instead of force-stop Often provided by the panel, but implementation varies Check whether the panel exposes startup arguments and output Check whether snapshots are included; do not assume they are
Custom systemd or cron job Must be scripted through an authenticated console or administration mechanism Must call the server’s graceful shutdown path Can be supplied by the service manager Depends on configured service and journal logging Requires a separate snapshot or copy policy

A schedule that only kills and relaunches the process is not equivalent to a safe restart. Before enabling automation, perform one supervised run and verify that the log names the expected GameWorld and GameName afterward.

Backups and snapshots that protect the calendar

The dedicated server does not provide built-in versioning for your save. Keep an unmodified copy of both the client and server saves, and take regular snapshots before maintenance or updates. Store at least one copy separately from the live directory so a bad path, failed update or accidental overwrite cannot affect every copy.

What to preserve

  • The complete <saves-root>/<GameWorld>/<GameName>/ directory, not only main.ttp.
  • The active server configuration containing GameWorld, GameName, UserDataFolder and SaveGameFolder.
  • The service or panel startup definition that determines which installation is launched.
  • A note identifying when the snapshot was taken and which day the server was showing at that time.

When to take a snapshot

Take one after a successful, graceful shutdown and before changing the server version, moving storage, changing world names or editing service definitions. Keep the original read-only or otherwise untouched until the new configuration has been tested.

How to restore safely

Stop the server, move the suspect live directory out of the way, restore the complete known-good save to the exact path selected by the active configuration, and then start the service once. Verify the log and in-game day before reconnecting the full player group. Avoid merging files from multiple snapshots unless you know which save each file belongs to.

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Pre-restart and post-restart checklists

Before stopping

  • Players have been warned and have stopped changing the world.
  • The intended GameWorld and GameName are recorded.
  • The effective save root has been checked for UserDataFolder or SaveGameFolder overrides.
  • A recent backup or snapshot is available.
  • The administration connection can issue saveworld and shutdown.

During the restart

  • saveworld completed before shutdown was issued.
  • The process was not force-killed while writing.
  • Only the intended supervisor or hosting task restarted the service.

Before players return

  • The startup log shows the established GameWorld and GameName.
  • The active save directory contains the expected main.ttp.
  • The server is not running from an empty or newly named directory.
  • The in-game day and time match the established world.

Practical scenarios

Scenario: the panel starts day 1 after a routine reboot

Do not regenerate the world. Stop the new process, compare the panel’s generated launch settings with the previous service settings, and look first for a changed GameName or save-root override. Once the panel points to the original directory and the log confirms the original names, the existing day counter should load.

Scenario: the day is older than before the restart

An older day indicates that the latest state may not have been written. Check whether saveworld completed and whether the process was terminated abruptly. Compare the live save with the most recent known-good snapshot, then decide whether restoring that snapshot is safer than keeping the older live state.

Scenario: the original directory has no main.ttp

Keep the server offline and use the last known-good backup. Do not let the server create additional saves in the same root while you investigate, because new directories can make path identification harder and may be mistaken for the established world.

Bottom line for a no-reset restart

Preserve the existing GameWorld, GameName and effective save root; run saveworld, wait for completion, then run shutdown. Let the configured supervisor restart the process, read the startup log, and confirm that the established folder and its main.ttp were loaded before players return. If day 1 appears, stop immediately and correct the path or restore the known-good save rather than continuing in the new world.

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