If Palworld rejects your administrator password, the fix is usually to edit the active PalWorldSettings.ini, not the default template, then fully stop and restart the dedicated server. Set AdminPassword separately from ServerPassword, join the server, and authenticate in chat with /AdminPassword your-password. RCON has additional requirements: it must be enabled, use the right port and address, and receive the same admin password.
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This guide covers Windows and Linux paths, hosting panels, container variables, direct-connect problems and a practical way to identify which part of the login chain is failing.
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The five-minute fix
- Stop the dedicated server. Do not edit the configuration while the server process is running.
- Open the active configuration file. Use
Pal/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/PalWorldSettings.inion Windows orPal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/PalWorldSettings.inion Linux. - Set the administrator password. Add or replace
AdminPassword="your-password"in the existing settings. Preserve the file’s surrounding syntax and commas. - Save the file, then start the server again. A running process keeps the values it loaded at startup; saving an INI file alone does not reload it.
- Authenticate after joining. Open chat and enter
/AdminPassword your-password, replacing the example with the exact configured value.
Palworld uses one shared administrator password rather than separate named admin accounts. Everyone who knows that value can attempt administrative commands, so treat it as a server credential.
AdminPassword and ServerPassword do different jobs
The most common mistake is changing the password that controls player entry and expecting it to grant administrator rights. The official parameter definitions separate these settings:
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| Setting | What it controls | Where it is used | What it does not do |
|---|---|---|---|
AdminPassword |
Password used to obtain administrative privileges | In-game /AdminPassword authentication and RCON authentication |
It does not replace the player join password |
ServerPassword |
Password required to join a password-protected server | Join prompt or connection workflow | It does not make a player an administrator |
If players can join but admin commands fail, inspect AdminPassword. If nobody can enter the server, inspect ServerPassword and the chosen connection method. Changing one does not change the other.
Use the active PalWorldSettings.ini, not the default template
Palworld has a default settings file and a generated, active settings file. Editing the default template is a frequent reason a password appears to save but never works. The official configuration guidance says changes for a running server belong in the generated PalWorldSettings.ini under the saved configuration directory.
Windows dedicated servers
Look under:
Pal/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/PalWorldSettings.ini
The configuration directory may not exist until the server has started at least once. Start the server once if necessary, stop it cleanly, and then look for the generated file. If your control panel exposes a file manager, open the saved configuration directory there rather than editing a similarly named file in the installation root.
Linux dedicated servers
Look under:
Pal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/PalWorldSettings.ini
Linux hosts often place the game files inside a service, container or panel-specific data directory. The important distinction is the LinuxServer saved configuration path inside the server’s actual data volume. Editing a copy on the host that is not mounted into the running service has no effect.
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Check that you have the file the process actually reads
- Confirm the filename is exactly
PalWorldSettings.ini, including capitalization where the host filesystem is case-sensitive. - Check the file’s modification time after saving and verify that the timestamp changes in the server’s data directory.
- If a panel offers both a “default” editor and a “live” or “saved” configuration editor, use the latter.
- Keep a backup of the current file before changing it so you can restore a known-good configuration if the server fails to start.
Edit the password without breaking the INI
Set the value in the existing settings structure rather than replacing the entire file. The relevant entry is:
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Use the real password between the quotation marks. Keep the quotation marks, preserve any commas separating options, and avoid adding typographic “smart quotes” from a word processor. If AdminPassword already appears, replace only its value so you do not create two competing entries.
Keep the two passwords explicit
A typical configuration may contain both entries, for example:
AdminPassword="admin-secret",ServerPassword="player-secret"
The exact line will include other server options as well; this example only illustrates that the values are independent. Do not copy this example over your full configuration or remove options you did not intend to change.
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Watch for hidden editing errors
- Wrong file extension: a text editor can save
PalWorldSettings.ini.txt. Enable file extensions and verify the name. - Duplicate keys: two
AdminPasswordentries make troubleshooting ambiguous. Keep one authoritative entry. - Whitespace or copied characters: trailing spaces, line breaks inserted inside the value, or a copied nonbreaking space can make the typed password differ from the stored value.
- Case changes: enter the password exactly as saved, including capitalization and punctuation.
- Unsaved panel changes: some hosting panels require an explicit Save or Apply action before a restart.
The available documentation does not establish a universal minimum length or mandatory character rule for AdminPassword. Do not assume that a particular length requirement is guaranteed across all server versions; choose a strong value that your clients can enter accurately.
Restart the server so the new value is loaded
Palworld reads its server settings when the dedicated process starts. A complete stop-and-start cycle is therefore part of the password change, not an optional cleanup step.
- Use the server’s Stop control and wait until the process is fully down. A panel that still shows “stopping” has not completed this step.
- Make the edit and use Save or Apply in the panel, or save the file directly on the machine.
- Start the server and wait for it to finish initialization. Starting too quickly after a forced stop can leave the old process or a lock in place.
- Join only after the server is accepting connections, then test the new credential.
If the server starts with an error after the edit, restore the backup and compare the changed line for missing quotes, commas or a malformed value. A syntax error is different from a rejected password: in the former case the server may not load the configuration at all.
Authenticate in game with the exact command
After you have joined the server, open the normal chat input and type:
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/AdminPassword your-password
Replace your-password with the configured value; do not include the angle brackets shown in explanatory examples. The command is an authentication step. Setting AdminPassword in the INI does not automatically promote every connected player.
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If the command appears to do nothing
- Confirm you are connected to the server whose file you edited, not a similarly named public server.
- Check that the server completed its restart after the edit.
- Retype the command instead of pasting it from a formatted document, which can introduce an invisible character.
- Use the exact capitalization, punctuation and spacing of the saved value.
- Test a harmless administrative action only after authentication succeeds; a gameplay command failing does not by itself prove that the password was rejected.
RCON login is a separate troubleshooting path
RCON uses the administrator password but has its own server settings and network requirements. The official settings list RCONEnabled and RCONPort separately from AdminPassword.
RCON checklist
- Set
RCONEnabledto the enabled value expected by your server configuration. - Confirm
RCONPortand enter that exact port in the RCON client. - Point the client at the server’s reachable address, not a private or loopback address that only works inside the host.
- Use the same
AdminPasswordthat works for in-game authentication. - Restart the server after changing any of these settings.
- Check the host firewall, cloud security group or panel port-forwarding rule if the client cannot establish a connection at all.
Separate the symptoms: a connection timeout usually indicates address, port, firewall or RCON enablement; a connected client that reports an authentication failure points to the password or the server instance being contacted.
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Container deployments
In a containerized installation, environment variables may generate the INI values at startup. The documented mappings are:
| Environment variable | Palworld setting | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
ADMIN_PASSWORD |
AdminPassword |
The variable is defined in the container or compose service that actually runs Palworld |
RCON_ENABLED |
RCONEnabled |
The value enables RCON and is not being overwritten by a later startup setting |
After changing an environment variable, recreate or restart the container according to your deployment method. Editing a host-side INI while an entrypoint regenerates that file on every start can be overwritten; in that case, change the environment configuration instead.
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Palworld supports connecting to a dedicated server by IP and port and also supports selecting a server through the Community server list. Current hosting documentation reports a limitation affecting some password-protected servers: direct connect or a recent-server shortcut may time out or display an empty-password error even when the password is correct.
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Try the Community server list
- Open the Community server browser in Palworld.
- Search for the server name and select the matching listing.
- Enter the player join password if prompted.
- Once inside, use
/AdminPassword your-passwordfor administrator authentication.
This workaround changes the connection route; it does not change AdminPassword or ServerPassword. If the server is not listed, verify that it is configured to appear in the community listing and allow time for the listing to update before concluding that the credential is invalid.
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Managed panels commonly expose an “Admin Password” or “RCON Password” field and provide Stop, Save and Restart controls. The labels differ, but the safe sequence is the same:
- Open the server’s configuration or startup settings.
- Enter the value in the field mapped to
AdminPassword, not the field labeled Server or Player Password. - Save or apply the change.
- Stop the server and wait for a confirmed stopped state.
- Start it again and wait for initialization.
- Join and authenticate with the slash command.
If a panel has both an INI editor and environment-variable fields, determine which one is authoritative. A panel that regenerates PalWorldSettings.ini from its form can overwrite manual edits on the next restart. In that situation, make the change in the panel’s mapped field and use its restart workflow.
Diagnose the failure by symptom
| What you see | Most likely area | Next check |
|---|---|---|
Players can join, but /AdminPassword is rejected |
Active value, spelling or restart | Inspect AdminPassword in the saved file, restart fully and retype the command |
| Changing the file has no visible effect | Wrong configuration file | Use the generated saved path, not DefaultPalWorldSettings.ini |
| RCON cannot connect at all | RCON flag, port, address or firewall | Verify RCONEnabled, RCONPort and network reachability |
| RCON connects but rejects credentials | Password mismatch or wrong server instance | Use the same admin value as the active INI and confirm the endpoint |
| Direct join times out or reports an empty password | Connection-route limitation | Find the server in the Community list and join from there |
| The server will not start after editing | Malformed INI syntax | Restore the backup, then correct quotes, commas, duplicate keys or the filename |
| A container reverts the password after restart | Startup regeneration | Set ADMIN_PASSWORD in the active container configuration |
What not to assume
- Do not treat ServerPassword as an admin credential. It only controls entry to the server.
- Do not rely on DefaultPalWorldSettings.ini. The running server reads the generated saved configuration.
- Do not assume an INI edit is live immediately. Restart is required to load the new value.
- Do not treat RCON as identical to in-game chat. It requires its own enable flag, port and reachable endpoint.
- Do not infer a universal password policy. No current official statement establishes one minimum length or character set for every version.
- Do not keep testing the password against the wrong server. Similar names, proxies, community listings and old recent-server entries can point to a different instance.
Security and operational practices
Because Palworld uses a shared administrator credential, limit who receives it. Do not paste it into public chat, screenshots, issue trackers or startup logs. Store a backup of the working configuration somewhere access-controlled, and remove old copies when the password changes.
Use a value that is difficult to guess but practical for the small group that must enter it. If you suspect the value was exposed, stop the server, replace AdminPassword, save, restart and notify legitimate operators to use the new value. Changing the player join password is not a substitute for rotating the administrator credential.
Final verification checklist
Before escalating to your host or server community, verify each item:
- The dedicated server is stopped while the file is edited.
- The edited file is the active
PalWorldSettings.iniunder the correct Windows or Linux saved configuration directory. AdminPasswordappears once with matching quotation marks and the intended value.ServerPasswordis treated separately as the player join credential.- The file or hosting-panel form was saved successfully.
- The server was fully stopped and started after the change.
- You joined the intended server instance.
- You entered
/AdminPassword your-passwordexactly in chat. - For RCON,
RCONEnabled,RCONPort, address, firewall access and password all match. - If direct connection failed on a password-protected server, you tried the Community server listing.
Following that order resolves the usual “admin password not set,” “password rejected,” and “RCON login failed” cases without changing unrelated server settings.
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