--- title: "How to host a 7 Days to Die server on a Linux VPS | StreetHosting" description: "7 Days to Die server on a Linux VPS: RAM by player count and map size, SteamCMD, serverconfig.xml, ports 26900 to 26903, safe telnet, systemd and backups." url: "https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server" type: "page" language: "en-US" --- VPS · 9 min · Intermediate Published on Sep 28, 2026 · Updated on Sep 28, 2026 # 7 Days to Die dedicated server on Linux, ready for the blood moon The 7 Days to Die server runs natively on Linux and survives the blood moon if the CPU has a high clock speed. Learn how to size it by player count and map size, then install, configure and protect the world. By [Equipe StreetHosting](https://streethosting.com.br/en/autores#equipe-streethosting) · StreetHosting infrastructure and support team [Hardware and datacenter](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/topics/hardware) [Linux administration](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/topics/linux) [Other games](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/topics/other-games) Summarize with: [](https://chat.openai.com/?q=Summarize%20the%20key%20points%20of%20this%20StreetHosting%20guide%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Fvps%2Fhost-7-days-to-die-server.%20Highlight%20the%20step-by-step%20instructions%2C%20the%20prerequisites%20and%20the%20most%20common%20mistakes. "ChatGPT") [](https://claude.ai/new?q=Summarize%20the%20key%20points%20of%20this%20StreetHosting%20guide%3A%20https%3A%2F%2Fstreethosting.com.br%2Fen%2Fguides%2Fvps%2Fhost-7-days-to-die-server.%20Highlight%20the%20step-by-step%20instructions%2C%20the%20prerequisites%20and%20the%20most%20common%20mistakes. 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Keep telnet and the web dashboard closed to the internet. For up to 8 players, a Ryzen VPS with 12 GB of RAM and 5 vCPU handles the blood moon with room to spare. ## Requirements by players and map[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#requisitos) In 7 Days to Die, sizing comes down to two numbers: how many players are online at the same time and the size of the map. Larger generated maps take more memory and longer to load, and each player spread across the world keeps an active area of their own, with zombies, block physics and loot. | Scenario | RAM | vCPU | Disk | Map | | --------------------------------- | ------------- | ------ | ------ | ------------------------- | | 2 to 4 players, vanilla | 8 GB | 4 | 40 GB | Navezgane or generated 6k | | 5 to 8 players, vanilla | 10 to 12 GB | 4 to 5 | 60 GB | Generated 6k or 8k | | 8 to 16 players or light mods | 16 GB | 6 | 80 GB | Generated 8k | | 16 players or more, with overhaul | 24 GB or more | 8 | 120 GB | Generated 8k to 10k | The peak is the blood moon, the horde night that by default arrives every seven in-game days. At that point the server spawns zombies for every player at the same time, computes everyone's path to the bases and processes block destruction. That load lands on a few threads, so one fast core holds the horde better than many slow ones. The default limit of 8 players is not arbitrary either: going past it is possible, but every extra player adds work on horde night. On disk, set aside space for the install, the generated map and the saves, which grow as the world gets explored and modified. NVMe makes a difference when loading regions as someone crosses the map on a motorcycle. ## Prepare the VPS and install[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#instalar) The commands apply to Ubuntu 24.04 and 22.04. Manage the VPS with a user that has sudo, as shown in the guide on [creating a sudo user on a Linux VPS](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/create-sudo-user-linux-vps), and run the game under a separate user with no administrator privileges. The netcat package will be used to talk to the server console. `sudo useradd -m -s /bin/bash sdtd sudo add-apt-repository multiverse sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386 sudo apt update sudo apt install steamcmd lib32gcc-s1 netcat-openbsd` Accept the Steam license when the installer asks. Then switch to the game user and download the server, setting the install directory before the login: `sudo -iu sdtd /usr/games/steamcmd +force_install_dir /home/sdtd/server +login anonymous +app_update 294420 validate +quit` App 294420 is the dedicated server, free and separate from the game. You do not need to own the game on the account to download it. ## Configure serverconfig.xml[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#configurar) The first step avoids this game's most common headache: the original serverconfig.xml is replaced on every update with validate. Copy it under a name of your own and only edit the copy. `cd /home/sdtd/server cp serverconfig.xml meuservidor.xml nano meuservidor.xml` The file is a list of properties with a name and a value. Adjust these first: ` ` * **ServerVisibility:** 2 is public, 1 is friends only and 0 keeps it off the list. For a closed group, use 0 or set a password in ServerPassword. * **GameWorld:**Navezgane is the game's fixed map; RWG generates a random map from WorldGenSeed and WorldGenSize. * **Empty TelnetPassword:** according to the file itself, with no password telnet listens only on the local interface. That is what we want: the console is reachable from inside the VPS and invisible from outside. * **BloodMoonEnemyCount and MaxSpawnedZombies:** these are the levers to ease the CPU if horde night starts to freeze. ## Map, saves and admins[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#mundo-admin) With GameWorld set to RWG, the server generates the map on first start. An 8k map can take quite a while and use a lot of memory during generation. An alternative is to generate the map on your own computer, in the game itself, and send the finished folder to the VPS with [SCP or rsync](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/transfer-files-to-vps-scp-rsync). The server data lives in `~/.local/share/7DaysToDie` under the sdtd user: generated maps in GeneratedWorlds, progress in Saves, split by map and by GameName, and the admin list in the serveradmin.xml file inside Saves. To become an admin, join the game, open the server console from inside the VPS and use the commands below. The telnet console accepts the same commands as the in-game console, and `exit` ends only your session, not the server. `nc 127.0.0.1 8081 listplayerids admin add IDENTIFICADOR_DO_JOGADOR 0` Level 0 is the highest. Mods go in the Mods folder inside the install. XML-only mods work with EAC on; mods that ship their own code require EACEnabled set to false, and each mod's page says whether it also has to be installed on the players' computers. ## Ports and firewall[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#portas) | Port | Protocol | Purpose | Open it? | | -------------- | ----------- | ----------------------- | ------------------------------ | | 26900 | TCP and UDP | Main game port | Yes | | 26901 to 26903 | UDP | Additional game traffic | Yes | | 8080 | TCP | Web dashboard | No, keep it off or restricted | | 8081 | TCP | Telnet, server console | No, use it only inside the VPS | | 22 | TCP | SSH to manage the VPS | Yes, before enabling UFW | `sudo ufw allow OpenSSH sudo ufw allow 26900/tcp sudo ufw allow 26900:26903/udp sudo ufw enable` Exposed telnet with a weak password hands full control of the server to whoever finds it: ban players, wipe the world, shut everything down. If you ever need the web dashboard or telnet from outside, open it only to your own IP with a strong password, or go through an SSH tunnel. The guide on [UFW firewall on an Ubuntu VPS](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/ufw-firewall-ubuntu-vps) shows how to restrict by IP. Public 7 Days to Die servers also attract denial-of-service attacks, and the StreetHosting VPS filters that traffic at the network level, as explained in the guide on [Anti-DDoS for game servers](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/infrastructure/anti-ddos-game-server-brazil). If the group cannot find the server or cannot get in, check in this order: * **Map still generating:** on the first start with RWG, the server only accepts connections once generation finishes. Follow the most recent log file. * **Different version or branch:**anyone playing on Steam's experimental branch cannot join a server on the stable version, and the reverse is also true. * **Visibility:** with ServerVisibility at 0, the server does not show up in the list; players join by IP and port 26900. * **UDP-only rule:** 26900 has to be open over TCP and UDP. Check with `sudo ufw status`. ## systemd service and updates[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#systemd) The 7 Days to Die server does not read commands from the terminal; the safe way to shut it down is to send saveworld and shutdown over telnet. As the sdtd user, create the script `/home/sdtd/parar.sh`, which does that and waits for the process to exit: `#!/bin/bash printf 'saveworld\nshutdown\n' | nc -q 5 127.0.0.1 8081 > /dev/null while kill -0 "$1" 2>/dev/null; do sleep 2; done` Make it executable with `chmod +x ~/parar.sh`, leave the user and create `/etc/systemd/system/7dtd.service`: `[Unit] Description=Servidor 7 Days to Die After=network-online.target Wants=network-online.target [Service] User=sdtd WorkingDirectory=/home/sdtd/server ExecStart=/home/sdtd/server/startserver.sh -configfile=meuservidor.xml ExecStop=/home/sdtd/parar.sh $MAINPID TimeoutStopSec=180 Restart=on-failure RestartSec=20 [Install] WantedBy=multi-user.target` `sudo systemctl daemon-reload sudo systemctl enable --now 7dtd` Logs do not go to the journal: startserver.sh writes output\_log files inside 7DaysToDieServer\_Data, one per start. Delete the old ones now and then so they do not fill the disk. To update, stop the service, run the SteamCMD command again as the sdtd user and start it back up. Your meuservidor.xml is left untouched. Major game updates, though, usually recommend a fresh world; read the release notes before updating a server with months of progress. ## Automatic world backup[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#backup) The script below forces a save, waits, compresses the saves together with your config file and keeps seven days of copies. Create it as the sdtd user at `/home/sdtd/backup.sh`: `#!/bin/bash DESTINO=/home/sdtd/backups DADOS=/home/sdtd/.local/share/7DaysToDie mkdir -p "$DESTINO" printf 'saveworld\n' | nc -q 5 127.0.0.1 8081 > /dev/null sleep 20 tar -czf "$DESTINO/7dtd-$(date +%F-%H%M).tar.gz" -C "$DADOS" Saves -C /home/sdtd/server meuservidor.xml find "$DESTINO" -name '7dtd-*.tar.gz' -mtime +7 -delete` 1. Permission: `chmod +x ~/backup.sh` 2. Scheduler: `crontab -e` 3. Every six hours: `0 */6 * * * /home/sdtd/backup.sh` The map generated in GeneratedWorlds does not change after it is created, but the save does not work without it. Keep one copy of that folder, outside the daily routine, so you do not multiply a large file on every backup. A copy on the same disk saves no one if the VPS runs into trouble. Send the files somewhere else following the guide on [automatic backups with restic and cron](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/vps-backup-restic-cron). ## Which VPS to choose for 7 Days to Die[](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#qual-vps) The blood moon is the stress test that decides the plan. It calls for a high clock for the horde and memory for the map, which points to the [Ryzen 9 9950X VPS](https://streethosting.com.br/en/vps/ryzen), with up to 5.7 GHz, DDR5 and NVMe: * **2 to 4 players:** R$ 118.00 per month, with 4 vCPU, 8 GB and 80 GB NVMe. * **Group of 8 players:** R$ 144.00 with 4 vCPU and 10 GB, or R$ 170.00 with 5 vCPU and 12 GB for an 8k map. * **Up to 16 players or light mods:** R$ 222.00, with 6 vCPU, 16 GB and 160 GB NVMe. * **Overhaul and a large community:** R$ 326.00, with 8 vCPU, 24 GB and 240 GB NVMe. The [VPS lineup](https://streethosting.com.br/en/vps) also has the Xeon option, with more vCPU for the money, but the lower clock tends to show up precisely on horde night; for 7 Days to Die it only pays off for a small group. All VPS plans are hosted in São Paulo, with Anti-DDoS included and activation within 60 seconds, and upgrading through the control panel charges only the prorated difference, with one VM reboot. If the group also enjoys zombie survival at a slower pace, the guide on the [Project Zomboid server](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-project-zomboid-server) follows the same install pattern. In this guide * [Requirements by players and map](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#requisitos) * [Prepare the VPS and install](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#instalar) * [Configure serverconfig.xml](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#configurar) * [Map, saves and admins](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#mundo-admin) * [Ports and firewall](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#portas) * [systemd service and updates](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#systemd) * [Automatic world backup](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#backup) * [Which VPS to choose](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-7-days-to-die-server#qual-vps) ## Frequently asked questions How much RAM does a 7 Days to Die server need? For 2 to 4 players on a 6k map, 8 GB of RAM is enough. A group of 8 players on a generated 8k map is comfortable with 10 to 12 GB, and servers with 16 players or overhaul mods call for 16 GB or more. Map size weighs almost as much as the player count. Which ports does the 7 Days to Die server use? The game uses port 26900 over TCP and UDP and ports 26901 to 26903 over UDP. The web dashboard uses 8080 TCP and telnet uses 8081 TCP, and neither of those should be open to the internet without a password and an IP restriction. Why did my settings disappear after an update? Because the original serverconfig.xml is replaced when SteamCMD validates the files. The fix is to copy the file under a name of your own, such as meuservidor.xml, and start the server pointing at it with the configfile parameter. How do I become an admin on a 7 Days to Die server? Connect to the console over local telnet, run listplayerids to see your account identifier while you are in the game, then use admin add with that identifier and level 0, which is the highest. The admin list is stored in serveradmin.xml. Can I use mods on a 7 Days to Die dedicated server? Yes. Mods go in the server's Mods folder. XML-only mods work with the anticheat on, while mods that ship their own code require turning EAC off in serverconfig.xml. Each mod's page says whether it also has to be installed on the players' side. Next step See Ryzen VPS Ryzen 9 9950X VPS in São Paulo with root access, NVMe and gamer Anti-DDoS. [See Ryzen VPS](https://streethosting.com.br/en/vps/ryzen) [See VPS plans Root VPS in Brazil with NVMe and Anti-DDoS.](https://streethosting.com.br/en/vps) ## Related guides [VPS Intermediate How to host a Project Zomboid server on a Linux VPS The Project Zomboid dedicated server runs natively on Linux and fits well on a VPS with a high clock speed. This guide covers sizing by player count, installation, ports, the systemd service, updates and automatic backups. 11 min Read guide](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/host-project-zomboid-server) [VPS Beginner UFW on Ubuntu VPS: firewall rules without losing SSH UFW makes the Ubuntu firewall simpler, but one rule in the wrong order locks you out of your VPS. Learn how to enable it without losing SSH, open only what you need, deal with Docker, and get back in through the console if something goes wrong. 10 min Read guide](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/ufw-firewall-ubuntu-vps) [VPS Advanced How to automate VPS backups with restic and cron A backup that depends on you remembering does not work. With restic and cron you create encrypted snapshots, send them off the VPS, control retention and test restores without daily effort. 9 min Read guide](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides/vps/vps-backup-restic-cron) [← Back to the Guide Center](https://streethosting.com.br/en/guides)