7 Days to Die serverconfig.xml: What Every Important Setting Does

Almost everything that makes your 7 Days to Die server different from the next one lives in a single file — serverconfig.xml. It sets the name and password, map and seed, difficulty, zombie speed, how often the blood moon rises, the death penalty and land claim rules. The file is long and its comments are short, so below we go through the important settings group by group: what they do, which values make sense and which lines you should not touch at all.

If you haven't picked a server yet, start with our overview of 7 Days to Die server hosting — it covers memory for different maps and the load on horde night. This guide is only about configuring a server that is already running.

How to edit serverconfig.xml

The file sits in the server's root folder. Open the Files tab in the panel, find serverconfig.xml, make your changes and save. The server only reads its settings on startup, so restart it after every edit.

Every setting is a single line like this:

<property name="ServerName" value="Elysium 7DTD"/>

Only change what is inside value="…". Property names are case-sensitive, and the quotes and closing /> are required: one missing quote and the server won't start. Before a bigger edit, copy the file next to it, for example as serverconfig.xml.bak, so you have something to roll back to.

What to leave alone: port and slot count

A 7 Days to Die server listens on three consecutive ports. At Elysium all three are assigned automatically when the server is created, so don't change ServerPort — otherwise the server grabs a port that isn't yours and players can't connect.

On our plans the slot count is set by the panel: up to 8 players, and ServerMaxPlayerCount in the file does not override it. Plans with more memory give headroom for mods and large maps, not extra slots.

Name, password and visibility

• ServerName — the name in the server list.
• ServerDescription — a short description shown when players pick a server.
• ServerPassword — the join password. Set it right away for a friends-only server; an empty value lets anyone in.
• ServerVisibility — 2 public, 1 Steam friends only, 0 not listed. Even a hidden server can be joined with the address and port from your dashboard.

World: map, seed and save name

• GameWorld — Navezgane for the handcrafted map or RWG for a random world.
• WorldGenSeed and WorldGenSize — the seed and size of a random world (6144, 8192, 10240). Not used for Navezgane.
• GameName — the save name. A new name means a new save.

These three decide which world loads. Change the map, seed or size and the server starts a new world, while the old one stays on disk and comes back if you restore the previous values. Map size directly affects memory: on first start Navezgane needs 3 GB or more, a random world up to 8K about 4 GB and a 10K world about 6 GB.

Difficulty, pacing and loot

• GameDifficulty — from 0 (easiest) to 5 (hardest). Affects the damage players take and how tough enemies are.
• DayNightLength — how many real minutes a game day lasts, 60 by default. Higher means more time to loot and build between hordes.
• DayLightLength — how many of the 24 in-game hours are daylight, 18 by default.
• XPMultiplier — XP multiplier in percent, 100 by default.
• LootAbundance — amount of loot in percent, 100 by default. LootRespawnDays — after how many game days containers refill.

Zombies and server load

• EnemyDifficulty — 0 normal, 1 every zombie is feral.
• ZombieMove, ZombieMoveNight, ZombieFeralMove, ZombieBMMove — speed by day, at night, for ferals and on blood moon: from 0 (walk) to 4 (nightmare sprint).
• MaxSpawnedZombies — how many zombies can exist in the world at once, 64 by default.

These are the lines that hit the CPU hardest: every zombie means pathfinding and block checks. Only raise MaxSpawnedZombies well above the default if the server comfortably handles normal load.

Blood moon

• BloodMoonFrequency — every how many days the horde comes, 7 by default. 0 turns the blood moon off.
• BloodMoonRange — random spread of the horde day. With 0 it arrives strictly on schedule.
• BloodMoonWarning — at which in-game hour the day counter turns red to warn about the horde.
• BloodMoonEnemyCount — how many horde zombies are active per player at once, 8 by default.

Horde night is the toughest moment for the server. If it lags, lower BloodMoonEnemyCount a little first and only then think about a bigger plan.

Death, PvP and land claims

• DeathPenalty — what a player loses on death: from nothing to an XP penalty or permanent character death.
• DropOnDeath and DropOnQuit — what drops on death and on leaving the game: nothing, everything, toolbelt only or backpack only.
• PlayerKillingMode — 0 no PvP, 1 allies only, 2 strangers only, 3 everyone.
• LandClaimSize — claim size in blocks, 41 by default. LandClaimCount — how many claims one player can place, LandClaimExpiryTime — after how many days offline a claim stops protecting.

For a PvE server with friends, PlayerKillingMode = 0 is usually all you need. On a public server, extend the claim expiry so bases don't get torn down while someone is on holiday.

Administration and mods

• AdminFileName — the file with the admin list and command permissions, serveradmin.xml by default.
• EACEnabled — EasyAntiCheat. For mods with their own code set it to false and have players launch the game without EAC.

Before any big change, make a manual backup in the Backups tab. Every Elysium server has a nightly automatic backup, but a copy made right before a change is the fastest way back. For how often you need copies, see whether daily backups are enough; the same thinking applies to Project Zomboid, where settings also live in one big file.