How to Set Up a 7 Days to Die Dedicated Server on Linux

What You'll Learn

Why Run Your 7 Days to Die Server on Linux?

Linux is widely regarded as the best operating system for running a 7 Days to Die dedicated server. Compared to Windows, a Linux server runs leaner, leaving more CPU and RAM headroom for the game itself. Here is what makes Linux the smart choice for your 7DTD server:

• 10–15% better performance on the same hardware, thanks to lower system overhead and no GUI running in the background.
• More stable for long sessions — Linux handles memory and process management more efficiently, which matters on horde nights.
• Better automation — cron jobs, shell scripts, and tools like screen or tmux make scheduled restarts and live backups straightforward.
• Free and open source — no licensing cost, full root access, and a massive support community.
• Reliable file system — unlike Windows (NTFS), Linux filesystems allow safe live backups of server saves without corruption risk.

Prerequisites & System Requirements

Before you start, make sure your server meets these requirements. Undersized hardware is the most common reason a 7 Days to Die Linux server performs poorly.

Step 1 — Update Your Linux System

# Update package lists and upgrade installed packages
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2 — Create a Dedicated Server User

# Create a new user account named "7days"
sudo useradd --comment "7 Days to Die Server" -m 7days

# Set the shell to bash
sudo chsh -s /bin/bash 7days

# Set a password for the account
sudo passwd 7days

# Switch to the new user
sudo su - 7days

Step 3 — Install SteamCMD

Run these commands as a user with sudo access (not the 7days user):

# Enable multiverse repository (Ubuntu)
sudo add-apt-repository multiverse
sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
sudo apt update

# Install required 32-bit libraries and SteamCMD
sudo apt install -y lib32gcc-s1 steamcmd

Step 4 — Download the 7 Days to Die Server Files

You do not need a Steam account — the 7DTD dedicated server can be downloaded anonymously:

# Switch to the 7days user
sudo su - 7days

# Create installation directory
mkdir -p ~/7daysded

# Launch SteamCMD and download the server
steamcmd \
  +force_install_dir ~/7daysded \
  +login anonymous \
  +app_update 294420 validate \
  +quit

This downloads approximately 6–10 GB of files. The validate flag verifies file integrity after download — include it for initial installs. When you see "Success! App '294420' fully installed." the download is complete.

Step 5 — Configure Your Server

nano ~/7daysded/serverconfig.xml

Here are the most important settings to configure in serverconfig.xml:

Setting Up Admin Access

To give yourself admin rights on the server, locate and edit the adminlist.xml file in the Saves directory and add your Steam ID:

<adminTools>
  <admins>
    <admin steamID="76561198XXXXXXXXX" permission_level="0" />
  </admins>
</adminTools>

Replace 76561198XXXXXXXXX with your actual 64-bit Steam ID. You can find yours at steamid.io.

Step 6 — Configure the Firewall (UFW)

The required ports for a 7 Days to Die dedicated server are:

# Enable UFW firewall if not already active
sudo ufw enable

# Allow SSH so you don't lock yourself out
sudo ufw allow 22/tcp

# Open 7 Days to Die ports
sudo ufw allow 26900/tcp
sudo ufw allow 26900:26902/udp

# Verify rules are active
sudo ufw status verbose

Step 7 — Install Screen and Start the Server

# Install screen
sudo apt install -y screen

# Switch to the 7days user
sudo su - 7days

# Create a new screen session named "7dtd"
screen -S 7dtd

# Navigate to server directory and launch
cd ~/7daysded
./startserver.sh -configfile=serverconfig.xml

The server will start initializing. The first launch takes longer as it generates the world. You will see output like INF StartGame and eventually INF StartingServer when the server is ready.

Detaching and Reattaching

# Detach from the screen session (server keeps running)
Ctrl + A, then D

# List active screen sessions
screen -ls

# Reattach to your 7DTD session
screen -r 7dtd

# To stop the server gracefully (inside screen)
shutdown

Step 8 — Connect to Your Server

1. Launch 7 Days to Die on your PC.
2. From the main menu, select Play → Join Game → Direct Connect.
3. Enter your server's public IP address followed by the port: YOUR.SERVER.IP:26900
4. Enter the server password if you set one in serverconfig.xml.
5. Click Connect.

Step 9 — Auto-Start on Reboot (systemd)

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/7dtd.service

Paste the following content into the file:

[Unit]
Description=7 Days to Die Dedicated Server
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=simple
User=7days
WorkingDirectory=/home/7days/7daysded
ExecStart=/home/7days/7daysded/startserver.sh -configfile=serverconfig.xml
ExecStop=/bin/kill -SIGTERM $MAINPID
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=15

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

# Reload systemd and enable the service
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable 7dtd
sudo systemctl start 7dtd

# Check the service status
sudo systemctl status 7dtd

Performance Optimization Tips

Once your 7 Days to Die dedicated server on Linux is running, these tweaks will reduce lag, improve stability, and make horde nights smoother for all players:

• Use an SSD or NVMe drive — 7DTD constantly reads and writes world chunks. Spinning disk HDDs cause severe I/O stalls during horde nights with multiple players.
• Set up automated backups — Use a cron job with rsync or tar to back up ~/7daysded/Saves/ hourly. World corruption after crashes is common; backups let you roll back instantly.
• Monitor server resources — Run htop to watch CPU and RAM usage. If the server consistently hits 90%+ RAM, lower ServerMaxPlayerCount or upgrade your VPS.
• Reduce BloodMoonEnemyCount — Lowering zombie counts on horde nights is the single biggest lever for reducing CPU spikes. The default is 8; set it to 4–6 on lower-end hardware.
• Limit chunk generation distance — Reduce ServerMaxAllowedViewDistance (default 12) to 6–8 on lower-RAM servers to cut memory usage significantly.
• Keep the server updated — Run the SteamCMD app_update 294420 command regularly. Updates often include server-side performance improvements.

Automated Backup Script

Here is a simple backup script you can schedule with cron to protect your 7 Days to Die world saves:

#!/bin/bash
# 7 Days to Die Server Backup Script
# Save this as /home/7days/backup.sh and chmod +x it

TIMESTAMP=$(date +"%Y%m%d_%H%M")
SAVE_DIR=/home/7days/7daysded/Saves
BACKUP_DIR=/home/7days/backups
MAX_BACKUPS=24  # Keep last 24 backups (24 hours at hourly cron)

mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"
tar -czf "$BACKUP_DIR/7dtd_save_$TIMESTAMP.tar.gz" -C "$SAVE_DIR" .

# Remove old backups beyond MAX_BACKUPS
ls -t "$BACKUP_DIR"/*.tar.gz | tail -n +$((MAX_BACKUPS + 1)) | xargs rm -f

echo "Backup complete: 7dtd_save_$TIMESTAMP.tar.gz"

Schedule it to run every hour with cron:

# Edit the crontab for the 7days user
crontab -e

# Add this line to run backup every hour
0 * * * * /home/7days/backup.sh >> /home/7days/backup.log 2>&1

Frequently Asked Questions