7 Days to Die Server Mods: Install, Test and Keep Them Working

To install 7 Days to Die server mods, put each mod’s folder inside the server’s Mods folder, restart, and check the log for a Loaded Mod line. The part that decides whether your friends can still join is what kind of mod it is. A modlet that only edits XML runs on the server alone. A mod with code or new art must be on every player’s PC too, with EasyAntiCheat off. This guide walks you through telling them apart, installing one safely, proving it loaded and keeping it working when the game updates.

The hands-on examples and server log below were captured on V3.2.0 (b10), before The Fun Pimps announced V3.3.0 Stable on October 5, 2026. Treat the V3.2 test readings as historical; they do not prove V3.3 compatibility or performance. Check the current game build against each mod author’s release notes before installing. 7 Days to Die has no Steam Workshop, so mods come from their author’s page, Nexus Mods or a launcher.

Work out what kind of mod you have#

Before you download anything, open the mod’s folder or its page and look at what it contains. That tells you who has to install it and whether EasyAntiCheat (EAC) can stay on.

The first row is what the community calls a server-side modlet. When a player joins, the server sends its XML configuration to the game, so nobody downloads anything. That is why these are the safest mods for a group of friends: nobody has to touch their install, and a mismatch can’t keep anyone out.

As soon as there is a .dll, the mod runs code. EAC blocks unsigned code, so the server needs EACEnabled set to false and every player must start the game without EAC, or they will be kicked or the mod won’t load on their side. New models, sounds and textures can’t be sent by the server either; every player needs the same files.

Check the mod matches your game version#

Mods are written against one game version, and 7 Days to Die changes its XML a lot between versions. A modlet made for V2.6 can fail on V3.2 without crashing: its patches simply don’t apply and you get the vanilla behaviour. Overhauls are stricter and often refuse to start.

Read the mod page for the version it supports, and compare it with the server’s first log line:

INF Version: V 3.2.0 (b10) Compatibility Version: V 3.2.0, Build: LinuxServer 64 Bit

Big overhauls can stay on one version after game updates. This table includes the current author package checked October 13, 2026; check each source again before changing a live server:

These change whenever their authors release a new build, so read the overhaul’s own page or launcher before choosing a game branch. For a branch the author names explicitly, set it on the server with SteamCMD (for example, app_update 294420 -beta v2.6) and have players select the same version in Steam. A server and client on different builds may not see each other in the browser. War3zuk’s V3.3 B18 Stable package is author-published evidence, not a load test; our panel’s one-click integration currently pins V3.2.0.

Back up the world before you add anything#

Mods change items, blocks and recipes that your save already uses. Removing a mod that added blocks can leave holes or missing items in the world, and an overhaul installed on an old save can corrupt it. Take a copy you can go back to.

1. Stop the server

   Stop it from the console with shutdown, or from your panel. The server saves the world as it stops; wait until the process has exited.

2. Copy the save and the settings

   Copy the Saves folder (it holds every world and serveradmin.xml), the GeneratedWorlds folder if you play on a random map, and serverconfig.xml. On a host, take a backup from the panel instead.

3. Note what is installed

   Write down the game version and the folders currently in Mods. If something goes wrong later, this list is what you return to.

For an overhaul, start a new world rather than converting the old one. Change the game name in serverconfig.xml (GameName) and the server creates a fresh save next to the old one, which stays untouched if you want to go back.

Install the mod in the server’s Mods folder#

The dedicated server loads mods from the Mods folder in its install directory, next to 7DaysToDieServer.exe on Windows or 7DaysToDieServer.x86_64 on Linux. A fresh install already contains three: 0_TFP_Harmony, TFP_CommandExtensions and Xample_MarkersMod. Leave them; the game ships them and other mods rely on Harmony.

1. Unzip the download

   Extract the archive on your PC first and look inside. You want the folder that contains ModInfo.xml at its top level. Many zips wrap it in an extra folder, and a mod one level too deep is silently ignored.

2. Copy the mod folder into Mods

   The result should be Mods/ModName/ModInfo.xml, plus the mod’s Config folder and anything else it ships. On a host, upload the zip in the file manager or the mods page and extract it there.

3. Set EAC if the mod needs it off

   For a mod with a .dll, assets or an overhaul, set <property name="EACEnabled" value="false"/> in serverconfig.xml. Skip this for XML-only modlets.

4. Start the server

   Mods are only read at startup, so a running server never picks up a new folder.

Mods load in alphabetical order of their folder names. That’s why Harmony’s folder starts with 0_. If a mod’s page says it must load after another one, it usually ships with a prefix that handles this; don’t rename folders unless the author tells you to.

Players who need the mod copy the same folder into the Mods folder of their game install, or into %APPDATA%\7DaysToDie\Mods on Windows, then start the game with EasyAntiCheat off from the game’s own launcher.

Prove the mod loaded and works in game#

A folder in the right place doesn’t prove anything; the log does. Every mod the server accepts prints one line as it starts:

INF [MODS]     Loaded Mod: TFP_Harmony (1.1.0.4)
INF [MODS]     Loaded Mod: War3zuk_AIO_Overhaul (3.0)

If your mod is missing from that list, look a few lines around it for the reason:

Then join with one player before you tell the group. Check the thing the mod changes: the new item in the creative menu, the stack size, the recipe. For mods every player installs, also join from a PC that doesn’t have the mod. If that player gets in without warnings, the mod is truly server-side; if they’re kicked or see missing textures, everyone needs it.

Run an overhaul without breaking your group#

Overhauls are the reason many groups host a server at all, and they need the most care. Treat one as a different game that happens to run on 7 Days to Die.

• One version for everyone. The server and every player need the same overhaul build on the same game branch. Several authors ship a launcher (War3zuk and Darkness Falls do) that installs the right files and starts the game without EAC. Use it on the player side; it avoids half the support questions.
• A new world. Overhauls replace progression, loot and blocks. Start fresh and keep the vanilla save as your backup.
• Measure the workload you plan to run. In our historical V3.2 test, War3zuk AIO on an 8 km world read about 6.4 GB just after startup; the vanilla run read 3 to 4.5 GB under its recorded conditions. These were startup snapshots, not peak-load or player-capacity tests. They do not prove a minimum plan size or prevent lag. Check your chosen mod and game build, then watch peak memory and CPU through full sessions with your own players before deciding whether to upgrade.
• Respect the license. Overhauls belong to their authors. Most allow installing them on a server to play online but not re-uploading or altering them; War3zuk AIO, for example, states its terms and credits the modlets it bundles in the ReadMe of War3zuk’s public repository. Download from the author’s page or repository every time.

When an overhaul updates, update the server and every player on the same day. Back up first: an overhaul update can change item IDs your save uses.

If you’d rather not track branches, EAC and folders yourself, a 7 Days to Die server from Game Hosting has a mods page that unpacks uploaded zips into Mods and switches individual mods on and off. Its one-click War3zuk AIO integration downloads the third-party mod from War3zuk’s repository and currently pins the server to V3.2.0; it does not establish support for the author’s V3.3 B18 Stable package. War3zuk remains the mod’s author. Check the selected version, use matching client files with EAC off, and test before the group joins.

Keep mods working after a game update#

A game update is the most common reason a modded server breaks overnight. The server updates when it restarts, the mods don’t, and the next morning nobody can join or half the items are gone.

1. Decide who updates first

   For servers with mods every player installs, pin the server to the exact branch or stable build the mod author supports instead of following a newer branch automatically. The server then stays put until you change it on purpose.

2. Wait for the mod authors

   When a new version comes out, check each mod’s page for a build that supports it. XML modlets are often fine; DLL mods and overhauls rarely are on day one.

3. Update on a copy

   Back up, update the server branch, replace the mods with their new builds and start it. Read the Loaded Mod lines and the warnings before anyone joins.

4. Tell the players

   Post the new game version and mod builds in your group chat, so everyone switches together.

To remove a mod, stop the server and delete its folder from Mods, or rename its ModInfo.xml so the game skips it. Removing a modlet that only changed numbers is safe. Removing one that added blocks or items can leave gaps in a world built with them, which is the backup’s job to undo.

Keep the list of installed mods and their versions next to your backups. Months later, when someone asks why a recipe is different or a block vanished, that list is the quickest way to find out what changed.