Palworld: How to Set Up a Dedicated Server

If you plan to play Palworld with friends, create a persistent world, or run a server for a guild, you will need a dedicated server. It can run separately from the game client and remain available even when the world creator is not in Palworld. In this guide, we will explain how to create a dedicated server through Steam and SteamCMD, where to find the settings file, how to open port 8211, and what to do if the server does not appear in the list.

Before installing a dedicated server, make sure your PC or VPS is suitable for running a persistent world. According to the official Palworld Dedicated Server documentation, a 4-core CPU, 16 GB of RAM, an SSD, and 64-bit Windows or Linux are recommended. For larger servers, it is better to have more than 32 GB of RAM, because low memory increases the risk of crashes and save corruption.

After buying Palworld on Steam, you will get an additional app called Palworld Dedicated Server. If it does not appear in your library, enable tools in the Steam library filter. To set up a personal server for the first time, do the following:

After configuring the file, save it and launch Palworld Dedicated Server again. If you want to make the server public in the community list, choose Open and start as a community server when launching it. For a private server, you can skip this step.

SteamCMD is needed if you want to install a dedicated server without the regular Steam client, for example on a separate PC, VPS, or Linux server. Open the official website, download the archive, and extract SteamCMD into a separate folder.

Launch SteamCMD and wait for the required components to install. Then run the command:

steamcmd +login anonymous +app_update 2394010 validate +quit

If you want to specify the installation folder in advance, you can use force_install_dir, then install the server:

After the download is finished, go to the server folder and launch PalServer.exe. On Linux, use the PalServer.sh script. For a public server, add the launch parameter -publiclobby.

The world will keep running as long as the server window is open and the computer or VPS is turned on. To connect to the server directly, enter the IP address and port in the lower field of the server list. The format is simple:

If the server is running on the same computer, try connecting through the local address 127.0.0.1:8211 or localhost:8211. If the server is hosted at home and should be available to friends, use your public IP address and make sure UDP port 8211 is open on the router and in Windows Firewall.

For a home Palworld server, you need to open UDP port 8211 on your router and allow it in Windows Firewall. To do this, open your router settings in a browser. Most often, the address looks like 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1, but the exact address depends on your router model.

In the settings, find the port forwarding section, which may be called Port Forwarding, NAT, or Virtual Server. Create a rule for the computer running the server:

If you need a server that is available around the clock, but you cannot keep your own PC running or cannot open ports, you can rent a ready-made server from a third-party hosting provider. This is easier than manual setup: hosting providers usually install the server files themselves and provide a control panel, IP address, port, backups, and quick restart options.

When choosing hosting, pay attention not only to the price, but also to the server region, number of slots, amount of RAM, SSD availability, DDoS protection, how easy it is to edit PalWorldSettings.ini, and whether the server can be updated quickly after patches.

In PalWorldSettings.ini, you can change not only the server name and password, but also the world rules. Start with the following parameters:

After changing the parameters, save the file and restart the server. You do not need to edit DefaultPalWorldSettings.ini: it is a template, not the active config file.

If the server is running, but your friends cannot connect to it, check the following:

If you are running the server at home and trying to connect to it from the same network through the public IP, the problem may be Hairpin NAT. In that case, try connecting through the local IP address of the computer running the server.