How to make a Project Zomboid server (Build 42)

⚡ The short answer

Since 29 July 2026, Build 42 is the stable version of Project Zomboid and it includes multiplayer. There are two ways to play with friends: open your game to them with Host, or run a dedicated server, which stays up even when you're not there. The first is fine for trying things out one evening; the second is what holds up over a long playthrough.

🎮 Option 1: "Host" from the game menu

From the main menu go to Host, set a name and password, choose the world settings and start. Your friends join through a Steam invite: press Esc and pick Invite Friends.

It has two limits. Your PC is the server and the game at the same time, so it carries both loads. And the world only exists while you're connected: when you quit, it ends for everyone.

🖥️ Option 2: a dedicated server

It's a separate program that you can download without signing in with the account that owns the game. If you run it yourself:

• Install it from Steam ("Project Zomboid Dedicated Server", under Tools in your library) or with SteamCMD, app 380870.
• Start it with StartServer64.bat on Windows or start-server.sh on Linux. The first time, it asks you for a password for the admin account.
• Open ports 16261 and 16262, both UDP, on your router and firewall.
• Give your friends your public IP; they connect on port 16261.

The machine has to be on whenever someone wants to play, and players connect to your home IP address.

📂 The files that define your server

Everything lives in the Zomboid folder of the user running the server:

File or folder	What it controls
Server/servertest.ini	Public name, password, number of players (MaxPlayers), PvP (PVP), pausing when nobody is on (PauseEmpty), open access or whitelist (Open) and mods.
Server/servertest_SandboxVars.lua	The rules of the world: zombies, loot, day length.
Saves/Multiplayer/servertest	The world and the characters. This is what you copy to make a backup.

"servertest" is just the server's default name, not a test mode. Edit these files with the server stopped.

👑 Making yourself admin

The admin account from the first start already has full permissions. To give them to your regular user, join the server once with it and type this in the server console:

setaccesslevel "YourUsername" admin

From the in-game chat, commands take a leading slash: /setaccesslevel.

🧩 Mods, and what happens to your Build 41 world

On Build 42, only mods updated for Build 42 work. Copying the mod list from an old server is a common reason a new one won't start: check each mod on its Workshop page. On a server, mods are declared in two lines of the .ini, WorkshopItems= and Mods=; we cover it in how to add mods to Project Zomboid, and if you're adding them to a world already in progress, first read whether you can add mods to an existing save.

Build 41 worlds can't be continued on Build 42: a Build 42 server starts with a fresh map. If you want to keep playing the old one, Steam keeps Build 41 on the legacy41 branch.

💾 How much memory you need

It depends on the number of players and, above all, on the mods. As a guide:

• 6 GB for a small group with few mods.
• 8 to 12 GB if you run a lot of mods or have more players.

Start with what fits your group and move up if memory gets tight.

🚀 With a server at ZentexNode

If you'd rather not leave a PC on or open ports at home, on a Project Zomboid server the process comes down to this:

• You pick a plan (Zomboid plans start at 6 GB) and the server is activated automatically once you pay.
• The panel gives you the console, where you type the admin command, and the config files for sandbox settings, PvP and the password.
• Mods are added from the Mods tab by pasting the link to a mod or to a Steam Workshop collection.
• Before any big change, take a backup from the panel itself.

If the group grows or you add mods, you can move up a plan without losing the world.