Want a world that keeps running while the host is asleep, with friends joining from PC, Xbox, PS5 and Switch 2? You need a dedicated server. This guide follows Iron Gate’s official setup: installing the server through Steam, editing the start file, turning on crossplay with the -crossplay parameter, why that means no port forwarding, and how to set up admins and a whitelist.
What a dedicated server is and when you need one
A dedicated server is a separate application that hosts your Valheim world without the game running. Nobody has to be logged in for the world to exist, and friends join whenever they like. Iron Gate doesn’t run any official servers, so you host it yourself: on your own PC, a rented machine or with a hosting provider.
Valheim is a game for 1 to 10 players, and servers are capped at 10. If your group always plays together, hosting from inside the game and sharing a join code is enough. A dedicated server makes sense when people play at different times or when you don’t want the world tied to one person’s PC. For how cross-platform joining works in general, read our Valheim crossplay guide.
Installing it through Steam
- Open your Steam library.
- In the library filter, tick Tools so tools are listed.
- Find Valheim Dedicated Server and click Install.
If you own the game on the Microsoft Store, the route is different. There you start the server with StartHeadlessServer.bat in C:XboxGamesValheimContentServer, and the folder includes a manual worth reading.
Editing the start file
All server settings go into the start file: start_headless_server.bat on Windows, start_server.sh on Linux.
Don’t edit the original. Steam overwrites it on every update and your settings vanish. Make a copy, rename it and edit that one instead. The catch is that you can’t launch the copy with Steam’s Play button; you run the file directly. A small price for an update never wiping your config.
The server is up once the log shows “Game server connected”. Stop it with Ctrl+C in the server window, not by clicking the X.
Launch parameters
Parameters go after the command in the start file. These are the ones from the official guide:
| Parameter | What it sets |
|---|---|
-name | Server name |
-port | Port, default 2456. The server uses the port and port+1, so 2456–2457 |
-world | World name |
-password | Server password |
-savedir | Folder the world is saved to |
-public 1 / -public 0 | Listing in the public server list on or off |
-logFile | File the log is written to |
-saveinterval | Save interval, default 1800 seconds |
-backups | Number of backups, default 4 |
-backupshort / -backuplong | Short and long backup intervals, default 7200 and 43200 seconds |
-crossplay | Turns on crossplay through the PlayFab backend |
-instanceid | Server instance ID |
-preset | World settings preset |
-modifier | Adjusts individual world rules |
-setkey | Turns on a specific world toggle |
World presets and modifiers
-preset picks one of Normal, Casual, Easy, Hard, Hardcore, Immersive and Hammer. For finer control, -modifier covers Combat, DeathPenalty, Resources, Raids and Portals; the accepted values for each are in the official guide. -setkey switches on individual toggles: nobuildcost, playerevents, passivemobs and nomap.
Where the server saves the world
Without -savedir, the world lives in the default folder: %USERPROFILE%/AppData/LocalLow/IronGate/Valheim on Windows and ~/.config/unity3d/IronGate/Valheim on Linux. The admin and ban lists sit in the same folder.
Crossplay: the -crossplay parameter and ports
This is the main decision in the whole setup. The server can run on two different backends, and that changes who can join and what you have to do on your router.
With -crossplay | Without -crossplay | |
|---|---|---|
| Backend | PlayFab | Steam |
| Who can join | Players on all platforms | Steam players only |
| Port forwarding | Not needed, traffic goes through a relay | Required, default 2456–2457 |
With -crossplay, traffic runs through a relay, so you don’t forward any ports. Players do have to connect via your public IP and port, the join code or the server list, not via a local IP address. In this mode the port mainly tells apart several servers running on one IP.
To join with a join code, a friend opens Join Game, picks Add server and pastes the code. Xbox players can join a dedicated server when crossplay is enabled on both the server and their console. Sometimes the Xbox parental controls need adjusting too.
Without -crossplay the server runs on the Steam backend. Only Steam players can see it, and you must forward ports 2456–2457 on your router.
Admins, bans and the whitelist
Three text files in the save folder control permissions:
adminlist.txtfor admins,bannedlist.txtfor banned players,permittedlist.txtas the whitelist.
Each file takes one Platform User ID per line in the format [Platform]_[User ID], and it is case-sensitive. You’ll find your ID in the server log or in game in the panel that opens with F2. Careful with permittedlist.txt: as soon as it contains one ID, the server turns away everyone else.
Version 1.0 also introduced new IDs such as V_123456789. Older servers have IDs like Steam_123456789 in their lists. Patch 1.0.12 made the ban list and whitelist work with the old IDs too, so you don’t have to rewrite them after moving to 1.0.
Admins then use kick, ban, unban and banned in the in-game console (F5). How to enable the console and what else it does is covered in our console commands guide.
Linux and Docker
On Linux the server needs the packages libatomic1, libpulse-dev and libpulse0. The minimum is GLIBC_2.29 and GLIBCXX_3.4.26. If your distribution doesn’t have those versions, run the server through the bundled Docker script docker_start_server.sh.
Server fixes since 1.0
Patch 1.0.14 from 17 September 2026 fixed two bugs that could hit anyone playing on someone else’s server. Characters didn’t save on a manual save on a server hosted by another player, and a cache bug stopped people from connecting to remote servers. If joining was flaky right after launch, update both the server and the game. The rest of the changes are in our 1.0 update overview, and all Valheim guides live in the Valheim hub.
The full official walkthrough is Iron Gate’s A Guide to Dedicated Servers.
FAQ
Add the crossplay parameter (with a dash in front) to your start file. The server then runs on the PlayFab backend, players on every platform can join and you don’t need port forwarding.
The default port is 2456 and the server also uses the next one, so 2456–2457. You only have to forward them on the Steam backend; with crossplay, traffic goes through a relay.
Add your Platform User ID to adminlist.txt in the save folder, one ID per line. You can find the ID in the server log or in game in the F2 panel, and it is case-sensitive.
No, you can’t host a dedicated server on Xbox. You can join one from Xbox, as long as crossplay is enabled on both the server and the console.
Up to 10. The same cap applies to every Valheim server.
Information verified on 26 September 2026.