Enshrouded Dedicated Server: Setup, Settings and Passwords Explained

Enshrouded's dedicated server is a free Windows tool that comes with the Steam version of the game: install it from the Tools section of your library, run it once to generate enshrouded_server.json, then edit that file to set the server name, up to 16 slots, passwords for each permission group and a difficulty preset. Friends join through the in-game server browser once "show dedicated servers" is ticked in the filter.

This guide is built on Keen Games' own Multiplayer and Server Hosting knowledge base (articles updated between 16 and 23 October 2026), the 1.0 changelog of 14 October and the hotfix notes since. Checked against hotfix 1.0.0.3 on 23 October 2026. Community workarounds are labelled as such.

How do you install the Enshrouded dedicated server?

There is nothing separate to buy. According to Keen's installation article, owning Enshrouded on Steam automatically unlocks "Enshrouded Dedicated Server" as a tool. The steps:

1. In your Steam library, enable the Tools filter so tools appear in the list, then download Enshrouded Dedicated Server.
2. Right-click it, choose Properties, open Installed Files and click Browse to open the install folder.
3. Start enshrouded_server.exe directly from that folder. On first launch it creates enshrouded_server.json next to the exe.
4. Close the server, edit enshrouded_server.json in any text editor, save it and start the exe again.
5. Wait for the console window to report the session online. Keen gives lines such as "[Session] 'HostOnline' (up)!" as the sign that the server has fully started.

What hardware does an Enshrouded server need?

Keen scales its recommended specifications by group size, and the CPU is the part that changes. Its server FAQ adds that the process idles at about 4.4 GB of RAM, needs up to 100 MB more per player and should stay under 6 GB in total. The server files take about 13 GB uncompressed, which is why Keen asks for 30 GB free.

World saves start at about 1 MB and grow towards 100 MB in worlds full of large bases, and the server writes one every five minutes. If your machine struggles, Keen's own suggestion is to lower the slot count rather than fight the hardware.

What does each line of enshrouded_server.json do?

The top of the file holds the basic server settings, documented in Keen's configuration article. Below them sit the gameSettings block (difficulty) and the userGroups block (passwords), covered in the next two sections.

How do passwords and user groups work?

A dedicated server has no single password any more. Each entry in userGroups has its own name, password and permission switches, and the password a player types decides which group they land in. Keen's roles article says a freshly generated file comes with randomised passwords, so you need to open the file to find or replace them before anyone can join.

The switches behind that table are canKickBan, canAccessInventories, canEditWorld, canEditBase and canExtendBase. You can add your own groups with any mix of them, for example one that may use chests and workstations but cannot place or remove blocks. A reservedSlots value keeps places free for a group: with Admin set to 1, the lobby shows as full to everyone else before the last slot goes.

Upgrading an old server? Keen says a password left on the legacy "password" line is no longer used as the server password; instead the server turns it into a group called "default" with Friend-level permissions, so existing players keep joining as before. The four preset groups are only generated when the file is created from scratch.

Which difficulty preset should your server use?

gameSettingsPreset takes five values, described in Keen's Server Gameplay Settings article. Default is the one Keen recommends for first-time players. Relaxed cuts enemy numbers and hands out more resources and loot, aimed at builders. Hard adds more and more aggressive enemies. Survival stacks extra survival mechanics on top of that. Custom unlocks the long list of individual values in the gameSettings block: Keen says they can only be tweaked when Custom is selected, so set the preset first.

Two quirks are worth knowing. Time values are written in nanoseconds, so the default 30-minute day is 1800000000000. Numbers outside the allowed range are clamped to the nearest limit, but invalid text stops the server from booting and the console names the bad value. Keen's article also contradicts itself on one default: the text gives 0.1 for perkUpgradeRecyclingFactor (runes returned when salvaging upgraded weapons) while its sample file shows 0.5, so trust the value your own generated file contains.

What changed for servers in Enshrouded 1.0?

The 1.0 changelog changes roles mostly for peer-to-peer hosts: they now set one password with a default permission level and can promote or demote each player from the social menu, and the game remembers that role next time. On dedicated servers, Keen says user groups and passwords "work as before" and promoting or demoting is not possible while playing on the server, so the JSON file is still where roles live.

1.0 also added world settings that are not yet in Keen's server article: an "Automatic" enemy amount that scales encounters to the number of players nearby, a configurable updraft charge duration, and an option to lower the Flame level needed to push back the Shroud (level 11 by default). Keen has not published their JSON names. Since Keen advises deleting a server file that was updated incorrectly so a fresh one is generated, starting from a new 1.0 file is the cleanest way to see which options it exposes. Hotfix 1.0.0.2 (16 October) then fixed a bug that blocked world settings from being configured and a server crash when fighting very large numbers of enemies.

How do friends join, and why can't they see the server?

Players pick Join in the main menu and tick "Show dedicated servers" in the server filter; without it, dedicated servers are not listed at all. The same filter can narrow the list to password-protected servers, Steam friends' sessions or servers with free slots. Clicking the star marks a server as a favourite and pins it to the top. If it still does not appear, Keen's favourite-by-IP guide uses the Steam client: View, Game Servers, Favourites, then the + button with the server's IP and query port written as IP:15637. Favourited servers are listed first in the game.

If players still cannot connect, check the basics Keen lists: the server is IPv4 only, the query port must be open in your firewall (and forwarded on your router if friends connect from outside your network), and Steam needs its usual ports. A server file left over from an old version can also be updated incorrectly; Keen's fix is to delete enshrouded_server.json and let the exe recreate it, then copy your passwords back in. By comparison, Valheim's crossplay servers skip port forwarding entirely by routing through a relay, as our Valheim crossplay guide explains.

What is saved on the server and what stays with your character?

The server stores the world: bases, unlocked crafting stations, rescued survivors and the world's progression. Characters are saved on each player's own machine, never on the server. Keen's official FAQ says a character moving to another server keeps its equipment, inventory, level, skills, map memory, personal recipes, Shroud roots already collected, lore and towers it found itself. It loses most crafting recipes tied to NPCs and stations, the survivors you can summon and towers found by other players. Joining a friend's fresh server with a late-game character therefore means rescuing the survivors again.

Can you host on Linux, PS5 or a rented server?

Officially, only Windows is supported; Keen says Linux support is planned for later. Threads in r/Enshrouded share community tools for running it on Linux, but Keen does not document that route. Keen's documentation offers no server tool for consoles, and the launch FAQ confirms there is no cross-platform play yet, so a PC server cannot host PS5 friends. For PS5, G-Portal, the host Keen partners with in-game, sells PS5 Enshrouded servers listed with up to 8 players. Renting on PC is also an option if you would rather not keep a machine running all day.

What to read next

Moving an old Early Access world to your new server? Our Enshrouded 1.0 guide to what's new and what happens to Early Access saves covers the save migration. Still deciding whether the group should buy in? The Enshrouded 1.0 review roundup weighs critics against Steam players, and everything else lives on the Enshrouded hub.