How to Create a Valheim Server Guide

Creating a Valheim game server is an easy process that can be done from either a dedicated server or your home computer. Alternatively, you can choose a Valheim server host that will fit your needs.

Option #1: Renting a Valheim server (see example control panel below!)

Server Requirements

Windows 7, 8, 8.1, Server 2016, Server 2019 & 64-Bit

Quad Core processor (requires up to 2 full cores)

Up to 16GB memory (currently uses around 2GB memory)

2GB disk space (install folder)

Step 1: Fetching Game Server files

The best method to get dedicated server game files is via the dedicated server depot on Steam via SteamCMD.

1. Create a folder where you wish to store your Valheim game server hosting files
2. Inside of the folder, place the newly downloading SteamCMD.exe file
3. Create a batch file named SteamCMD.bat
4. Place the following code in this batch file:

@echo off

start "" steamcmd.exe +login USER PASS +force_install_dir "C:\Some\Path\Where\You\Want\Game\Server\Files\To\Go" +app_update 896660 validate +quit

1. Right-click SteamCMD.bat and Run as Administrator
2. Your game server files should be completely downloaded by now

Step 2: Setting up a Valheim Dedicated Server

1. Create a batch file named ValheimServer.bat in your newly created Valheim server folder from step 1
2. Place the following code in this batch file:

start valheimServer.exe -nographics -batchmode -name "My server" -port 2456 -world "Dedicated" -password "secret" -public 1

Step 3: Configuring your Valheim Server

Now comes the fun part, setting up your Valheim game server to your liking. There are some launch parameters to be aware of.

-name "My server" - Names the server
-password "secret" - Sets a password
-crossplay - Enabled crossplay
-saveinterval "15" - Sets a custom save interval

There are also a few files that can be configured for admin purposes.

adminlist.txt - stores user admins using Steam IDs (1 per line)
bannedlist.txt - bans users using Steam IDs (1 per line)
permittedlist.txt - whitelists allowed users by Steam ID (1 per line)

You can modify some settings using the launch line but additional settings can be configured by installing and using Valheim+.

Step 3: Port Forwarding

Add an incoming rule to your Windows Firewall to allow TCP/UDP port (game port) 2456, (Steam query port) 2457 (or whichever ports you decide to use)

You may additionally need to add a forwarding rule to your network router. You can use PortForward.com to read how to do this.

Location of World Save Data

To locate your save folder, navigate to this folder:

%userprofile%/AppData/LocalLow/IronGate/Valheim/Worlds

There will be two files:

• Dedicated.db (your map data)
• Dedicated.fwl (your identifier which includes your worldname and seed)

Additional Resources and Reading

Admin Commands

How to Join a Valheim Server