7 Days to Die Admin and Console Commands (V3.4)

Someone is griefing your base, a friend needs moderator rights, or you want to see who is online without joining. On a 7 Days to Die dedicated server that all runs through console commands, and every command a player types is checked against one file, serveradmin.xml. Below: that file, how to make yourself admin, where to type commands and the ones admins use most, checked on 1 November 2026 against V3.4.0, the stable build since 26 October.

Quick answer: To become admin on a 7 Days to Die server, give your account permission level 0. In the server's own console or over telnet, while you are online, lpi shows your entity ID and admin add 171 0 (with your ID instead of 171) makes you admin. Or add <user platform="Steam" userid="your SteamID64" permission_level="0" /> to the <users> section of serveradmin.xml in the server's Saves folder. Lower numbers mean more power: players who are not in the file have level 1000, and commands that are not in the file need level 0. In game, F1 opens the console.

Where serveradmin.xml Lives and How Levels Work

AdminFileName in serverconfig.xml names the file, and its comment puts it in UserDataFolder/Saves. Unless you set UserDataFolder, that is %APPDATA%\7DaysToDie\Saves\serveradmin.xml on Windows and ~/.local/share/7DaysToDie/Saves/serveradmin.xml on Linux, in the home folder of the account that runs the server. It sits next to the world folders, so one list covers every save on that install.

The comments at the top of the file set the rules:

• Levels run from 0 to 1000, and a user may run any command whose level is equal to or above their own, so level 0 runs everything.
• Users who are not in the file have level 1000.
• Commands that are not in the file need level 0: only admins at 0 and the server's own console can run them.
• Everything between <!-- and --> is a comment. The shipped examples are all commented out, and editing one without removing those marks is the classic reason an admin entry does nothing.

platform is Steam, EOS, XBL or PSN, and userid is the ID on that platform, such as the SteamID64 for Steam. The comments say the server log records the IDs whenever a player logs in, and they name SteamID64 lookup sites such as steamid.io. PlayStation and Xbox players on a crossplay server go in with the PSN, XBL or EOS ID from that log line.

How to Become Admin on Your 7 Days to Die Server

admin is not in the shipped command list, so in game it needs level 0, which nobody has yet. The first admin is therefore made from the server side, in one of two ways.

With a command, while you are online. Join, then run this in the server's own console: the terminal window on Windows, telnet, or the console in your host's panel.

lpi
admin add 171 0

lpi (listplayerids) lists the players and their IDs; use your entity ID instead of 171. The official wiki adds that admin add also takes a player name.

By editing the file, which also works while you are offline. Add your line inside <users>, outside any comment. The IDs below are the examples from The Fun Pimps' own comments, so put yours in their place; name is optional:

<users>
  <user platform="Steam" userid="76561198021925107" name="Owner" permission_level="0" />
  <user platform="EOS" userid="0002604bc42244e099c1bf05145fb71f" name="Moderator" permission_level="100" />
</users>

The server reloads the file when it is changed from outside, for example by your text editor, so no restart is needed. The header still recommends console commands such as admin, or the Web Dashboard, over hand edits.

To test, join, press F1 and run lp (listplayers). It is not in the shipped list, so a normal player is refused and an admin gets the player list.

Four Places to Type Commands

The F1 Console in Game

F1 opens the console on US and EU keyboards. On a dedicated server, what you type there runs at your level from serveradmin.xml. help lists the commands and help <command> prints the syntax your build accepts.

The Server Terminal and Telnet

The server can run every command itself. On Windows its terminal window takes commands while TerminalWindowEnabled is true, the default. Telnet is on by default too, with these shipped settings:

On the server, telnet localhost 8081 opens the console. shutdown stops the whole server, not just your session, so run saveworld first.

The telnet protocol (RFC 854) has no encryption, so a password and every command would cross the network as plain text. From your own PC, keep the password empty and tunnel over SSH:

ssh -N -L 8081:127.0.0.1:8081 user@your-server-ip
# then, in a second terminal on your PC:
telnet 127.0.0.1 8081

-L forwards port 8081 on your PC to 127.0.0.1:8081 on the server through the encrypted SSH connection, and -N runs no remote command. Our SSH tunnel guide covers the method in depth. If you set a password anyway, make it long and random and allow port 8081 only from your own IP: a 10-second block after 10 wrong tries barely slows a guessing script.

The Web Dashboard and Its API

The Web Dashboard replaced the old web control panel in Alpha 21, and since V3.0 it is part of the game's core code instead of a bundled mod. It is off by default; set these in your config and restart:

<property name="WebDashboardEnabled" value="true"/>
<property name="WebDashboardPort" value="8080"/>
<property name="EnableMapRendering" value="true"/>

EnableMapRendering is optional and renders the map tiles the dashboard shows. WebDashboardUrl stays empty unless a reverse proxy sits in front; then it holds the full public URL.

Open http://your-server-ip:8080/ and sign in with Steam, through Steam's OpenID sign-in, or with a username and password. For the second, run createwebuser in the F1 console while you are on the server and follow its steps right away, because the registration expires after a few minutes; the shipped file opens that command to everyone. Either way you get your level from serveradmin.xml. The dashboard speaks plain HTTP, so keep port 8080 closed to the internet and use a tunnel (ssh -N -L 8080:127.0.0.1:8080 user@your-server-ip) or an HTTPS reverse proxy.

API tokens let a bot run commands without signing in. Create one in the console, then send commands to /api/command, the endpoint The Fun Pimps documented when the dashboard arrived. Run the curl line on the server or through the tunnel:

webtokens add statusbot replace-with-a-long-random-secret 1000

curl -s -X POST http://127.0.0.1:8080/api/command \
  -H "X-SDTD-API-TOKENNAME: statusbot" \
  -H "X-SDTD-API-SECRET: replace-with-a-long-random-secret" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"command": "gettime"}'

A token acts at its own level. This one, at 1000, can only run commands open to everyone, such as gettime; a token at 0 could also run ban and shutdown. webtokens list shows your tokens and webtokens remove statusbot deletes this one; tokens can also go into <apitokens> by hand.

7 Days to Die Console Commands for Admins

Names and syntax follow the official wiki's command list and The Fun Pimps' notes. For a player, use the name or the entity ID from lpi; the ID avoids trouble with spaces in names.

Notes on the table:

• settime 8 6 0 means day 8 at 06:00. The official wiki warns that settime "runs a high risk of breaking everything timer related on your save game", so back up first.
• tele takes east-west, height, then north-south, with south and west negative; tele 171 182 moves player 171 to player 182.
• dm allows god mode and the debug menu. Neither dm nor cm is in the shipped list, so both are admin only.
• V3.4 fixed getsandboxoptions not printing changed values when it prints all options.
• give and listitems are part of the game itself since V3.3; the notes for its b18 experimental build list them as "available again". Item names are also in the game's Data/Config/items.xml.

Moderators, Reserved Slots and Twitch

Levels between 0 and 1000 make ranks, for example 0 for admins, 100 for moderators and 1000 for everyone else. To let player 182 kick and ban:

admin add 182 100
cp add kick 100
cp add ban 100

Everyone at 100 or lower can now run kick and ban, including ban list and ban remove, while the commands you did not open stay at 0. cp remove drops a command from the list, and it falls back to 0.

Three settings in serverconfig.xml use the same scale:

• ServerReservedSlots (default 0) keeps that many slots for players at ServerReservedSlotsPermission (default 100) or lower.
• ServerAdminSlots (default 0) lets that many admins join a full server, at ServerAdminSlotsPermission (default 0) or lower.
• TwitchServerPermission (default 90) is the level Twitch integration needs. A streamer who is not in serveradmin.xml has 1000, so give them 90 or lower.

On our 7 Days to Die server hosting you have full access to serverconfig.xml, so you can set all three yourself.

When a Command Is Refused

1. The entry is still inside a comment. Check the comment marks around your <user> line.
2. Wrong ID or platform. Steam players need platform="Steam" and the SteamID64, console players PSN, XBL or EOS. Copy IDs from the login lines in the log instead of typing them.
3. The command needs a lower number. Anything missing from <commands> needs 0, and cp list shows what is open.
4. The server reads another file. AdminFileName and UserDataFolder decide which file counts, so an edited copy elsewhere changes nothing.
5. The log says why. Since A21.2 the server logs the commands it ran or refused for players.
6. Telnet refuses outside connections. With an empty TelnetPassword it only listens on 127.0.0.1, by design.

Commands do move between versions, as give and listitems did before V3.3, so check version and help after each game update. Back up serveradmin.xml with your save first; our V3.4 server update guide has the update steps.

FAQ

How do I make myself admin on a 7 Days to Die server? Give your account level 0: run lpi and then admin add <your entity ID> 0 in the server console or over telnet, or add a <user> line with your ID and permission_level="0" to <users> in serveradmin.xml.

How do I open the console in 7 Days to Die? Press F1 on US and EU keyboards, then type help for the list of commands.

How do I turn on the creative menu or debug mode on my server? As an admin, type cm or dm in the F1 console. Both need level 0 unless you open them to a rank with cp add.

Do I need to restart after editing serveradmin.xml? No. The server reloads the file when it is changed from outside, for example by your text editor.

What is the default telnet password? There is none. TelnetPassword ships empty, so telnet only listens on 127.0.0.1: connect on the server with telnet localhost 8081, or from your PC through an SSH tunnel.

Where do I find item names for the give command? Run listitems, part of the game again since V3.3, or look in the game's Data/Config/items.xml; help give shows the syntax.

Sources

All opened on 1 November 2026:

• The Fun Pimps on Steam: V3.4.0 Stable -b9 hotfix, V3.3.0 EXP b18 update, V3.0.0 b259 EXP, V3.0 "Dead Hot Summer" release notes, V2.5 Survival Revival Stable, A21.2 b37 hotfix, A21.2 b30 Stable, A21 Streamer Weekend, with the Web Dashboard notes
• Steam app info for the 7 Days to Die Dedicated Server, app 294420, the data SteamCMD prints with app_info_print
• Official 7 Days to Die Wiki: Command Console, Server
• 7 Days to Die Modding Wiki: Setting Up a Dedicated Server, which reproduces the default V3.1 serverconfig.xml and serveradmin.xml with The Fun Pimps' comments
• The dashboard's source code in Alloc's TFP-WebServer repository: changesets 512 and 516, and at revision 511 WebTokens.cs, SessionHandler.cs, UserRegistrationTokens.cs and Command.openapi.yaml
• OpenBSD manual: ssh(1)
• IETF: RFC 854, Telnet Protocol Specification
• steamid.io lookup, one of the SteamID64 lookup sites named in the comments of serveradmin.xml