The corner of the screen says "Server overloaded", your players rubberband and dodges come out late, yet the machine running your Enshrouded dedicated server sits at 30% CPU. This guide explains what the warning is, what tends to cause it, and which fixes Keen Games' own patch notes and server docs back up.
Quick answer: The Enshrouded "Server overloaded" warning (players also quote it as "High server load") means the server process cannot keep up with running the world, so players see rubberbanding and delayed actions. It is about the server, not your own PC. Keen reworked these warnings in 1.0 because they "could trigger too soon", so update the server first: as of 1 November 2026 the newest is hotfix 1.0.0.3, Steam build 26083076. If it stays, check CPU per core instead of the total, compare RAM with Keen's figures (about 4.4 GB idle plus up to 100 MB per player), lower slotCount, restart at a quiet hour and look at bases with a lot of water.
What the server overloaded warning means
Keen has not published what exactly triggers the message. Its patch notes call these "warning messages for server performance", and the same 1.0 changelog talks about "the server tick-rate" and a server "under heavy performance load". Put simply: the server runs enemies, survivors, water and building for everyone, and the warning shows when it falls behind. Your own frame rate can be fine at the same moment.
The message has been around since Early Access. In a Steam thread from 29 January 2024, a self-hosted server shows "server overloaded" with four players on. In another from 1 February 2024, the first poster gets "High server load" as soon as a friend joins, and a later reply describes a server on a Ryzen 7 7700 virtual machine that Task Manager shows at under 30% load.
Keen's 1.0 changelog has three lines about it:
- "Reworked the warning messages for server performance. Previously, the warnings could trigger too soon."
- "Improved responsiveness of player movement input while the server is under heavy performance load."
- "A server with low performance now has less impact on gliding. Previously, the overall flight path could depend on the server tick-rate."
So a warning on a server that still runs an Early Access build tells you less than the same warning on 1.0. Rubberbanding can also come from the network, which Keen covers in a separate Network Troubleshooting article; step 6 deals with it.
What causes it
| Cause | What points to it | Where to look |
|---|---|---|
| Server on an old build | 1.0 reworked the warnings; the three hotfixes since then fixed crashes, one of them a server crash | Step 1 |
| Too little CPU for the players online | Keen: hardware needs depend "strongly on the number of players playing actively" | Step 2 |
| Not enough RAM | Keen: about 4.4 GB idle, up to 100 MB per player, under 6 GB in total | Step 3 |
| Lakes and big water builds | Hotfix #40 fixed "extreme rubberbanding" for bases near large lakes | Step 4 |
| Many enemies, survivors or other entities | Hotfix 1.0.0.2 fixed a server crash in very large fights and a crash in worlds "with a lot of entities" | Step 4 |
| A long-running session | One owner cleared it with a restart after removing crops; Keen documents no memory leak | Step 5 |
| Linux, Proton or a container | Keen supports the server on Windows only | Step 2 |
| Upload bandwidth | Keen asks for 2 Mbit/s of upload per player | Step 6 |
Step 1: Update the server to the newest build
Since the old warnings could trigger too soon, rule out an old build first. Keen has shipped three hotfixes since 1.0, the latest being 1.0.0.3 on 21 October, and Steam has served dedicated server build 26083076 (app 2278520) since that day. Keen wrote on 23 October that it would "be back next week with more fixes and improvements", but no newer hotfix had appeared by 1 November 2026.
Stop the server, copy the save folder and enshrouded_server.json somewhere safe, then run SteamCMD. On Windows:
steamcmd +force_install_dir C:\EnshroudedServer +login anonymous +app_update 2278520 validate +quit
On Linux the server is still a Windows app, so add +@sSteamCmdForcePlatformType windows before +force_install_dir. Use your own install folder in both cases.
To see which build you run, read the manifest SteamCMD keeps in the install folder:
Select-String -Path C:\EnshroudedServer\steamapps\appmanifest_2278520.acf -Pattern buildid
grep buildid /home/enshrouded/server/steamapps/appmanifest_2278520.acf
The number on that line should be 26083076 or higher. With the Steam client, the manifest sits in your Steam library's steamapps folder instead. Our Enshrouded 1.0 update guide has the full steps, Docker and old saves. On our Enshrouded server hosting, make a backup in the panel and restart the server, so SteamCMD pulls the new build.
Step 2: Check CPU per core, not the total
Several reports come from machines that look idle, such as that Ryzen 7 7700 at under 30%, or a Linux Docker container at about 50% with two players in a CubeCoders forum post from January 2025. A total CPU figure averages all cores, so a machine at 30% can still have one core that is completely busy. Keen does not say how the server spreads its work, so look while the warning is on screen.
On Windows, open Task Manager, go to Performance, then CPU, right-click the graph and pick "Change graph to", then "Logical processors". The Details tab shows the CPU and memory of enshrouded_server.exe.
On Linux with Proton or Wine, find the server process and watch its threads:
ps -eo pid,rss,args --sort=-rss | grep -i '[e]nshrouded_server' | head -n 3
top -H -p 12345
Put the PID from the first line of the ps output in place of 12345; that is the process with the most memory, normally the server itself. -H lists its threads, and a thread at or near 100% in the %CPU column is using a full core. Press 1 in top to see every core on its own.
If one core is maxed out whenever the warning appears, the server needs a faster core or less work. Keen's recommended specifications ask for an Intel Core i7 at 3.2 GHz or AMD equivalent with 6 cores and 12 threads for 4 to 6 players, and "a stronger CPU" for 16: 3.7 GHz with 8 cores and 16 threads. RAM stays at 16 GB in both. That article dates from January 2024, before Update 6 (May 2025), which says "CPU performance for multiplayer hosts and dedicated servers has been significantly optimized".
On Linux, Proton or Wine runs in between: Keen's installation article still says "For now, only Windows is supported" and gives no figure for what that layer costs. Our Linux guide covers the setup.
Step 3: Check RAM against Keen's figures
Keen's Dedicated Server FAQ gives three numbers: "~4.4GB" of RAM when idle, "up to 100MB" more per player, and the server "should not use more than 6GB" in total. With 5 players that comes to about 4.9 GB for the server process. The operating system, and Proton or Wine on Linux, come on top.
Check what the machine has left. On Windows, the Memory graph in Task Manager. On Linux:
free -h
If the available column is close to zero while the server runs, the system swaps to disk and the server slows down with everything else. The rss column from step 2 shows the server's own memory in kilobytes (divide by 1,048,576 for GB); under Proton it includes some Wine memory.
More RAM does not fix a CPU limit: Keen's own step up for 16 players is the CPU. Our player limit and RAM guide has the full table by group size.
Step 4: Lower the load in the world and the config
Fewer slots. Keen's configuration article is direct about this: "each slot (player) will increase the impact on the performance of the server. If CPU or the RAM are a bottleneck, lowering the max of available player slots can help mitigating the stress for the server." slotCount takes 1 to 16 and starts at 16.
Water. Patch #11 (November 2025) brought "the first of several planned performance improvements for both peer-to-peer and dedicated servers", most noticeable "around larger water areas". Hotfix #40 (May 2026) fixed bases near large lakes that "could experience extreme rubberbanding and performance issues", and 1.0 improved "the memory consumption and performance for the water simulation". If the warning shows up around one base with a lot of flowing water, switch its water dispensers off for a session (they have an on and off switch since Patch #11) and see whether the warning goes away.
Enemies. Keen's Hard preset "increases the amount of enemies", and randomSpawnerAmount and aggroPoolAmount go up to Many or Extreme. Keen does not call these performance settings, but hotfix 1.0.0.2 fixed "an issue that could lead to the server crashing when fighting a very large number of enemies". If the warnings come in big fights, test a session on Normal or the Default preset. Individual values only change when gameSettingsPreset is Custom, and you edit the file while the server is stopped. Our server settings guide lists every key.
Busy bases. The same hotfix fixed a crash "in a world with a lot of entities, such as enemies, survivors, mannequins, etc.", and earlier patches improved performance for "player bases with many villagers and large roaming distance set" (Patch #5) and "large player bases and large crop fields" (Patch #2). Keen has not tied entity counts to the warning, but if it only shows inside one huge base, test there.
Step 5: Restart at a quiet hour
Keen documents no memory leak and does not recommend scheduled restarts. Owner reports are mixed: in a Steam thread from April 2024, one owner writes that restarts alone had not helped, but a restart after harvesting all crops and cutting down the planted trees cleared the lag and the overload message. Another owner in the same thread still got overloads on a new server with a small base and no crops. A restart is cheap, so try it before you change hardware.
Stop the server the normal way (the stop button in your panel, or your service manager) rather than killing the process. Keen's save article says a new rolling copy of the world is written every 10 minutes or on shutdown. Wait for [Session] 'HostOnline' (up)! in the console before people join. If the warning returns after the same number of hours each time, restart nightly.
Step 6: Rule out the network
Keen's spec article asks for 2 Mbit/s of upload per player, with download "roughly" matching it: 16 Mbit/s for 8 players, 32 Mbit/s for 16. A home connection does not always have that while someone else streams video. Keen's network article also suggests a cable instead of wifi when there is packet loss.
Keep every player's game updated too. Pact of the Flame (January 2025) brought network improvements that "should result in less lag or rubberbanding issues, especially when playing with low or medium bandwidth connections". If the server's cores are not maxed out, its RAM is fine and only one or two players rubberband, look at their connections first.
When the machine is the limit
If you host on the PC you also play on, Keen's recommended specs describe a machine for the server alone; the game client needs its own CPU and memory on top.
Our Enshrouded server hosting runs the server through Proton on a shared AMD Ryzen 9, and Flame (8 GB) is the smallest plan we advise for 1.0 because of Keen's 4.4 GB idle figure. If you rent from us and the warning stays after steps 1 to 5, send us the time it appeared and how many players were online, by live chat, Discord or email (08:00 to 20:00 UTC), so we can check the node.
FAQ
Why does Enshrouded say server overloaded with only 2 players? Before 1.0 the warnings could trigger too soon, which Keen fixed in the 1.0 rework. On a current build, check single cores rather than total CPU (step 2), RAM headroom (step 3) and bases with a lot of water or survivors (step 4).
Does the server overloaded warning mean my own PC is too slow? No, it is about the server's performance, and your frame rate can be fine at the same time. If you host on your own gaming PC, though, the game and the server share one machine.
Does more RAM fix server overloaded in Enshrouded? Only if the machine is short on memory. Keen puts the server at about 4.4 GB idle and no more than 6 GB in total, and its recommendation for 16 players asks for a stronger CPU, not more RAM.
How do I fix rubberbanding on an Enshrouded dedicated server? Update the server and every player's game, then check the server's CPU per core and its RAM, cut the load with fewer slots or a session with water dispensers switched off, restart the server, and make sure you have about 2 Mbit/s of upload per player.
Did Enshrouded 1.0 fix the server overloaded warning? Keen reworked it. The 1.0 changelog says the warnings "could trigger too soon" before, and that player movement and gliding now cope better with a slow server. A server that really cannot keep up still shows it.
Sources
All opened on 1 November 2026:
- Keen Games on Steam: 1.0 changelog, Hotfix 1.0.0.1, Hotfix 1.0.0.2, Hotfix 1.0.0.3, post of 23 October 2026, Hotfix #40, Patch #11, Update 6: Thralls of Twilight, Pact of the Flame, Patch #5, Patch #2
- Keen Games: hotfix news
- Keen help center: Dedicated Server FAQ, Recommended Server Specifications, Dedicated Server Configuration, Server Gameplay Settings, Dedicated Server Installation on Steam, Save Game Management, Network Troubleshooting
- Steam app data for the Enshrouded Dedicated Server, app 2278520, read through api.steamcmd.net; Valve: SteamCMD
- Player reports on Steam: Server overloaded, High server load, Sever Overload; CubeCoders forum: Getting server overloaded messages
- Linux tools: ps(1), top(1), free(1)