Make your Palworld server privateServer password, visibility and bans

Published on August 9, 2026 · last updated on October 21, 2026

Setting the server password

The most effective protection. The value is in PalWorldSettings.ini:

ServerPassword="yourServerPassword"

Do not confuse it with AdminPassword - that is a different value for a different purpose, see Become admin. The server password controls who gets onto the server at all; the admin password controls who may execute commands there.

As with every change to this file, the order matters: stop the server, edit, save, start. If the server is still running while you save, it overwrites the file with its own state when shutting down.

Choosing, sharing and changing the password

The value does not sit on a line of its own, but in the middle of the long, comma-separated OptionSettings bracket, where quotation marks delimit it. That leads to the only real restriction when choosing one: no quotation marks, no commas, no brackets, no spaces. Letters and digits are no problem, and length costs nothing.

Always pass the password on together with the address, otherwise half of the group only gets as far as the server list. A ready-made line to copy causes the fewest questions: the fixed server address made up of IP and port as shown in the web interface, with the password below it. The default port 8211 is only the game's preset - what counts is the port shown in your panel. The ways for each platform are in Join a server.

A change only takes effect after a restart and then locks out everyone who does not have the new string. So announce it instead of slipping it in between - and test it yourself via direct connection before you share the new password.

Visibility in the community list

Separately from the password, you control whether your server is listed publicly at all. Together, the two give four sensible combinations:

The last row is a deceptive combination: an unlisted server without a password is not private, just harder to find. For a closed group, the password is part of it.

By the way: the community list is unreliable anyway - do not rely on it when testing, see Connection problems.

When the password does not take effect

The typical case: the server can be entered without a prompt, even though the value has been entered. Three causes cover practically everything:

1. The server was running while you saved. When shutting down, it writes back its own state and overwrites your change. So the order is: stop, edit, save, start.
2. The bracketed line is broken. If a comma or a quotation mark is missing, Palworld silently discards the whole line and starts with the default values.
3. It was the wrong file. What counts is the PalWorldSettings.ini in the server's configuration folder, not the template file that comes with it.

You can recognize the second case by a telltale side effect: it is not just the password that is missing, server name and adjusted rates are back to default too. So if several settings have disappeared at the same time, you are not looking for three errors, but for a single typo in one line - more on this in PalWorldSettings.ini explained.

The result can only be checked from the outside anyway: join once yourself via direct connection. If there is no password prompt, the server is open - regardless of what the file says.

Bans: locking out individuals

For an open server on which individual players cause trouble, the admin commands are enough. After logging in as admin:

/BanPlayer <SteamID>
/KickPlayer <SteamID>
/ShowPlayers

/ShowPlayers is the practical starting point: it lists the connected players together with the IDs you need for the other commands. The complete overview is in Admin commands & RCON.

Via RCON, the same commands can be sent from outside - handy when you are not in the game.

What fits which group

• Fixed group of friends: do not list the server and set a password. Give the group the address made up of IP and port plus the password, done.
• Community with applications: list the server and set a password - the server is visible, and you get the password once you have been accepted.
• Open server: list it, no password, but work consistently with bans.

With open servers, keep the resource requirements in mind: Palworld is memory-hungry, and a full server behaves very differently from four friends - guideline values in How much RAM does a Palworld server need?.

Frequently asked questions