How to host an Enshrouded server (2026)

Short answer. You can host an Enshrouded server yourself for free: download the Enshrouded Dedicated Server (Steam app 2278520) with SteamCMD using an anonymous login, run enshrouded_server.exe once so it creates enshrouded_server.json, set the server name and change the passwords of its user groups, and open the port in queryPort (15637 by default) on your firewall and router. Or rent an Enshrouded server and skip the networking.

Players join from the game's Play menu: choose Join game, search your server's name and enter the password.

Checked on 5 November 2026, accurate for game version 1.0.1.2 (Hotfix #5, 4 November 2026).

This guide uses Keen Games' Steam announcements, the store page of the dedicated server, the enshrouded_server_readme.txt file Keen Games ships with the server, and what we run on our own Enshrouded servers. To go straight to the rental route, see Option 2.

What you need

• The server software: "Enshrouded Dedicated Server" on Steam (app 2278520). It is free, and Steam lists it for Windows only.
• Steam account: not needed to download it. The install command uses +login anonymous.
• Hardware: Keen Games does not list server requirements on the server's store page or in the server's readme.
• Network: the port set in queryPort in enshrouded_server.json (15637 by default), reachable from the internet. Keen Games' readme says to change it only with caution; if you do, forward the new value.
• The game: every player needs Enshrouded on Steam. A server takes 1 to 16 players (slotCount).
• The same version as your players. Keen Games' patch notes have asked server owners to update the server whenever a patch changes the version, and a server on a different version than the game shows up as a version mismatch.

You pay for the machine, power and bandwidth, not the software.

Option 1: host it yourself

This works on a spare Windows PC or a Windows cloud machine. The download steps come from Valve's SteamCMD tool and the store page of the server.

Windows

1. Get SteamCMD from https://steamcdn-a.akamaihd.net/client/installer/steamcmd.zip and extract it to a folder such as C:\steamcmd.
2. Download the server. In a Command Prompt:

   cd C:\steamcmd
   steamcmd +force_install_dir C:\EnshroudedServer +login anonymous +app_update 2278520 validate +quit

3. Start it once. Run enshrouded_server.exe from C:\EnshroudedServer. Keen Games' Hotfix #21 (29 January 2025) fixed the default config not being created when the file did not exist, and the server's readme confirms that a fresh enshrouded_server.json is created next to enshrouded_server.exe when none exists.
4. Stop the server and edit enshrouded_server.json. The keys most people change are name, slotCount and the passwords in userGroups. A fresh file starts with four groups, Admin, Friend, Guest and Visitor, each with a random password. Change only the values and keep the other keys the server wrote, for example:

   "name": "My Enshrouded Server",
   "slotCount": 16,
   "userGroups": [
     { "name": "Admin", "password": "a-password-for-you", ... },
     { "name": "Friend", "password": "a-password-for-friends", ... },
     ...
   ]

   A player gets the rights of the group whose password they type, so give the Friend password to friends and keep the Admin password to yourself. The 1.0 notes say user groups and their passwords work on a dedicated server as before. Keen Games recommends always setting a password, so nobody but your friends can reach your base.
5. Open the port. Allow the queryPort value through Windows Firewall, then forward it on your router to this PC. Keen Games' readme names this one port but not a protocol, so if you are unsure, allow it for both UDP and TCP.
6. Start the server again. When it is ready, search its name in the game's server list, or search by IP: the game's search-by-IP box shows the port information it needs.

Linux

Steam lists the Enshrouded server for Windows only, so there is no official Linux build to follow. On our own Linux hosts we download the Windows files and run them under Proton. The download command we use:

./steamcmd.sh +force_install_dir /home/container +login anonymous +@sSteamCmdForcePlatformType windows +app_info_update 1 +app_update 2278520 validate +quit

The game files are only half the work: running enshrouded_server.exe needs Proton set up on top, which we do not cover here because Keen Games does not document it. If you want a Linux machine without that work, the next section is the shorter route.

What else the config can do

• Difficulty: since update 0.7.3.0 (29 July 2024) the config has a preset, gameSettingsPreset (Default, Relaxed, Hard, Survival or Custom), and individual settings under gameSettings that apply with Custom. They cannot be changed while playing, so stop the server, edit them and start it again.
• User groups: each group has its own password and its own rights: canKickBan, canAccessInventories, canEditWorld, canEditBase and canExtendBase, plus reservedSlots to keep slots free for that group. You can add your own groups. In our own tests the server refused to start when a group without a password had more rights than a group with one, so give a passwordless group the fewest rights.
• Tags: since the Wake of the Water update (10 November 2025) a dedicated server can set tags in tags, such as LookingForPlayers, BaseBuilding, Exploration, Roleplay and language tags, so players can filter the list.
• Voice chat: since the Pact of the Flame update (January 2025), hosts and server admins can turn it on. On a dedicated server it is off by default: set enableVoiceChat to true and voiceChatMode to Proximity or Global.
• Keen Games' own readme: the Wake of the Water patch notes tell server owners to read enshrouded_server_readme.txt for the new options. It sits in the server folder and is the place to check the full list.

Option 2: host it on PlayNHost

Renting removes the download, the firewall and the update routine. The port and the config file are set up for you.

1. Pick a plan. Open the Enshrouded server hosting page and compare the plans (SILVER CHEST and HUGE CHEST at the time of writing). Press Create Server on SILVER CHEST or Customize Plan on HUGE CHEST and finish the order.
2. Wait for the install. You get an email titled "Your Enshrouded server is ready" and the server appears at panel.playnhost.com. On the Console tab, the panel counts the server as running when it prints [Session] 'HostOnline' (up)!.
3. Open Settings, then Game Settings. These fields are written into enshrouded_server.json each time the server starts:
   • Server Name: the name players search for.
   • Server Password: the join password, written into the Default user group.
   • Max Players: set by your plan.
   Under Show advanced, Auto Update is on by default and checks Steam for a new server build each time the server starts.
4. Restart. When the panel shows "Saved. The server must restart before these take effect.", press Restart now and wait for the ready line.
5. Join. In Enshrouded choose Play, then Join game, search your server's name and enter the Server Password.

What the panel does for you

• Fields it writes at every start. The panel sets name, slotCount, queryPort and the Default group's password before the server starts. Everything else in the file, such as difficulty and the other user groups, is yours and is kept.
• A safe first config. Our install creates two user groups: Default, with your join password, and Admin, with its own random password and the right to kick and ban. Default has no kick or ban rights, so the server still starts when you leave the Server Password empty: in our tests the server refused to start when a group without a password had more rights than a group with one. Keep that in mind if you add groups by hand.
• A download that is checked. SteamCMD downloads sometimes fail and still report success, which would leave an empty server that dies on its first boot. Our install script retries up to three times and only accepts the download once Steam has written its app manifest.
• A fallback on updates. If an update at start does not report success, the startup command removes the old build record and downloads again with validation, instead of running a half-updated server.
• Worlds. The Worlds page lets you rewind to earlier copies and use Upload a world to bring your own world0.ksd.

Self-hosting or renting: an honest comparison

• Cost. Self-hosted: the software is free, and you pay for hardware, power and bandwidth, or a Windows cloud machine. Rented: a monthly fee set by plan. See the current plans.
• Availability. Self-hosted: as reliable as your machine and home internet, and it has to stay on whenever your friends play. Rented: runs on the host's hardware, not your PC.
• Operating system. Self-hosted: the supported route is Windows. Rented: nothing to install, whatever system your own PC runs.
• Network exposure. Self-hosted: players connect to your public IP, and you look after the firewall and router. Rented: your home IP is not involved.
• Skill needed. Self-hosted: command line, port forwarding and JSON editing. Rented: a web panel with form fields.
• Updates. Self-hosted: stop, run the SteamCMD command again, start. Rented: Auto Update installs a new build when the server starts, so restart the server after a patch.

Self-hosting suits you if a Windows PC already runs all day and you are comfortable with networking. Renting suits you if you would rather not look after hardware.

Next steps

• How to join your Enshrouded server
• Enshrouded server settings: every option explained
• How to update your Enshrouded server
• How to upload your own Enshrouded world

Ready to skip the setup? See the Enshrouded server plans.