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Everything about your Enshrouded dedicated server — its name, player slots, difficulty, and permission groups — lives in a single file: enshrouded_server.json in your server’s root directory. This guide walks through the file section by section and shows you how to edit it safely from the Game Panel.
Always edit enshrouded_server.json while the server is stopped. The server reads the file on startup and can overwrite your changes (or ignore them) if it’s running while you edit.

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Editing the File

1

Stop the server

In the Game Panel, open your server and click Stop. Wait for the console to confirm it has shut down.
2

Open the File Manager

Go to the File Manager tab and open enshrouded_server.json in the server’s root directory. You can also edit it over SFTP — see File Management.
3

Make your changes and save

Edit the values you need (details below), then save the file. The file is strict JSON — a missing comma or quote will prevent the server from loading your settings.
4

Start the server

Click Start and watch the console to confirm the server boots with your new settings.

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Annotated Example

{
  "name": "My Enshrouded Server",
  "saveDirectory": "./savegame",
  "logDirectory": "./logs",
  "ip": "0.0.0.0",
  "gamePort": 15636,
  "queryPort": 15637,
  "slotCount": 16,
  "gameSettingsPreset": "Default",
  "gameSettings": {},
  "userGroups": []
}
KeyWhat it does
nameThe server name shown in the in-game browser. Make it distinctive so players can find it by search.
saveDirectoryWhere world saves are written (default ./savegame). Leave as-is unless you have a reason to change it.
logDirectoryWhere server logs are written (default ./logs).
ipThe address the server binds to. Leave at the value set by our panel.
gamePortThe UDP game port (default 15636).
queryPortThe UDP query port used by server browsers and Steam favorites (default 15637).
slotCountMaximum concurrent players, up to Enshrouded’s cap of 16.
gameSettingsPresetDifficulty preset: Default, Relaxed, Hard, Survival, or Custom.
gameSettingsIndividual gameplay overrides — only applied when the preset is Custom.
userGroupsNamed permission groups with their own join passwords.
Do not change ip, gamePort, or queryPort on a Wasabi Hosting server. These are pre-configured to match your server’s network allocation — changing them will make the server unreachable. See Join Your Server for how ports are used.

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Difficulty Presets

Set gameSettingsPreset to one of:
PresetExperience
DefaultThe balanced experience Enshrouded is designed around
RelaxedEasier survival — friendlier for casual groups and builders
HardTougher enemies and harsher survival mechanics
SurvivalThe most punishing ruleset for veteran groups
CustomUses your own values from the gameSettings block

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Custom Game Settings

When the preset is Custom, the gameSettings object lets you tune individual gameplay values. A few examples of the kinds of settings available:
Example settingWhat it controls
Resource yield multipliersHow much you harvest from mining, chopping, and looting
Enemy damage / health factorsHow hard enemies hit and how tanky they are
Day and night lengthHow long each part of the day/night cycle lasts
Player survival factorsStamina, health, and similar player-side multipliers
The settings above are examples, not a complete reference. The full list of keys (and their exact names and value ranges) is defined by the game — start the server once on the Custom preset and inspect the generated enshrouded_server.json, or check the official Enshrouded dedicated server documentation for the current list.

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User Groups and Passwords

Instead of a single server password, Enshrouded uses named user groups, each with its own password and permission flags. When a player joins and enters a password, the matching group determines what they’re allowed to do. 
{
  "userGroups": [
    {
      "name": "Admin",
      "password": "ChangeMeAdmin",
      "canKickBan": true,
      "canAccessInventories": true,
      "canEditBase": true,
      "canExtendBase": true,
      "reservedSlots": 1
    },
    {
      "name": "Friend",
      "password": "ChangeMeFriend",
      "canKickBan": false,
      "canAccessInventories": true,
      "canEditBase": true,
      "canExtendBase": false,
      "reservedSlots": 0
    },
    {
      "name": "Guest",
      "password": "ChangeMeGuest",
      "canKickBan": false,
      "canAccessInventories": false,
      "canEditBase": false,
      "canExtendBase": false,
      "reservedSlots": 0
    }
  ]
}
  • password — what a player types when connecting. Give the Admin password only to people you trust with kick/ban powers.
  • canKickBan — allows removing players from the server.
  • canAccessInventories — allows opening chests and other storage.
  • canEditBase / canExtendBase — control building inside and expanding base claims.
  • reservedSlots — keeps slots free for members of this group even when the server is otherwise full.
Replace every default password before sharing your server address. Anyone who knows (or guesses) the Admin password gets full moderation powers.

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World Saves and Backups

Your world lives in the folder set by saveDirectory (default ./savegame). Because Enshrouded is actively updated and world data occasionally changes format between patches, take a backup from the Game Panel before editing configuration, before game updates, and on a regular schedule. Restoring a backup takes just a couple of clicks.

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