Getting Started with Your Palworld Dedicated Server
So you've grabbed a Palworld server from us and want to get everyone online. This is the quick tour: log in, boot it, connect, hand out admin, tweak the world. We'll keep it short and link out to the deeper stuff as we go.
If you haven't picked a plan yet, the Palworld hosting page has current specs and pricing.
Logging in to the Panel
Your live panel is TCAdmin at control.low.ms. The welcome email has your username and password. Once you're in, click your Palworld service and you'll land on the service page with the sidebar on the left: Service Settings, Web Console, Configuration Files, File Manager, Cloud Backup, Steam Update, Scheduled Tasks. That's pretty much the whole toolkit.
First Boot
Hit Start under Service Settings. The first launch takes a bit longer than normal because Palworld is generating the world from scratch, so don't panic if it sits for a minute or two. Open Web Console and watch the log scroll. Once you see the "Setting breakpad minidump" line and the server goes quiet, it's live.
By default you get:
- UDP 8211 for the game
- UDP 8212 for the Steam query port
- A 32 player cap (that's the engine limit, not ours)
- Crossplay on, covering Steam, Xbox, PS5 and Mac
Connecting
PC players can connect directly. Launch Palworld, pick Join Multiplayer Game, and at the bottom of the browser there's an "Enter IP" field. Paste your-ip:8211 and you're in. IP and port are both on your TCAdmin service page.
Xbox and PS5 players can't direct-connect at all. Pocketpair only lets consoles join through the in-game community server browser, so they'll need to search for your server name in that list. It can take a few minutes to show up after a fresh boot, so give it a moment before assuming something's broken. If you're running with console friends, set a distinctive server name so they can actually find you.
Connection timing out for someone? We've got a full writeup at troubleshooting Palworld connection timed out errors.
Granting Yourself Admin
Palworld's admin system is password based. Set AdminPassword in your config (see below), join the server like a normal player, open chat with Enter, and type:
/AdminPassword YourPasswordHere
The slash is required, even though the in-game admin commands themselves don't use one once you're authed. After that you can run things like /ShowPlayers, /KickPlayer, /BanPlayer, /Broadcast, /Save, /Shutdown and /DoExit straight from chat. Full list is on the Palworld admin commands page.
Worth noting: Pocketpair has deprecated the old RCON protocol in favour of a REST API, so if you've seen older guides pushing RCON clients, just use in-game chat commands or the Web Console in TCAdmin instead. Easier anyway.
Editing Server Settings
Settings live in PalWorldSettings.ini. On our Linux plans that's Pal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/PalWorldSettings.ini, and on Windows it's Pal\Saved\Config\WindowsServer\PalWorldSettings.ini. Open it from Configuration Files in the sidebar.
One quirk to know about: every option is jammed into a single OptionSettings=(Key=Value,Key=Value,...) line. Do not break it across multiple lines or the server will ignore the whole block. Change values in place and save.
There's a big gotcha here that catches people out. Once your world has been created, Palworld writes a WorldOption.sav file that silently overrides anything you change in the .ini. You edit the file, restart, and nothing happens. It's not broken, it's working as designed. We wrote a dedicated guide on how to get past it at increasing max Pals on your server, and the same workflow applies to any setting you're trying to change on an existing world.
For the full list of keys and what they do, see server configuration for Palworld.
Backups
Cloud Backup in the sidebar runs automatic backups of your save directory, and you can trigger a manual one from the same page whenever you're about to do something risky (settings overhaul, mod install, save migration). Restoring is a click. We'd recommend a manual backup before any major config change, just so you've got a known-good point to roll back to.
Migrating a save from a co-op world or another host? The converting Palworld save article covers that specifically.
Mods and What's Next
Mods are supported through the usual community loaders. How can I add mods to my Palworld server walks through the install. If you'd rather skip the panel and run things from scratch on your own box, our terse SteamCMD setup note has the command you need.
Stuck on anything, ping support through TCAdmin or from the website. We run support 24/7 and we'd rather hear about a weird problem early than find out three days later when your world's gone sideways.