The Isle Server Troubleshooting Guide

If you've been running a The Isle Evrima server for any length of time, you've probably hit at least one of these problems. I'm going to walk through the most common issues and how to fix them. If you're brand new to all this, go read the Getting Started Guide first – it'll save you a lot of headaches.

Connection Issues

Server Not Showing Up in the Browser

After a start or restart, your server can take a good 2-5 minutes to register with the server browser. That's normal. If it's been longer than that:

• Make sure the server is actually running. Log in to your control panel and check the status – if it says stopped or crashed, restart it.
• Check your query port is configured correctly. On LOW.MS servers the ports come pre-configured, but if you've changed anything, double-check in your control panel for the correct port assignments.
• Special characters in your server name can sometimes cause problems. Try simplifying it to basic alphanumeric characters.
• Version mismatch is a sneaky one. The game client auto-updates through Steam, but your server might still be on the old version. Head to your control panel and trigger a Steam Update.

Players Get Connection Timeouts

They can see the server but can't actually join. A few things to look at:

1. Full server – check your current player count via Current Activity & Stats in the control panel sidebar.
2. Password issues – if you've set a server password, remember it's case-sensitive. Double-check players are typing it exactly right.
3. Wrong branch – this catches people out constantly. Players need to be on the Evrima branch, not Legacy. They switch this in Steam by right-clicking The Isle, going to Properties, then the Betas tab, and selecting Evrima from the dropdown. It's not the main/default branch.
4. Server under heavy load – if your RAM and CPU are maxed out, the server will start rejecting connections. Check resource usage in the control panel and consider upgrading if you're consistently near the limit.
5. Port configuration – check your control panel for your specific ports. Don't assume defaults.

Random Disconnections

Players connect fine but get booted during gameplay. The usual suspects:

Low RAM is the number one cause. The Isle Evrima is a memory hog, especially with lots of players and AI running. If your RAM usage regularly exceeds 80%, you need more.

Check whether you've got scheduled restarts configured that you forgot about – if everyone disconnects at the same time every day, that's probably it.

Corrupted save data can cause instability too. Try using Cloud Restore from the control panel sidebar to roll back to a recent backup. And after any game update, make sure you've updated the server as well – version mismatches cause all sorts of weird behaviour.

Performance Problems

Lag and Rubber-Banding

This is probably the most common complaint you'll deal with. Here's what to check, roughly in order of likelihood:

Monitor your resources through the control panel. RAM is usually the bottleneck. If you're running more than 100 players or high AI density, consider adding more RAM through your control panel.

AI density eats resources. Lower the AIDensity setting in your configuration, or use the RCON command aidensity to adjust it on the fly during peak hours.

Corpse buildup is a real performance killer that people overlook. Dead dinosaurs sitting around consume server resources. Use wipecorpses via RCON to clean them up, or lower CorpseDecayMultiplier in your config so they despawn faster.

Restart regularly. The server process leaks memory over time – restarting every 6-12 hours keeps things stable. You can schedule this through the control panel.

If none of that helps, try temporarily lowering MaxPlayerCount to reduce the load while you sort things out.

High RAM Usage

If you're consistently above 80% or getting out-of-memory crashes:

• Reduce AI density. Dropping AIDensity from 1.0 to 0.5 makes a noticeable difference.
• Lower your player slots if you're not filling them. Reducing MaxPlayerCount means less memory pre-allocated.
• Restart more frequently – every 6 hours instead of every 12.
• Upgrade your RAM allocation through the control panel.

Server Crashes

When the server just dies with no warning:

Check your logs first. Open the Log Viewer from the control panel sidebar and look for error messages near the end – they usually tell you exactly what went wrong.

Most crashes come down to running out of RAM. Check your usage trends.

If you recently changed settings, a bad entry in Game.ini can crash the server on startup or mid-game. Revert your changes through Configuration Files in the control panel sidebar, then restart.

After game updates, some config options get renamed or removed. Reset to defaults and re-apply your customisations one at a time so you can isolate which one causes problems. If crashes keep happening after all that, contact our support team with your crash logs.

RCON Troubles

Can't Connect to RCON

The Isle Evrima uses its own RCON protocol – standard tools like mcrcon won't work. You need an Evrima-compatible client like TheIsleEvrimaRCON.

Beyond that, check the basics: make sure you're using the right RCON port (check your control panel for the specific port assigned to your server), your ServerAdminPassword is entered exactly right (case-sensitive), and the server has fully started before you try connecting. RCON only comes online after the server finishes initialising.

Commands Not Working

You're connected but commands do nothing or throw errors. A few possibilities:

• Syntax matters. Evrima RCON commands are case-sensitive. The verified commands are: kick [SteamID64,Reason], ban [Name,SteamID64,Reason,Time], playerlist, aidensity, wipecorpses, toggleai, announce [message], and save. Check the Server Settings Guide for details.
• Commands change between updates. After a game update, some commands get renamed or removed entirely. Check if anything's changed.
• Permissions – make sure your admin password grants full access.

Game Update Issues

Version Mismatch After an Update

Steam updated the game client but your server is still on the old version. Players can't connect.

Go to your control panel, use Steam Update from the sidebar to pull the latest server files, then restart. Always create a backup first via Cloud Backup – new versions occasionally break things with your existing config.

Settings Got Overwritten

Game updates sometimes reset your Game.ini. If that's happened:

Use Cloud Restore from the control panel to grab your config from before the update. Keep a local copy of your configuration files too, so you can quickly re-apply settings when this happens. And check the patch notes – updates sometimes rename settings, so your old values might not be valid anymore.

Player-Reported Issues

Stuck on Spawn Screen

If players can't spawn or select a dinosaur:

Check your AllowedClasses configuration. If you've restricted the dinosaur roster, make sure at least some species are actually available. An empty or broken AllowedClasses list will block spawning entirely.

A corrupted save can cause this too – try restarting, or restore from a backup if it persists. On the player's end, have them verify game files through Steam (right-click The Isle, Properties, Local Files, Verify Integrity).

Growth Not Progressing

Players say their dinosaurs aren't growing even though they're eating and drinking. Before you start tweaking settings, know that Evrima has diet requirements – dinosaurs need to eat the right food types for their species. Eating the wrong thing doesn't count toward growth. That's by design, not a bug.

If it's actually a server-side issue, check that GrowthMultiplier isn't set to 0 or something absurdly low. Severe server lag can also slow down growth calculations, so check your performance if this is happening alongside other issues.

For more configuration details, see the Server Settings Guide. If you don't have a server yet, check out our The Isle hosting page.