7 Days to Die Mods: How to Install Modlets and Overhauls on a Server

7 Days to Die mods split into two very different things. Modlets are small folders that patch the game's XML: loot, recipes, zombie stats, trader stock. Overhauls like Darkness Falls, Undead Legacy and Ravenhearst replace most of the game and ship compiled code. A modlet can go on a server running today's game in two minutes, and your players may not have to install anything. An overhaul decides which game version your server runs, whether Easy Anti-Cheat stays on, and what every player installs.

This guide covers both on a dedicated server: how to tell which kind of mod you have, where the files go, how to pin the game version an overhaul needs, and why a mod that worked yesterday can stop loading after an update. Everything below is checked against the current release, V3.2.0 (stable since 26 August 2026), and the 7 Days to Die egg our servers run.

Which Kind of Mod Is It?

Open the mod's folder before you upload anything. What's inside tells you what it will ask of your players:

The first row is the one most server owners want and the one most guides skip. The 7 Days to Die wiki describes it plainly: "XML-based changes are pushed from the server to the client; However, item icons and asset bundles do not get pushed, and must be installed on the client to work." A pure XML modlet lives only on your server. Your players connect with an unmodded game and EAC on, and get your changes.

Any mod at all rules out console players. For PS5 and Xbox Series crossplay, the Fun Pimps require EAC on and no mods installed, and a console client that sees a modded server just doesn't list it. Is 7 Days to Die crossplay? has the full requirements list. Mods themselves are PC only.

Installing a Modlet on Your Server

Take a backup first from the panel's Backups tab. A bad modlet can crash the server on boot, and a mod that adds blocks or items writes them into the save.

1. Stop the server from the Console tab.
2. Extract the download on your PC. Find the folder that contains ModInfo.xml. That folder is the mod. Zips often wrap it in an extra folder, or bundle several modlets together.
3. Open the Mods/ folder in the server root, using the File Manager or SFTP (credentials are in the Settings tab of your 7 Days to Die server). Our install creates Mods/ for you. It's Mods/ in the server root, not Data/Mods/.
4. Upload the whole mod folder, not just its contents. Each modlet gets its own folder:

Mods/
  AuthorName_LootTweaks/
    ModInfo.xml
    Config/
      loot.xml
      items.xml
  AuthorName_BiggerStacks/
    ModInfo.xml
    Config/
      items.xml

5. Start the server and watch the Console. The game logs each mod as it loads, with a line like INF [MODS] Loaded Mod: AuthorName_LootTweaks (1.0.0). The egg also writes the full log to logs/latest.log, which is easier to search if the console has scrolled past.

A folder without ModInfo.xml is ignored, because that file is what makes the game treat a folder as a mod. Modern modlets use the v2 format introduced in Alpha 21:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<xml>
  <Name value="AuthorName_LootTweaks" />
  <DisplayName value="Loot Tweaks" />
  <Version value="1.0.0" />
  <Description value="More ammo in gun safes" />
  <Author value="AuthorName" />
</xml>

A modlet whose ModInfo.xml still uses the older <ModInfo> wrapper was written for Alpha 20 or earlier. Its XML paths may no longer exist in V3.x, so treat it as untested.

If the mod contains a DLL

Set EAC off in serverconfig.xml through the File Manager. Our startup command doesn't pass an EAC flag, so the file decides:

<property name="EACEnabled" value="false"/>

Every player then launches with EAC off. In Steam, start the game and choose Play without EAC in the game's launcher. Anyone who launches normally can't join. The serverconfig.xml reference covers the rest of the file.

Installing an Overhaul: Pick the Game Version First

Overhauls lag behind the base game, and none of the three big ones targets the current V3.x line. Check what each one targets before you download anything:

These versions change without notice. Undead Legacy published a new build on the day this was checked. Always read the overhaul's own download page for the build you install, and treat the table as a starting point.

The server and every player must run the same overhaul build on the same game version. Here's how to do that on a GSK server:

1. Back up, then plan a fresh world. An overhaul changes blocks, items and progression, so it can't load a vanilla save, and older game versions can't load a newer save.
2. Get the server onto the right game version. Open a ticket with the branch from the table, such as v2.6, and we'll pin your server to it. Make sure the backup from step 1 is done before we switch it.
3. Upload the overhaul's server files. Each overhaul packages them differently. Darkness Falls replaces the whole Mods/ folder. Undead Legacy adds a loader (BepInEx, doorstop_libs and a start script) to the server root, plus a Linux-only edit. The overhaul's own guide has the exact layout: Darkness Falls and Undead Legacy.
4. Set EACEnabled to false as shown above, and point GameWorld at the overhaul's map if it ships one.
5. Tell your players which build, which game branch (in Steam: Properties → Game Versions & Betas), and that they must use Play without EAC. Many overhauls publish through the 7D2D Mod Launcher, which handles the client side for them.

The first boot generates the world and takes longer than vanilla. Let it finish. Restarting in the middle of generation can corrupt the world.

Keep Updates From Breaking Your Mods

With Auto Update on (the default), the server pulls the newest build of its branch every time it starts. On the public branch, that means the next 7 Days to Die release lands on your server the first time you restart after it ships, whether your mods are ready or not. The game has been shipping a point release roughly every month: 3.0.1 in July, 3.1.0 in late July, 3.2.0 in August, and 3.3.0 is on experimental now.

XML modlets usually survive this unless the update renamed something they patch. DLL mods are more fragile. When V3.0 shipped, the release notes told authors that code overriding vanilla methods "might have to" be adapted, so a DLL built for 2.x isn't safe to assume on 3.x.

To control when your modded server updates:

• Pin the current version. Every release has its own Steam branch, such as v3.2.0. Open a ticket and we'll keep the server on that branch until you ask us to move it. Players on the default branch will update when 3.3.0 goes stable, so tell them to pick the same branch in Steam.
• Or turn Auto Update off in the Startup tab, and update by hand once your mod authors have released a compatible build.
• Check the version after an update: version in the console prints the running build and the loaded mods. The console command reference covers the rest.

Troubleshooting

Where to Find Mods

• Nexus Mods and 7daystodiemods.com carry most modlets. Check the game version on the mod page against your server's version.
• Overhaul authors' own sites, GitHub and Discord host the big packages. Undead Legacy lives at ul.subquake.com, and Ravenhearst and Darkness Falls are both on the 7D2D Mod Launcher. Take overhauls from the author's own channel, because mirrors often host old builds.

What to Read Next

• Managing your 7 Days to Die server. Back up before adding or removing any mod.
• serverconfig.xml reference for EACEnabled, GameWorld and the custom-map workflow some overhauls use.
• Your first 7 Days to Die boot and connection if the server hasn't started yet.
• Upload your existing world if you're moving a modded single-player save. The server needs the identical mods installed first.
• 7 Days to Die Item IDs for spawning vanilla items with giveself.
• Is 7 Days to Die crossplay?. A modded server and console crossplay can't coexist, and this explains why.

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