---
title: "RuneScape: Dragonwilds Admins, Bans and Player Management"
description: "How Dragonwilds owner, admin and player permissions work, why only the owner can unban, and why the admin and world passwords must never match."
url: "https://www.gameserverkings.com/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/admins-bans-and-player-management/"
category: "RuneScape: Dragonwilds"
category_url: "https://www.gameserverkings.com/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/"
published: "2026-08-19T11:01:00.117Z"
updated: "2026-08-19T11:22:15.596Z"
source_format: "markdown"
site: "GameServerKings"
---

# RuneScape: Dragonwilds Admins, Bans and Player Management

RuneScape: Dragonwilds handles server permissions differently from most survival games. There is no admin list naming accounts, and no console commands. Instead there are **three tiers of user**, and admin is granted by handing someone a password.

Understanding that model — and its two sharp edges — is the difference between a server you control and one you do not.

> [!TIP] The short version
> **Owner** = the account matching the Owner ID setting. Can ban and unban anyone, online or offline. **Admin** = anyone who has typed the admin password into the in-game Server Management screen. Can only ban players who are currently online, and **cannot unban anyone**. **Everyone else** = regular players.

## The three tiers

Jagex sets out the model directly: *"Dedicated Servers divides users in three categories: Owner, the person whose Player ID matches the Owner ID set in config. Admin, whoever entered the admin password successfully when entering the Server Management page. [and] regular users."*

| | Owner | Admin | Regular player |
|---|---|---|---|
| How you get it | Player ID matches the **Owner ID** setting | Enter the **admin password** in-game | Default |
| Ban an online player | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Ban an offline player | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Unban | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| How many can exist | One | Unlimited | — |

Jagex's wording on the split: *"Owners can Ban and Unban anyone, offline or online. Admins can Ban regular users who are online. Admins cannot Unban."*

> [!WARNING] Only the owner can undo a ban
> This is the part that catches people out. If an admin bans someone by mistake, that admin **cannot** reverse it. Only the owner can. If you are running a server where you are not always around, understand that a wrongly-banned player stays banned until you personally log in.

## Setting the owner

The owner is defined by the **Owner ID** setting, which holds your in-game Player ID.

To find yours:

1. Launch RuneScape: Dragonwilds.
2. Open the **Settings** menu.
3. Scroll to the **bottom** — your Player ID is displayed there.
4. Use the **copy button** to put it on your clipboard.

Paste it into the Owner ID field in your panel and restart. Ideally do this before the first boot — see [Getting started with your RuneScape: Dragonwilds server](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/getting-started-with-your-server/).

> [!IMPORTANT] Jagex's sources disagree on whether Owner ID is mandatory
> The dedicated-server guide, last updated **2 April 2026**, says *"The server will not start without your owner ID."* On **13 April 2026** Jagex announced *"Simplified ownership: The Owner ID requirement is becoming optional. You'll be able to claim your server with an admin password when you first join."* — and the guide has not been updated since. **Set it either way.** Beyond starting the server, it is what makes you the only person who can unban.

There is one owner. It is not a list.

## Becoming an admin

Admin is claimed in-game, not configured in the panel:

1. Join the server.
2. Press **ESC** to open the pause menu.
3. Go to **Settings** → **Server Management**.
4. Enter the **admin password**.

Jagex notes the person is then *"considered as Admins until the Admin Password is changed again"*.

You can see who has used the password — Jagex documents that the list of people who have entered it is written into the server's `DedicatedServer.ini` file, reachable over [SFTP](/knowledge-base/general/how-to-upload-files-via-sftp/). That is an audit trail, not a management interface: you cannot remove an individual from it.

## The two sharp edges

### 1. The admin password is a shared secret, and revoking it is all-or-nothing

There is no per-player admin list to prune. Jagex is explicit that *"anyone who knows this password can enter the Server Management tab"*. So:

- Anyone you tell becomes an admin.
- Anyone **they** tell becomes an admin.
- The only way to remove one person's admin is to **change the password**, which removes it from everybody, and then re-issue it to everyone you still trust.

> [!WARNING] Treat the admin password as a real credential
> Do not put it in a public Discord channel, a server description, or a message you cannot delete. Once it is out, the only remedy is a rotation that inconveniences every legitimate admin at the same time.

### 2. The admin password and the world password are different things

These are two separate settings, and confusing them is the single most damaging mistake available on a Dragonwilds server.

| | World Password | Admin Password |
|---|---|---|
| Variable | `SERVER_PASSWORD` | `ADMIN_PASSWORD` |
| Grants | Permission to **enter the world** | Permission to **manage the server** |
| Give it to | Your players | Only people you trust completely |
| Required? | Optional — leave empty for an open world | Required |

> [!WARNING] Never set them to the same string
> If the world password and the admin password match, then **every player who joins is handed full admin rights**, including the ability to ban other players. Use two different strings, and make the admin one harder to guess.

Both are documented in [Server settings and startup variables](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/server-settings-and-startup-variables/). Note also that the admin password ships as the literal default `ChangeMe` — change it before anyone else connects.

## Kicking and banning

Player management happens in-game, through the server menu:

1. Enter your world.
2. Press **ESC**.
3. Navigate to the **SERVER** tab.

You will see a list of everyone currently in the world, plus tables of players you have kicked and players you have banned.

**To kick or ban:** select the player from the in-game users table and hit **Kick** or **Ban**. They move into the corresponding table.

**To reverse it:** select the player in the **Kicked Users** or **Banned Users** table and hit **UnKick** or **UnBan** — remembering that unbanning is owner-only.

> [!NOTE] Kick versus ban
> A **kick** removes someone from the session; they can come back. A **ban** keeps them out. Use a kick for "you are being disruptive right now" and a ban for "do not come back". Given that only the owner can unban, prefer a kick when you are not certain.

## Controlling who gets in at all

Moderation after the fact is the weaker tool. Two settings do more work:

**Set a world password.** The most effective access control available. With one set, only people you have given the string to can enter — which removes almost every reason to ban anyone. Leave it empty only if you genuinely want an open server.

**Choose your world name deliberately.** Players find your server by searching its exact, case-sensitive world name on the **Public** tab. A distinctive name is not security, but a generic one invites random arrivals.

> [!TIP] For a private group, use both
> Distinctive world name so your friends can find it, plus a world password so nobody else can join. That combination means the ban list stays empty.

## Things Dragonwilds does not have

Worth stating plainly, because guides for other survival games will send you looking for them:

- **No admin console or command line.** No `/ban`, no `/kick`, no cheat commands on a dedicated server. Management is entirely through the in-game Server Management screen.
- **No RCON.** There is no remote console protocol for Dragonwilds.
- **No admin list file.** No `admins.txt` or equivalent listing accounts. Admin is the password, and the password is admin.
- **No roles or permission tiers.** Owner, admin, player. That is the whole model.
- **No official mod support.** Jagex publishes *Community Modding Guidelines* setting out what a mod may and may not do, but no mod API and no in-game mod support has been announced.

## A known issue worth knowing about

Jagex lists this under Known Issues in its own dedicated-server guide:

> "Inviting a player to your Dedicated Server via Steam Invites doesn't currently connect as intended."

So the natural way to bring a friend in does not work. Send them the exact world name and have them search for it on the **Public** tab instead. If they still cannot find it, [Server not showing up](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/server-not-showing-up/) has the checklist.

## Admin and the 1.0 release

Jagex has announced that Dragonwilds leaves Early Access on **15 September 2026**, launching simultaneously on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2, with crossplay.

Jagex has published **nothing** about how administration works with console players — whether a console player can enter an admin password, appear in the server tab, or be banned in the same way. There is no reason to expect it to differ, but that is an expectation and not a confirmation.

> [!IMPORTANT] Announced, not observed
> No changes to the owner/admin/player model have been announced for 1.0. That is the state of the public record before launch, not an assurance. Re-check after 15 September. What Jagex has and has not confirmed about consoles is set out in [Is RuneScape: Dragonwilds crossplay?](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/is-runescape-dragonwilds-crossplay/).

## Quick reference

| Task | How |
|---|---|
| Become owner | Set **Owner ID** to your in-game Player ID, restart |
| Find your Player ID | Game → Settings → bottom of the menu |
| Become admin | ESC → Settings → Server Management → admin password |
| Revoke one admin | Not possible — change the password and re-issue |
| Kick or ban | ESC → **SERVER** tab → select player → Kick/Ban |
| Unban | Owner only, same screen |
| Lock the server | Set a **world password** (never the same as the admin password) |
| Admin commands / RCON | Do not exist in Dragonwilds |

## Related

- [Getting started with your RuneScape: Dragonwilds server](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/getting-started-with-your-server/)
- [Server settings and startup variables](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/server-settings-and-startup-variables/)
- [Server not showing up](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/server-not-showing-up/)
- [Worlds, saves and backups](/knowledge-base/runescape-dragonwilds/worlds-saves-and-backups/)
- [How to add Sub-Users to your panel](/knowledge-base/general/how-to-add-sub-users-to-your-panel/) — control-panel access, separate from in-game admin