Starbound Admin Commands and Console Commands

Starbound's commands split into four groups with different requirements: basic commands anyone can use, admin commands that need admin mode, debug commands that need admin mode and /debug, and a handful of macro shortcuts. This guide covers all of them, how to actually get admin on a hosted server, and the commands that older guides still list even though they were removed from the game years ago.

How commands work

Every command is typed into normal chat, prefixed with /. There is no separate console window on the client.

Admin-only commands do nothing until you enable admin mode:

/admin

Admin mode does three things at once: it unlocks every crafting recipe, it stops you taking damage or losing energy, and it grants access to admin commands. Toggle it off with /admin again — leaving it on while playing normally makes you invincible, which is rarely what you want on a survival server.

/admin only works if the server lets you use it

The command is not self-service. Your account must be flagged as an admin in the server config, or admin commands must be open to everyone — which you should not do. Getting that flag is covered next.

/help lists every command the build you are running actually has, and /help <command> explains one of them. That is worth knowing because it is always accurate for your version, in a way no web page can guarantee.

Getting admin on your server

Admin status is set per account in storage/starbound_server.config, not in-game.

"serverUsers" : {
  "alice" : { "admin" : true,  "password" : "alicepw" },
  "bob"   : { "admin" : false, "password" : "bobpw" }
}

Restart after editing, then log in with that username and password. Once connected, /admin will work.

Do not use allowAdminCommandsFromAnyone

Setting it to true grants every connected player full admin — including /spawnitem, /ban and world-editing commands. It exists for local testing. On anything reachable from the internet it is a griefing incident waiting to happen.

Two commands tell you where you stand:

• /whoami — your local username and admin status
• /serverwhoami — your server username and admin status

Those are different values, and the second is the one that determines whether admin commands work. See Configuring your Starbound server for the full account setup.

Basic commands

No admin required. Every player can use these.

/suicide respects permadeath

On a character created in a permadeath mode, this deletes them. It exists as a last resort for getting irreversibly stuck, not as a fast travel option.

Moderation commands

Admin mode required.

playerSpecifier accepts more than a name. Run /list first and you can target a player by their client ID, which is the reliable option when someone is using characters you cannot type.

/ban takes a duration in seconds, so a one-day ban is 86400. Omitting it applies the server's default.

Spawning items and creatures

Admin mode required. This is the group people mean by "cheats".

There is no /give command in Starbound

A lot of guides — including an older version of this page — list /give <player> <item>. It does not exist. Items spawn at your own cursor with /spawnitem; there is no built-in command to put an item directly into another player's inventory. If you want to hand something over, spawn it and drop it.

Items spawn where your cursor is, not in your inventory. If /spawnitem produces a "perfectly generic item", the item name was wrong — that placeholder is what the game substitutes when it cannot resolve the name.

Parameters are JSON wrapped in single quotes:

/spawnitem commonsword 1 '{"level":6}'
/spawnmonster poptop 3

World and universe commands

Admin mode required.

/warp does not simply take a world name. Valid forms include:

/warp OwnShip
/warp OrbitedWorld
/warp CelestialWorld:<celestial coordinates>
/warp InstanceWorld:<worldId>

Spawning toggles reset when a world unloads

/enablespawning and /disablespawning apply to the world you are standing on, and revert to default once that world is unloaded from memory. They are not persistent server settings.

Debug commands

These need admin mode and /debug toggled on. They are development tools — useful for diagnosing a broken world, not for everyday administration.

/setgravity is local to you and looks wrong to everyone else, so it is a debugging aid rather than a way to change how a world plays.

Macro commands

Convenience shortcuts that bundle several actions. Admin mode required.

These are blunt instruments. /bountyhunter completes real quests on the character that runs it and cannot be undone.

Commands that no longer exist

Several commands are still listed on guides across the web but were removed from the game. If one of these does nothing, it is not your server:

On a hosted server

Two things differ from a self-hosted setup:

• Admin is set in the config file, not the panel. Edit storage/starbound_server.config in the File Manager and restart. There is no admin checkbox.
• The server console is not a command console. The Console tab on your hosted Starbound server shows server output and accepts the server's own commands, but Starbound's / commands are client-side chat commands — you run them in game, as an admin, not from the panel.

For where those tabs live, see How to use your server panel. For the config file itself, see Configuring your Starbound server.

What to read next

• Configuring your Starbound server — accounts, the admin flag, RCON and the port allocation
• Getting started with your Starbound server — first boot and connecting
• How to install mods for Starbound — mods change which items exist, and so which names /spawnitem accepts
• Maintaining your Starbound server — universe resets and backups before you start spawning things

FAQ

How do I become admin on a Starbound server?

Add your account to serverUsers in storage/starbound_server.config with "admin" : true, restart the server, log in with that username and password, then type /admin in chat.

Why does /admin say I do not have permission?

Your server account is not flagged as admin. /whoami shows your local status and /serverwhoami shows your server status — it is the server one that governs admin commands.

How do I spawn items in Starbound?

/spawnitem <itemName> [count] while in admin mode. The item appears at your mouse cursor. There is no /give command.

Why did /spawnitem give me a "perfectly generic item"?

The item name did not resolve. That placeholder is what the game substitutes for an unknown item — check the spelling against the item's internal name rather than its display name.

Can players use commands without admin?

Yes, the basic group — /help, /whoami, /whereami, /w, /pvp, /played, /deaths, /naked, /suicide. Everything that spawns, warps or moderates needs admin mode.

How do I ban someone for a set time?

/ban <player> <reason> <kind> <timeInSeconds> — durations are in seconds, so a day is 86400. /unbanip <address> removes a ban.

Why do my commands work in singleplayer but not on the server?

Singleplayer grants admin freely. On a server you need the account flag, and allowAdminCommandsFromAnyone should stay false.

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