---
title: "Terraria server commands: console, chat and TShock"
description: "Every vanilla TerrariaServer console command, the in-game chat commands players can use, and how TShock slash commands differ, plus which do not exist."
url: "https://www.gameserverkings.com/knowledge-base/terraria/terraria-server-commands/"
category: "Terraria"
category_url: "https://www.gameserverkings.com/knowledge-base/terraria/"
published: "2026-08-01T15:59:54.761Z"
updated: "2026-08-10T07:47:07.357Z"
source_format: "markdown"
site: "GameServerKings"
---

# Terraria server commands: console, chat and TShock

Terraria has three separate command systems and they are not interchangeable. The vanilla dedicated server has a small console command set that you type with **no** slash. Players have a handful of `/` chat commands that work in any multiplayer game. TShock replaces the server outright and brings its own, far larger `/` command system with groups and permissions. Which one you get depends on the **Server Type** variable in the Startup tab of your [Terraria game server](/games/terraria-server-hosting/), so the first job is working out which server you are actually running.

## Which command set do you have

| Server Type | What you can run | Where you type it |
|---|---|---|
| `vanilla` | Terraria's built-in console commands, listed below | The **Console** tab in your panel |
| `tmodloader` | The same console commands — the console banner shows a Terraria version alongside the tModLoader one because it is still Terraria's dedicated server underneath. See [TModLoader and Mods](/knowledge-base/terraria/how-to-install-tmodloader/) | The **Console** tab in your panel |
| `tshock` | TShock's own `/` command system: accounts, groups, permissions, regions, bans and item granting. See [TShock Setup](/knowledge-base/terraria/tshock/) | In-game chat, signed in to a TShock account |

Separately from all of that, every player in a vanilla or tModLoader game has a short list of `/` chat commands. Those are covered further down.

> [!IMPORTANT] Console commands take no slash
> Type `say hello`, not `/say hello`. The forward slash belongs to the in-game chat commands and to TShock. Sending `/save` to a vanilla console does nothing.

## Vanilla server console commands

This is the complete set, as documented on the official Terraria wiki. There is nothing hidden behind a permission flag — if you can reach the console, you can run all of it.

### Server control

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| `help` | Displays the list of commands |
| `save` | Saves the world immediately |
| `exit` | Shuts the server down and saves |
| `exit-nosave` | Shuts the server down **without** saving |
| `clear` | Clears the console window |
| `version` | Prints the version number |
| `port` | Prints the port the server is listening on |
| `maxplayers` | Prints the maximum player count |

### Players and messaging

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| `playing` | Shows the list of connected players |
| `kick <player name>` | Kicks a player. They can reconnect |
| `ban <player name>` | Bans a player and writes them to `banlist.txt` |
| `say <message>` | Sends a message to all players, shown in yellow prefixed with `<server>` |
| `password` | Prints the current password |
| `password <pass>` | Changes the password |
| `motd` | Prints the message of the day |
| `motd <message>` | Changes the message of the day |

### Time and world

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| `time` | Displays the in-game time |
| `dawn` | Changes time to 4:30 AM |
| `noon` | Changes time to 12:00 PM |
| `dusk` | Changes time to 7:30 PM |
| `midnight` | Changes time to 12:00 AM |
| `settle` | Settles all water |

`settle` is the one to remember. When someone empties a few hundred buckets or a dupe leaves water cascading across half the map, the server will grind until the physics resolve. `settle` forces it to finish in one pass.

### Death counters

Added in 1.4.4:

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| `death` | Shows the number of deaths for the player |
| `pvpdeath` | Shows the number of PvP-related deaths for the player |
| `alldeath` | Shows the number of deaths for all players on the server |
| `allpvpdeath` | Shows the number of PvP-related deaths for all players on the server |

## Running commands from the panel

The **Console** tab is the server's standard input. Anything in the table above can be typed straight into it while the server is running.

Two things worth knowing before you rely on it:

- **`port` is genuinely useful here.** Assigned ports frequently are not the game default of 7777, and `port` prints the value the server actually bound to — handy when a player insists they are connecting correctly. [The Address at the top left of your panel](/knowledge-base/terraria/getting-started-with-your-server/) is the same information.
- **Console changes are not saved anywhere.** `password <pass>` and `motd <message>` change the running server only. They do not write back to your Startup variables, so the next restart reapplies whatever those variables say. If you want a change to stick, set it in the Startup tab.

Stopping the server from the console is a choice between two commands: `exit` saves the world first, `exit-nosave` does not. There is almost never a reason to use `exit-nosave` on a live server.

## Commands that do not exist in vanilla Terraria

Command lists for Terraria are copied between sites constantly, and several of them have picked up entries the vanilla server has never had. None of the following work in a vanilla console:

| Frequently listed | What is actually true |
|---|---|
| `banip`, `unban` | Neither exists. Bans are stored in `banlist.txt` and you lift one by editing that file |
| `godmode` | Not a server command. Journey Mode's godmode is a client-side power, gated by `journeypermission_godmode` in `serverconfig.txt` |
| `give` | Not vanilla. `/give` is a TShock command and needs a TShock server |
| `spawnrate`, `maxspawns` | Not commands. Journey Mode's spawn-rate slider is gated by `journeypermission_setspawnrate` in `serverconfig.txt` |
| `npcstream` | Real, but a `serverconfig.txt` setting (`npcstream=60`), not something you type into the console |
| `seed` | Not a console command. `seed=` is a config option that only applies when a world is auto-created |
| `time <value>` | `time` prints the time; it does not set it. Use `dawn`, `noon`, `dusk` or `midnight` |

> [!WARNING] Check before you copy a command table
> If a list includes item spawning, IP bans or god mode for a *vanilla* Terraria server, it is wrong. Vanilla's console has no item, teleport or cheat commands at all — that is precisely the gap TShock exists to fill.

## Unbanning a player

There is no unban command, which surprises most people the first time they need it. Bans land in `banlist.txt` in the server root, one entry per banned player with their name and IP.

To lift a ban, stop the server, open `banlist.txt` in the File Manager or over [SFTP](/knowledge-base/general/how-to-upload-files-via-sftp/), delete the line for that player, and start the server again. Editing it while the server is running risks the file being rewritten from memory on shutdown.

## In-game chat commands

These are the vanilla client's chat commands. Any player can use them; they are not admin tools.

### Opening the chat box

Press **Enter** to open the chat box, type, then press **Enter** again to send. Same key both times. It is rebindable in Terraria's Controls settings if Enter clashes with something else.

That box is the only place you can type in Terraria, and every command in the table below goes into it exactly as written, slash included. There is no separate command line and no developer console. Messages appear near the bottom-left corner of the screen.

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| `/help` | Lists the commands you can use |
| `/playing` or `/players` | Lists the names of everyone on the server |
| `/p <message>` | Sends the message to your party |
| `/me <message>` | Sends the message in third person |
| `/roll` | Rolls a number from 1 to 100 |
| `/rps` | Randomly uses a Rock, Paper or Scissors emote |
| `/emoji <emote>` or `/e <emote ID>` | Shows an emoji |
| `/death` | Shows your number of deaths |
| `/pvpdeath` | Shows your number of PvP deaths |
| `/alldeath` | Shows everyone's number of deaths |
| `/allpvpdeath` | Shows everyone's number of PvP deaths |
| `/bossdamage` | Shows recent boss kill contribution |

> [!NOTE] TShock owns the slash prefix
> On a TShock server the `/` prefix is handled by TShock's own parser rather than the vanilla client, so do not assume this list applies unchanged. Run `/help` on your own server to see what it actually accepts.

## When you need real admin commands

Vanilla's console covers moderation and housekeeping and stops there. There is no way to grant an in-game player any authority, no permissions model, and no way to hand out items, teleport people or protect a build.

That is what TShock is for, and switching to it is a Server Type change plus a reinstall — see [TShock Setup](/knowledge-base/terraria/tshock/) for the `/setup` flow that claims superadmin, and [TShock Plugins](/knowledge-base/terraria/tshock-plugins/) for extending it further. If you would rather stay on vanilla, [Maintaining your Terraria server](/knowledge-base/terraria/maintaining-your-server/) covers backups and the failure modes worth knowing about.

## FAQ

### How do I open the console on a Terraria server?

On a hosted server it is the **Console** tab in your panel, which is wired straight to the server's standard input. Terraria's client has no developer console at all, so there is no key that opens one. The chat box is a separate thing and it does have a key — **Enter** — but it takes the `/` chat commands, not the server console commands on this page.

### Do Terraria server commands need a slash?

No. Console commands are typed bare: `save`, `playing`, `settle`. The slash is only used by the in-game chat commands and by TShock.

### Is there a command to set the world seed?

No. `seed=` is a `serverconfig.txt` option and it only has any effect when the server auto-creates a world. An existing world keeps the seed it generated with; you cannot change it afterwards. If you want a specific seed, generate the world with it and then swap the world in — [Getting started with your Terraria server](/knowledge-base/terraria/getting-started-with-your-server/) covers uploading a `.wld` file.

### Can players run admin commands in vanilla Terraria?

No. Vanilla has no concept of an admin. Everything in the console command list requires access to the server console itself, which on a hosted server means panel access. If you need to give someone moderation powers without giving them your panel login, you need TShock.

### Why did my password change revert after a restart?

Because `password <pass>` only changes the running server. The Startup tab's **Server Password** variable is reapplied every time the server boots. Change it there instead.

### Do the console commands work on tModLoader?

Yes — tModLoader runs Terraria's own dedicated server, which is why the console banner still shows a Terraria version alongside the tModLoader one. Anything individual mods add is documented by those mods.

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