Windrose Save File Location: PC, Dedicated Server and Backups

The Windrose save file location depends on two things: whether the world runs on your own PC or on a dedicated server, and whether it has been played since update 0.10.0.5.120 (4 May 2026). That update moved saves into a new storage format, so most save folders now contain three sibling directories, RocksDB, RocksDB_v2 and RocksDB_v2_Backups, and guides written before May point at the wrong one.

This page lists every path, explains which folder holds your live world, and covers backing it up on a GameServerKings server. Paths are checked against the developer's dedicated server guide and FAQ on playwindrose.com for version 0.10.0.9.

Quick Answer: The Paths

Press Win + R, paste %localappdata%\R5\Saved\ and press Enter to jump straight to the client folder. Your profile folder is the long number, your Steam ID. A second folder next to it ending in _Backups holds the backups made before May 2026.

On a dedicated server, one world sits at:

R5/Saved/SaveProfiles/Default/RocksDB_v2/0.10.0/Worlds/<world id>/

The <world id> is a 32-character hex string, and the same value is the world's IslandId. The version folder is 0.10.0, not the full patch number, which is why it didn't change between 0.10.0.5 and 0.10.0.9.

Which RocksDB Folder Is Your Save?

The developer's guide defines the three folders like this:

RocksDB_v2 is not a safe place for hand edits because the game restores the live database from the world's _Latest backup in RocksDB_v2_Backups every time the world loads. Two independent save-editing tools document this: change files in RocksDB_v2 alone and the next launch overwrites your change. When you want a copy of a world, take the whole SaveProfiles folder, or at least the world's RocksDB_v2_Backups entry.

Older guides show RocksDB/<version>/Worlds/ as the live world

That was correct until May 2026. On a server that has run 0.10.0.5.120 or later, the live world (we checked this path on a GSK Windrose server) and its WorldDescription.json are under RocksDB_v2. The RocksDB copy is what the migration started from.

Your Character Is Not on the Server

A dedicated server keeps only the world. The developer's guide says dedicated servers "only use the Worlds folder, since they store only world-related data and do not store player character data here". Your character, inventory and progression stay in your own client profile under %LOCALAPPDATA%\R5\Saved\SaveProfiles\<Steam ID>\.

In practice this means:

• A server backup protects the world and everything built in it, not anyone's character. Each player backs up their own SaveProfiles folder.
• Moving your world to a server doesn't move your character. You keep playing the same character because it never left your PC.
• If you play on more than one PC, Steam Cloud syncs the character. After a Steam Cloud conflict prompt, the developer's FAQ says to choose local files when you've just restored a backup.

Find the World ID Your Server Loads

The server picks its world from WorldIslandId in R5/ServerDescription.json:

"WorldIslandId": "DB57768A8A7746899683D0EEE91F97BF",

That ID matches one folder name under Worlds/ and the IslandId inside that world's WorldDescription.json. If WorldIslandId is empty, or names a folder the server can't find, the server generates a brand-new world on boot. When a server suddenly starts on a fresh island, check this value first. The developer's FAQ lists it as the usual cause.

Back Up a Windrose Save on GameServerKings

1. Stop the server from the Console tab and wait until it shows as offline. Don't use Kill. The game is meant to write an exit backup when it shuts down cleanly, and killing the process skips that. The panel backup in the next step is the copy to rely on either way.
2. Open the Backups tab and create a backup. It captures the whole server folder, including R5/Saved/.
3. For an off-site copy, open File Manager, go to R5/Saved/SaveProfiles/, and download Default as an archive. You can also pull it over SFTP.
4. Start the server again.

Keep ServerDescription.json with any off-site copy. Without the matching WorldIslandId a restored server won't know which world to load.

Before every Windrose patch

Windrose's last big save change arrived in a patch and migrated every world. Take a backup before letting Auto Update install a new version. See Managing your Windrose server for update control.

Restore or Move a World

The developer's procedure for moving a world from your PC to a dedicated server:

1. Stop both the game and the server, and back up both SaveProfiles folders.
2. On your PC, find the world folder. Depending on migration state it is in RocksDB\0.10.0\Worlds\<world id> or in RocksDB_v2_Backups (use the _Latest backup).
3. Upload the whole <world id> folder to the server. The developer's guide puts it in R5/Saved/SaveProfiles/Default/RocksDB/0.10.0/Worlds/ and lets the game migrate it into RocksDB_v2 on the next start.
4. Set WorldIslandId in ServerDescription.json to the folder name.
5. Start the server and check that your island loads instead of a new one.

We haven't yet tested that migration on a server that already has a RocksDB_v2 folder. If the server starts a brand-new island instead of yours, stop it straight away, don't play on the new island, and contact support. Your uploaded folder and the backup from step 1 are still there.

Step-by-step screenshots, running several worlds side by side, and fixes for a world that loads as a fresh island are in Managing your Windrose worlds. If the world loads but its difficulty needs changing, that's WorldDescription.json, covered in Windrose world settings.

Common Problems

• The server generated a new world after an update. WorldIslandId no longer matches a folder, or migration failed for that world. Stop the server, look for your world ID under RocksDB and RocksDB_v2_Backups, and set WorldIslandId back to it.
• My edit to a world file disappeared. You edited RocksDB_v2 directly and the game restored from RocksDB_v2_Backups on load. For world settings, stop the server, edit WorldDescription.json, then run the developer's R5WorldDescriptionUpdater.exe as described in Windrose world settings.
• A downloaded world doesn't open locally. Update the game, launch it once to the main menu and close it before copying files in. The FAQ says the update has to create the new local folder structure first.
• AutoLoadLatestBackupIfHasBroken. This ServerDescription.json flag makes the server restore from the latest backup when it detects a broken save on launch. Edit it only with the server stopped.

What to Read Next

• Managing your Windrose worlds for creating, switching and uploading worlds
• Configuring your Windrose server for ServerDescription.json and the Startup tab
• Getting started with your Windrose server

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