Project Zomboid Dedicated Server Setup on Linux (Build 42.13 Unstable Beta)
Apparently YouTube won't let me add a link to a markdown document, so below is a quick write-up with the same instructions shown in the video:
Prerequisites:
Logged in as root or a user in the sudoers group
Linux installation with access to apt (Ubuntu 24.04 used here)
1. Download Server Files:
Start by installing steamcmd:
sudo add-apt-repository multiverse; sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386; sudo apt update
sudo apt install steamcmd
(Alternative if steamcmd installation fails, if the above finished successfully you don't have to do this):
sudo apt-get install software-properties-common -y
sudo apt-add-repository non-free
sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386
sudo apt-get update -y
sudo apt-get install steamcmd -y
Create a dedicated user:
sudo adduser pzuser
Create the server directory:
sudo mkdir /opt/pzserver
sudo chown pzuser:pzuser /opt/pzserver
Switch to the server user:
sudo -u pzuser -i
Download the server using steamcmd (run the commands one at a time):
export PATH=$PATH:/usr/games
steamcmd
force_install_dir /opt/pzserver/
login anonymous
app_update 380870 -beta unstable validate
quit
Verify that the server files are installed:
cd /opt/pzserver
ls
2. Forward Ports (only required if you use ufw). Run these as root or a user with sudo privileges:
sudo ufw allow 16261/udp
sudo ufw allow 16262/udp
sudo ufw reload
3. Configure and Run the Server
First, edit memory settings. Log in as the server user (sudo -u pzuser -i) and run the following:
cd /opt/pzserver
nano ProjectZomboid64.json
Change the value in "-Xmx8g" from 8 to an amount of RAM available to the machine (this will differ depending on your particular server computer). To save the file and exit nano, press the following:
Ctrl + X (to exit)
y (when asked if you want to save your changes)
Enter (to confirm that you want to save the file with the existing name)
Verify configuration:
cat ProjectZomboid64.json
Start the server using tmux:
tmux
bash start-server.sh
(Optionally, start with a custom server name):
bash start-server.sh -servername YOURSERVERNAMEHERE
Set the admin password when prompted.
The server has started successfully when you see "SERVER STARTED" in the logs.