DayZ Server Admin Tools and Commands (RCon, COT and VPP)

DayZ has very few built in admin commands. Vanilla gives you an admin password you can log in with in chat (#login yourpassword) and BattlEye RCon, which handles kicking, banning and server messages from an outside tool. For anything you do in the world, like teleporting, spawning items or watching players on a map, you install an admin mod. The two most popular are Community Online Tools (COT) and VPPAdminTools.

Short answer

If you only set up one thing, set up RCon. It works on every DayZ server, modded or not, and it is what you will reach for when someone is causing trouble.

What vanilla DayZ gives you

DayZ runs on Bohemia's Enfusion engine, and a lot of the old Arma style # chat commands you see in copied lists do not do anything useful in DayZ. What you can rely on:

• passwordAdmin in serverDZ.cfg. Type #login yourpassword in chat to log in as admin, and #logout to log out. Only one person can be logged in at a time. On its own this gives you very little, so do not plan your moderation around it.
• BattlEye RCon. BattlEye runs alongside the server and accepts remote commands over UDP. This is the real vanilla moderation tool.
• Logs. With -adminlog in the launch options, the server writes an .ADM log to the profiles folder with joins, leaves, kills and hits. It is where you find a player's ID when you need to ban or promote someone.
• enableWhitelist in serverDZ.cfg, which only lets in players listed in the server's whitelist.txt.

How to set up BattlEye RCon on a DayZ server

RCon is configured in beserver_x64.cfg inside the server's battleye folder:

RConPort 2305
RConPassword yourStrongPassword
RestrictRCon 0

• RConPort is a UDP port. Game port + 3 is the usual choice, so 2305 for a server on 2302.
• RConPassword is what your RCon tool logs in with. Make it long, since anyone with it can ban your players.
• RestrictRCon 0 lets RCon run every command, including #shutdown.

While the server runs, BattlEye renames the file to something like beserver_x64_active_1a2b3c.cfg. Edit the original beserver_x64.cfg with the server stopped, and delete any old _active_ copies if your changes do not stick.

On GamezServers you skip the file. RCon is already on: the RCON port and a generated RCON password are in Settings, and the panel writes them into beserver_x64.cfg on every start.

Which RCon tool to use

• BattleMetrics RCON is a web panel. Add your server with the IP, the RCON port and the password, and you get a player list, kick and ban buttons, scheduled messages and restarts.
• DaRT (DayZ RCon Tool) is a free Windows program that does the same from your desktop.

Both use the same BattlEye commands underneath.

DayZ RCon commands

These are BattlEye's standard commands. Player numbers come from the players list and change as people join and leave, so always run players first.

Bans are stored in bans.txt in the battleye folder, so they survive restarts and wipes.

Admin mods: COT vs VPPAdminTools

For in game control you need a mod. Both of these are free on the Steam Workshop, both are kept up to date, and both need to be loaded as normal mods so every player downloads them through the DayZ Launcher.

Our pick: VPP if you want the quickest setup with a friendly menu, COT if you already run Community Framework mods (most modded servers do) and want detailed roles for a staff team. Run one, not both.

How to set up Community Online Tools

1. Add Community Framework and COT to your mods, in that order: @1559212036;@1564026768;
2. Start the server, then join it once yourself so the mod creates your player file.
3. Stop the server.
4. Open profiles/PermissionsFramework/Players/. There is a file per player who has joined. Match yours to your name and ID in the latest .ADM log.
5. In your file, change everyone to admin and save.
6. Start the server, join, and open the COT menu with its keybind (listed in DayZ's control settings under the mod).

How to set up VPPAdminTools

1. Add VPPAdminTools to your mods: @1828439124;
2. Start the server once so it creates its folders, then stop it.
3. Open profiles/VPPAdminTools/Permissions/SuperAdmins/SuperAdmins.txt and add your Steam64 ID (the 17 digit number starting with 7656) on its own line, with no spaces or quotes.
4. Open profiles/VPPAdminTools/Permissions/credentials.txt and replace the placeholder with a strong password.
5. Start the server and join. Super admins can add other staff to permission groups from the menu.

Find your Steam64 ID on your Steam profile under Account details, or from the URL of your profile if you never set a custom one.

Admin on a GamezServers DayZ server

Everything above works on our servers, with less file juggling:

• Admin password and RCON password are in Settings, generated for you. We write them into serverDZ.cfg and beserver_x64.cfg on every start, so change them there, not in the files.
• Admin mods go in the Workshop mods setting, for example @1559212036;@1564026768;. We download them on start, keep them updated and copy their keys so signature checks pass.
• Permission files like SuperAdmins.txt are in the profiles folder in the Files tab. Stop the server, edit, start.
• Players tab shows who is online without opening an RCon tool.

The DayZ server does not take commands typed into its own console, which is why the panel has no kick or ban buttons for DayZ. Use RCon or your admin mod. The DayZ hosting quick start covers the rest of the setup.

Common problems

• RCon tool cannot connect. Wrong port (it is UDP, and not the game port), wrong password, or the server has not finished starting. On a home server, the RCon port also needs forwarding.
• RCon password changes do nothing. You edited the _active_ copy, or edited while the server ran. Stop, edit beserver_x64.cfg, start.
• Admin menu does not open. Your ID is in the wrong file, or you edited the file while the server was running and it got overwritten on shutdown.
• Players get kicked after adding an admin mod. The mod's key is missing from the keys folder. See the signature check kick fix.

FAQ

How do I find a player's ID to ban them?

Run players in RCon to get their BattlEye GUID and their number in the list. For offline players, search their name in the .ADM admin log in the profiles folder.

Do players need to download admin tools?

Yes for COT and VPPAdminTools, because they add menus to the game. The DayZ Launcher downloads them automatically when players join, like any other mod.

Can I use RCon and an admin mod at the same time?

Yes, and most servers do. RCon is the reliable backup when the game is not running for you, for example when you need to ban someone from your phone.

Does #login work on every server?

It logs you in when the server has a passwordAdmin set, but vanilla DayZ does little with it. Treat it as a way to check your password works, and do real moderation with RCon or a mod.

Are bans lost when I wipe the server?

No. BattlEye bans live in bans.txt in the battleye folder, which a wipe does not touch. See how to wipe a DayZ server for what each wipe removes.

Run it on a server that is ready for admin tools

A GamezServers DayZ server is live about 60 seconds after payment, with RCon set up, passwords generated and Workshop mods like COT or VPP installed from one setting, keys included. Plans start at 19.99 USD a month for 8 GB, new customers get 50% off the first month, and you can split the bill with friends at checkout.