How to Move a Rust Server to a New Host (Keep Map and BPs)

To move a Rust server to a new host, run server.save, stop it and download the whole server/<identity>/ folder: the .map and .sav files, every player.*.db file (blueprints, states, identities), and cfg/ with users.cfg and bans.cfg. Download oxide/ or carbon/ too if you run plugins. Upload them into the new server's identity folder, and set the same world size, seed and Rust version, or the server ignores your save and generates a fresh map.

What you can and cannot move

Before you start

• Check the wipe calendar. Facepunch's monthly update on the first Thursday forces a map wipe. Moving a week before that is wasted effort for the map, so many owners move on force wipe day and carry only blueprints, admins and plugins.
• Note the launch settings: server.identity, server.seed, server.worldsize, server.level, and server.levelurl if you use a custom map.
• Match the framework. Same server type on the new host: vanilla, Oxide or Carbon.
• Leave the old server stopped, not deleted, until the new one works.

What goes where

All save data lives under server/<identity>/, where <identity> is the +server.identity launch value. It differs between hosts: my_server_identity is the common default, and some hosts use rust.

Older .sav.1, .sav.2 files are Rust's own rolling backups. They are worth keeping in your local copy.

Step 1: Save and stop the old server

In the console run server.save, then server.writecfg so admins and bans are written to users.cfg and bans.cfg. Stop the server cleanly. A copy taken from a running server can catch the .sav mid write.

Step 2: Download everything

Use the old host's file manager, a backup download, or SFTP with FileZilla or WinSCP. A late wipe .sav can be hundreds of megabytes and the blueprint database grows with every player, so zip the identity folder on the server if you can, or use SFTP so a dropped connection resumes. Unzip it on your PC and check the .sav is really there before cancelling anything.

Step 3: Set up the new server to match

Create the new server with the same framework, start it once so it builds its folders, then stop it. Set:

• the same world size and seed (or the same custom map URL)
• the same level, usually Procedural Map
• the newest Rust version, which the old server should also have been on

Step 4: Upload into the right identity folder

Upload your files into the new server's server/<identity>/ folder, replacing what it generated. If the new host uses a different identity name, put your files in its folder, not a new folder with the old name. Then upload oxide/ or carbon/ into the server root.

Step 5: Start and check

Start the server and watch the console. You want to see it load the save, not "Generating procedural map". Join with client.connect, check your base, run oxide.plugins or c.plugins to confirm plugins loaded, and check your admin rights.

The trap: the save name is the map

Rust does not load "the save in the folder". It builds a file name from the current launch settings, proceduralmap.<size>.<seed>.<protocol>.sav, and looks for exactly that file. If your new server starts with size 4000 instead of 4250, a different seed, or a newer map protocol after a Facepunch update, it does not find your file and quietly generates a brand new map next to it. Your save is still sitting in the folder, unused.

So read the size and seed straight from your old file name and copy them into the new server. For custom maps, the name comes from the map file, so use the exact same levelurl. If the protocol number changed because a force wipe happened in between, the map cannot come across: keep the blueprints and player files and start the new wipe there. Communities discussing moves on uMod run into this one constantly.

Common problems

• Fresh map instead of your base: world size, seed, level or custom map URL do not match the save's file name, or the files are in a different identity folder.
• Everyone lost blueprints: the player.blueprints.<n>.db file was not copied, or it went into the wrong identity folder.
• Admins are gone: server.writecfg was not run before stopping, so users.cfg was out of date. Run ownerid <SteamID64> and server.writecfg again.
• Plugins load but lose their settings: oxide/data or carbon/data was not copied.
• Server not in the list: new servers take a while to appear. client.connect with the address works straight away.

Moving your Rust server to GamezServers

On a Rust server from GamezServers the identity folder is server/rust. Pick Vanilla, Oxide or Carbon at checkout, set Map size and Map seed (or Custom Map URL) to match your old server, press Stop, and upload into server/rust from Files (a zip plus Extract is quickest) or with the SFTP login in Settings. Rust and the framework update on every restart, and the server stays up without your PC. For the next wipe day, see how to wipe a Rust server.

FAQ

What files do I need to move a Rust server?

The whole server/<identity>/ folder, including the .map, .sav, player.*.db files and cfg/, plus oxide/ or carbon/ if you use plugins.

Will players keep their blueprints?

Yes, if you copy player.blueprints.<n>.db into the new identity folder.

Why did my Rust server generate a new map after moving?

The world size, seed or map protocol did not match the save's file name, so Rust could not find it. Match them and restart.

Can I move my map after a force wipe?

No. The monthly update changes the map protocol and old saves stop loading. Blueprints, admins and plugins can still move.