Reworked instructions for setting up a dedicated server using a NitroGen Map
Greetings once again,
I felt that the provided information on the 'How to set up a dedicated server with a NitroGen map' subject was a little too stretched out, so I took all relevant instructions by Damocles, zootal and Alloc and put them together in an updated form. Also included it in the GitHub's prefab repository ReadMe (see this thread's first page), new section 0, to whom it may concern:
Instructions for setting up a dedicated server with a NitroGen map:
1. After creating your NitroGen map, you need to transfer the map to your server. It's convenient to use a packer, e.g. 7-Zip (
https://www.7-zip.org/), for this. (You'd also need a packing program on your server to unpack the file again after the transfer, of course.) This way, you only need to transfer one big file, not many small ones.
The default folder location for a NitroGen-generated map is:
NitroGen_WorldGenerator\output\NitroGenMap
Before packing the folder contents into one big file, you can delete the map preview files from the folder (copy them someplace else before, if you need them):
genHM.png
poiHM.png
previewMap.png
These files are rather large and would add to the total map size to be transferred, as well as forcing all clients connecting to your 7 Days to Die server later to download them as well, therefore delaying the actual first gameplay for the clients.
For the actual file transfer, you need an appropriate access / program for your server (Remote Desktop Connection, PuTTY, whatever). I won't go into too many details here, as there are many instructions to be found on the Internet and elsewhere on how to do this. (For example, quite convenient is Remote Desktop Connection with copy & paste, if you have a Windows operating system and sufficient rights on your (Windows) server.)
2. Next, unpack the transferred file in an appropriate location for 7 Days to Die to find it. For this, you have the following options; either:
- put it under the game's regular UserDataFolder (e.g. %APPDATA%/7DaysToDie/GeneratedWorlds/NitroGenMap on Windows).
- put it in the save game's own folder (e.g. %APPDATA%/7DaysToDie/SaveGames/NitroGenMap/MySavegame/World, assuming you use Windows and the default SaveGameFolder).
- put it in a MOD folder (
recommended; e.g. <7 Days to Die root folder>/Mods/NitroGen_Maps/Worlds/NitroGenMap_001).
- put it in the game's own Worlds folder (
not recommended, as this is the most likely place to lose your worlds on updates or similar; e.g. <7 Days to Die root folder>/Data/Worlds/NitroGenMap).
Another option is to define / override the game's UserDataFolder location by setting it yourself in the game's serverconfig.xml file:
<property name="UserDataFolder" value="/<folder of your choice>" />
This, however, is not really necessary and mainly serves a preferred personal taste for this folder's location. (Similar to changing the game's SaveGameFolder location: <property name="SaveGameFolder" value="/<folder of your choice>" />, which can be done, but is
not needed to make a NitroGen map work on a dedicated server.)
3. Within the
serverconfig.xml file, located in your 7 Days to Die root folder, define the
GameWorld config value, so that it maches the exact name of your generated NitroGen map.
Regular GameWorld values would be
Navezgane (for a standard Navezgane map) and
RWG (for a randomly generated world). A NitroGen map is an additional / different map type with its own name, which is defined when you create a map in the NitroGen generator. The game doesn't know about that name, so you must insert it yourself to make it actually use the NitroGen map in-game.
Example:
Your NitroGen map folder is called
My_NitroGenMap_001.
Insert / change this line in your serverconfig.xml file:
<property name="GameWorld" value="My_NitroGenMap_001"/>
Now you should be good to go. Run the 7 Days to Die server, and let your clients connect.
4. Additional information:
The values
WorldGenSeed and
WorldGenSize within the serverconfig.xml are only relevant for the game's own random world generator, meaning if the
GameWorld value is set to
RWG. They do nothing for a NitroGen map.
I hope all of this is correct now.^^ If not, shout.
Many thanks to Alloc, zootal and Damocles once again.
Cheers