Editing Your Project Zomboid Server and Sandbox Settings

Project Zomboid keeps its settings in two files, servertest.ini for server options like the name, password and player slots, and servertest_SandboxVars.lua for the world rules like zombie count and loot, and you edit both on the Server properties page of your control panel.

2 min read · Updated Sep 24, 2026 · By GuavaHost Team

The two files that control your server

By default your server is named servertest, so its two config files are servertest.ini and servertest_SandboxVars.lua. On your GuavaHost server they live together in the .cache/Server folder. If you renamed your server, the files use that name instead, for example myserver.ini.

The easiest way to edit them is Server properties, under Game tools in your server's menu. It finds both files for you and shows them as two tabs: Server settings (servertest) and Sandbox settings (servertest), named after your server. You can also open the files on the Files tab.

Always take a snapshot on the Backups page before editing. If a change breaks the server, restoring puts everything back exactly as it was.

Editing servertest.ini

servertest.ini is a plain list of Setting=Value lines. On the Server settings (servertest) tab each setting has its own box, and the search box finds one by name. Change what you need. The most useful options are:

• PublicName= and PublicDescription=, the name and blurb shown in the server browser.
• Public=true or false, whether the server appears in the public list.
• Password=, the join password players must enter. Leave it blank for no password.
• MaxPlayers=, how many people can connect.
• PVP=true or false, whether players can hurt each other.
• PauseEmpty=true, which pauses the world when nobody is online.
• Mods= and WorkshopItems=, your installed mods.

Editing the sandbox settings

servertest_SandboxVars.lua holds the world rules, the same options you see on the Sandbox screen when you start a solo game. The Sandbox settings (servertest) tab opens it as plain text. It is a Lua table, so each line looks like Setting = value,. Keep the commas and the SandboxVars = { wrapper intact.

Common settings to tune:

• Zombies, the overall population. Lower numbers mean more zombies.
• Distribution and the loot settings, how much gear you find.
• XpMultiplier, how fast skills level up.
• DayLength, how long an in-game day lasts.
• WaterShutModifier and ElecShutModifier, how many days until the water and power cut out.

If you are unsure what a value does, open a solo game, set it on the Sandbox screen where every option has a description, and copy the number across.

Apply your changes

1. Press Stop at the top of the server page.
2. Make your changes on Server properties and click Save changes.
3. Press Start again.

Editing while the server is running risks your changes being overwritten when it next saves, so always stop it first. Once it boots back up, your new settings are live.

Watch the Lua syntax

A single missing comma or brace in servertest_SandboxVars.lua can stop the world loading. If the server refuses to start after a sandbox edit, check the Console log for a Lua error naming the line, or restore your snapshot from the Backups page and try again.

Still stuck? Jump into our Discord at discord.gg/GuavaHost and the team will help you out.

• project-zomboid
• config
• sandbox
• server-settings

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