How to Become Admin on Your DayZ Server
Run your DayZ server as admin from the Console tab, what the admin password setting is for, what vanilla admin can and cannot do, and where admin tool mods fit in.
Four Kinds of "Admin" on DayZ
DayZ has no admin list file. Depending on what you want to do, "being admin" means one of four things:
| What you want | Use | Status on GameGrid |
|---|---|---|
| Kick, ban and message players, shut the server down | The Console tab (BattlEye RCon) | Available: it works from the panel, no password needed |
| Teleport, heal, message or kick a player, spawn an object, and see players on a map | The DayZ Tools and Live Map pages, from GameGrid's own server-side mod | Available from the panel, on a player who is in game; players install nothing |
| Log in as admin while playing | #login in game chat, with the admin password | DayZ's own feature. Nothing in the panel uses it or needs it |
| An in-game admin menu your admins open while playing | An admin tool mod such as Community Online Tools or VPP Admin Tools | Installed as a Steam Workshop mod from the Mods tab |
Day to day, use the Console tab and the DayZ Tools page.
The Console Tab
The Console tab sends BattlEye RCon commands to your server. You do not need to be in game or know the admin password.
| Command | Does |
|---|---|
players | Lists connected players with their number |
say -1 Restart in 10 minutes | Sends a message to every player |
kick 3 AFK too long | Kicks player number 3 with a reason |
ban 3 1440 Combat logging | Bans player number 3 for 1440 minutes |
#shutdown | Shuts the server down cleanly |
These are BattlEye's standard RCon commands. #shutdown is what GameGrid uses to stop DayZ cleanly; for the others, read the reply shown in the Console after you send them. Full detail is in BattlEye RCon and the Console Tab.
#shutdownfrom the Console is not the same as Stop in the status bar. The platform did not ask for that exit, so it treats it as unexpected and starts the server again. Use Stop when you want the server to stay off.
The Admin Password Setting
The Settings tab has an admin password (passwordAdmin in serverDZ.cfg). It is stored as a secret: once saved, the panel does not show it back in plain text. DayZ reads it when the server starts, so a change needs a restart.
DayZ community guides use this password with #login in in-game chat. That is DayZ's own feature, and nothing on GameGrid is built on it: the Console tab takes no password at all, and leaving this one empty is fine.
If you do set one, use something long and unique, and never paste it in Discord or in server rules.
What Vanilla Admin Cannot Do
Vanilla DayZ admin is deliberately minimal. There is no teleport, god mode, item spawning, free camera, player map or weather control in the base game, whether through BattlEye RCon or in game.
On GameGrid, some of that comes from the panel instead of from a mod you install. The DayZ Tools page can message, heal, teleport or kick a player who is in game and spawn an object beside them, and the Live Map page shows player and vehicle positions on a map grid. Both are driven by GameGrid's own server-side mod, which we load for you, so your players install nothing. To put an item in a player's own hands, use the shop or a kit on the Economy page. There is still no god mode, free camera or weather control.
For a menu your admins open inside the game while they play, use an admin tool mod such as Community Online Tools (COT) or VPP Admin Tools, installed as a Steam Workshop mod from the Mods tab. See Admin Tool Mods: Community Online Tools and VPP.
Several Admins
- In the panel: the Console tab needs no shared password, so there is nothing to hand out or change when someone joins or leaves your team.
- Discord and the Customer API: neither sends BattlEye RCon commands to a DayZ server. Console commands are sent from the panel's Console tab and the Command Manager.
Moderating Fairly
- Always give a reason when you kick or ban (
kick 3 Racism in chat). Players see it, and it makes disputes easier to settle later. - Check the admin log before acting on a report. See Reading DayZ Admin Logs.
- Keep a private note of each ban with the date, reason and evidence.