DayZ Server Settings Reference (serverDZ.cfg)

How the Settings Tab Maps to serverDZ.cfg

DayZ reads almost all of its server configuration from one file, serverDZ.cfg, once, when the server starts. The Settings tab edits that file for you, so every change needs a restart before it does anything.

The file has a strict format. Every line is key = value; with a semicolon at the end, text values are in double quotes, and the map is chosen inside a block at the bottom:

hostname = "[EU] Chernarus PvE - 1PP";
maxPlayers = 60;
class Missions
{
class DayZ
{
template = "dayzOffline.chernarusplus";
};
};

If you edit serverDZ.cfg by hand in the Files tab, check every semicolon. A missing one does not stop the server starting: it silently breaks the lines after it, which is much harder to spot.

The Settings tab does not show every key in this article. A key it does not show can be added to serverDZ.cfg by hand in the Files tab, while the server is stopped.

A setting that is greyed out and marked ignored, a field with a Format line under it, or a value that is not the one you expected for a key nobody has written — all three are deliberate, and Why a DayZ Setting Is Greyed Out, Blank or Ignored explains each one.

Identity and Access

Both passwords are treated as secrets on GameGrid: they are not shown back to you in plain text once saved.

Gameplay Rules

When enableCfgGameplayFile is 1, the mission's cfggameplay.json takes over base damage, container damage, the respawn dialog, personal light and night lighting, and the lines above for those five are ignored. The Settings tab marks those five ignored and says so rather than letting you change a line the game will not read. See cfggameplay.json, Spawn Points and Starting Gear.

Time of Day

Worked examples and presets for short nights are in Day Length, Night Speed and Weather.

Login Queue and Connection Limits

Raising loginQueueConcurrentPlayers refills a full server faster after a restart, at the cost of a short lag spike.

Logging

The logs themselves are covered in Reading DayZ Admin Logs.

Keys GameGrid Sets for You

A few keys are managed by the platform and cannot be changed from the panel. The server would stop working correctly if they were.

The BattlEye RCon password and port are also written by the platform before each start, and RCon only listens inside the host. See DayZ Server Ports and Firewall.

Signature Verification

verifySignatures is yours to set, in the Basic category, and the Settings tab offers all three of DayZ's values.

On Full, your server checks every mod file a player's client loads against its signature and a matching .bikey in your keys folder. A player whose files have been changed, or are signed by a key you do not have, is kicked with "Modified data". GameGrid copies each installed mod's key into keys for you, so on a normal modded server there is nothing to do.

• It applies to client mods only. A server-side mod is never sent to a player, which is why GameGrid's own unsigned server mod runs perfectly well with Full switched on.
• Off and Basic are not documented for DayZ. Bohemia's own reference config says only 2 is supported, and DayZ documents no behaviour at all for 0 or 1 — the game may simply keep checking. Turning it down is not guaranteed to fix anything.
• Off is a cheating risk, stated plainly in the panel: it stops the check for every mod on the server and every player, not just the one that caused the problem.

There is one real case for turning it down, and it is why the control exists: a community map or mod that ships no `.bikey` at all. There is no key you could add, so Full kicks every player who joins. If you hit that, GameGrid warns you before the restart rather than letting you find out from your players — see Mods on Your DayZ Server.

Leave it on Full unless a specific mod forces your hand.