Fixing Palworld Version Mismatch
When players see "incompatible version" and can't connect, the fix is usually a server restart.
What Causes Version Mismatch
Palworld clients auto-update through Steam. When Pocketpair releases a patch, your players' clients update automatically the next time they launch Steam or the game.
Your dedicated server is updated by GameGrid: a fleet sweep detects the new build and, unless auto-update is switched off for that server, installs it. Restarting the server does NOT pull a new build. If the client is newer than the server, players see "The match you are trying to join is running an incompatible version."
Less commonly, the server can be newer than the client - this happens if a player hasn't restarted Steam after a patch dropped.
Fixing It on GameGrid
1. Go to your dashboard and click "Manage" on your Palworld server.
2. Open the Admin tab and look at the "Game Updates" card.
3. If an "Update available" badge is showing, click "Update now".
4. The platform stages the build, takes a pre-update backup, warns anyone playing, stops the server, moves it to the new build and starts it again.
5. The card reports the outcome on its own. You can leave the page while it runs.
If there is no badge, your server is already on the newest build the platform can see, and the mismatch is on the client side - go to the next section.
A big patch can take several minutes. If it fails, your server is left on the build it was running and the card says why.
If Restarting Doesn't Fix It
If the server is on the newest build and players still see the error, it is almost always the client.
Have the affected player close Steam completely - not just the game - and reopen it. That forces a client update check.
Verify the server build from the Game Updates card on the Admin tab, or ask the server directly with Info in the Console tab (no leading slash) or /Info in game. Compare it to the client version in the bottom-left of the Palworld main menu.
If both are current and they still disagree, open a support ticket with both version numbers.
Preventing Future Mismatches
Leave "Automatically apply game updates" ON in the Game Updates card on the Admin tab. It is on by default, and it is what closes the window between a patch landing on Steam and your server following it.
Turn it OFF only if you run mods that a patch would break - and then apply the update yourself once they are compatible.
Do not rely on scheduled restarts for this. The "Automatic Daily Restart" card is a separate thing: it restarts an EMPTY server on a 6, 12 or 24-hour interval and does not fetch builds.
Communicate with your players so they do not try to connect during the brief downtime an update causes.