How to Restore a Palworld Server Backup (Step by Step)

To restore a Palworld server backup, stop the server, pick the copy you want and put it back in place of the current world. On TheGameHosting that is one click: open Backups, choose the backup, click Restore and start the server again. Without a panel backup, you can also roll back by hand with the save copies Palworld keeps itself when bIsUseBackupSaveData is on.

Both methods are below, with the folder names, the order of steps and the mistakes that make a restore look like it "did nothing".

What a Palworld server backup contains

A Palworld dedicated server keeps everything that matters inside the Pal/Saved folder:

A backup of the whole server from the panel includes all of these. A copy of only the world folder brings back the world and the players, but not your settings. Keep that in mind if you changed PalWorldSettings.ini after the backup was taken: restoring a full backup puts the old settings back too.

How to restore a Palworld server backup from the panel

This is the fastest way, and it is the one to use if you made a backup before an update or a big change.

1. In the game, ask an admin to type /Save so nothing recent is lost, then tell players the server is going down.
2. Stop the server from Console and wait until it shows as offline.
3. Open Backups. Each backup shows its name, size and date. Pick the last one made before the problem started.
4. Open the backup's menu and choose Restore.
5. If the panel offers to delete all files before restoring, tick it when you want an exact copy of the old state, with no newer files left behind.
6. Confirm and wait. While the restore runs you cannot start the server or use Files.
7. Start the server from Console and join to check your base, your Pals and your character.

If you are not sure which backup is the right one, first download it from the same menu to look at it, or ask our team on live chat: we can help you check dates before you overwrite anything.

Restoring from Palworld's own save backups

Palworld can keep rolling copies of the world by itself. In PalWorldSettings.ini, the setting bIsUseBackupSaveData=True turns it on. Pocketpair's configuration guide says it creates a backup directory in the save data directory and keeps 5 copies every 30 seconds, 6 every 10 minutes, 12 every hour and 7 every day. It also warns that this raises disk load.

These copies are useful when you did not make a panel backup in time. To use one:

1. Stop the server.
2. Make a panel backup of the current state, even if it is broken.
3. In Files, open the world's folder in Pal/Saved/SaveGames/0/ and look for the backup folder. Find the copy with the date and time you want.
4. Copy the files from that copy (such as Level.sav, LevelMeta.sav and the Players folder) over the same files in Pal/Saved/SaveGames/0/<world ID>/.
5. Start the server and check the world in game.

For big worlds, SFTP is quicker than the browser. Download the whole world folder to your PC first, so you always have an untouched copy.

Restore a world folder from your PC

Sometimes the backup is a folder on your computer: a copy you downloaded, or a world from another server. The steps are close to moving a co-op world to a dedicated server:

1. Stop the server.
2. Upload the world folder to Pal/Saved/SaveGames/0/ with Files or SFTP.
3. Open GameUserSettings.ini and set DedicatedServerName to the exact name of that folder.
4. Start the server.

If the folder name and DedicatedServerName do not match, the server creates a brand new world instead of loading yours. That is the most common reason a restore "did nothing".

Common problems after a restore

Make the next restore painless

The best restore is the one you planned. Three habits cover most cases:

1. Back up before every update. Game patches are the most common reason worlds break.
2. Back up on a timer. With Schedules you can create a backup and restart the server at a quiet hour every day. Palworld memory use grows the longer it runs, so a daily restart also keeps the server smoother.
3. Keep one copy off the server. Download a backup now and then. If you delete a server or switch it to another game, local copies are your last safety net.

Run your Palworld world on TheGameHosting

Restoring a world on a home PC means finding hidden folders and hoping the copy is complete. On a Palworld server from TheGameHosting you get a Backups tab, Files in the browser, full SFTP and Schedules on every plan. Palworld starts on the 8 GB plan at $6.96 USD a month, on AMD 9950X and 7950X3D CPUs with DDR5 and NVMe storage, in Dallas or Amsterdam. Your server is ready about 60 seconds after payment and support answers 24/7 in English and Spanish. See all plans and prices and use FULL2026 for 15% off for life.

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