How to Wipe a Project Zomboid Server

To wipe Project Zomboid server worlds, stop the server, back it up, and delete the world folder Zomboid/Saves/Multiplayer/servertest (the folder takes your server name). On the next start the server generates a fresh map, and your servertest.ini and sandbox settings in Zomboid/Server stay as they are. On TheGameHosting it is Backups, Files and Start.

Servers get wiped for good reasons: a new season, a big build update that needs a new world, sandbox changes that only apply to new areas, or a map so looted that nobody has fun anymore. Here is exactly what to remove, what to leave alone and how to undo it, with the paths from the PZwiki and what changes when your server runs on TheGameHosting.

Where a Project Zomboid server keeps its world

The dedicated server keeps everything inside a Zomboid folder (in your user folder on Windows, ~/Zomboid on Linux). According to the PZwiki dedicated server page:

If you started the server with -servername MyServer, every servertest above becomes MyServer. The wiki’s reset instructions only touch the world folder, so we don’t touch Zomboid/db either.

Wipe Project Zomboid server data, step by step

1. Warn the players. Give them a date so they can say goodbye to their base.
2. Stop the server. In our panel, press Stop on the Console page. The PZwiki multiplayer FAQ is clear: delete the world only while the server is off.
3. Back up. Go to Backups → Create backup and name it “Before wipe”. On your own PC, copy the whole Zomboid folder somewhere safe.
4. Open the save folder. In Files, open the Zomboid folder, then Saves/Multiplayer.
5. Delete the world folder named after your server, for example servertest. You can rename it instead, but a renamed copy still takes disk space.
6. Adjust the rules for the new map (optional). Open Zomboid/Server/servertest_SandboxVars.lua and servertest.ini now, before the world is generated.
7. Start the server and join. Everyone starts with a new character on a fresh map.

Heads-up: characters live inside the world folder, so a full wipe removes every survivor, safehouse and vehicle. Players’ single-player saves on their own PCs are not affected.

Do you need a full wipe?

Our sandbox settings guide explains which values only affect newly spawned areas, and the Build 42 vs Build 41 guide covers the version switch.

After the wipe

• Check admins and access. Since Zomboid/db was not touched, test that your admin can still log in, and set access levels again with /setaccesslevel if needed. See Project Zomboid admin commands.
• Re-check your options. Name, password, PvP and mods are in servertest.ini; our servertest.ini guide lists them.
• Add or drop map mods now. A fresh world is the best moment to change mods. Workshop IDs go on the WorkshopItems= line, mod IDs on Mods=, and extra maps on Map=, with the default Muldraugh, KY last. Players get the server’s Workshop mods when they connect, so tell them the new list before wipe night. Step by step in how to add mods to a Project Zomboid server.
• Schedule backups from day one. In Schedules, add a nightly task that backs up and restarts the server.
• Undo if needed. Stop the server and restore the “Before wipe” copy from Backups.

Run your next Project Zomboid season on TheGameHosting

A Project Zomboid server on TheGameHosting turns a wipe into a few clicks: Backups keeps the old world, Files removes it and edits your sandbox file in the browser, and Console starts the new map. It runs 24/7 in Dallas or Amsterdam on AMD 9950X/7950X3D CPUs with DDR5 and NVMe, with DDoS protection and no slot fees. Project Zomboid needs at least 8 GB of RAM, from $6.96 USD/month. See the server plans and use code FULL2026 for 15% off for life.

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• Project Zomboid server hostingBuild 42 or 41 · from $6.96 USD/month