{"id":3790,"date":"2026-10-27T17:10:22","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T14:10:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gameteam.io\/blog\/dayz-server-mods\/"},"modified":"2026-10-27T17:10:22","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T14:10:22","slug":"dayz-server-mods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gameteam.io\/blog\/dayz-server-mods\/","title":{"rendered":"DayZ Mod Server Guide: How to Add Mods to a DayZ Server (Workshop, -mod and Keys)"},"content":{"rendered":"

A DayZ mod server runs Steam Workshop mods that every player downloads too: you put each mod’s folder next to the server, copy its .bikey<\/code> into the keys<\/code> folder, and list the folders in the -mod=<\/code> launch parameter, separated by semicolons.<\/strong> Server-only mods go in -serverMod=<\/code> instead and never reach players. That’s the whole system. Below: the exact steps on Windows and Linux, load order, mods that need their own mission files, the mods most modded DayZ servers start with, and fixes for the kicks and crashes that follow a new mod.<\/p>\n

How DayZ server mods work<\/h2>\n

DayZ mods come from the Steam Workshop for DayZ (app 221100). A mod loaded with -mod=<\/code> is sent to every player, so players must run the same mods at the same version to join. A mod loaded with -serverMod=<\/code> stays on the server. And the server checks every mod file against its signature (verifySignatures = 2<\/code>, the only value Bohemia supports), which is why each mod’s key has to be in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Piece<\/th>\nWhere it goes<\/th>\nWhat it does<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Mod folder (e.g. @CF<\/code>)<\/td>\nServer root, or any path you give<\/td>\nThe mod’s files: addons<\/code> with the .pbo and .bisign files<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
.bikey<\/code> file<\/td>\nThe server’s keys<\/code> folder<\/td>\nLets the server accept that mod’s signed files<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
-mod=@CF;@MyMod<\/code><\/td>\nLaunch line<\/td>\nLoads mods on the server and on every client<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
-serverMod=@MyServerMod<\/code><\/td>\nLaunch line<\/td>\nLoads server-side mods that clients never download<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mission XML entries<\/td>\nmpmissions\/<mission>\/<\/code><\/td>\nMake modded items spawn as loot (types.xml<\/code>) or set up the mod’s map<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The folder name is only a label. @CF<\/code> is the usual convention, but Bohemia’s Linux guide loads mods by their numeric Workshop IDs (-mod=1559212036;1564026768;<\/code>) and that works just as well.<\/p>\n

How to add mods to a DayZ server (Windows)<\/h2>\n

Download the mods with SteamCMD (or copy them from your own Steam Workshop folder), move each into the server folder, copy its key, and add it to the start line. Back up first: the server’s world lives in the mission’s storage_1<\/code> folder, and a mod that changes items can leave it in a state you’d rather undo.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Find the mod’s Workshop ID.<\/strong> It’s the number at the end of the Workshop URL. Community Framework is 1559212036<\/code>, Community Online Tools is 1564026768<\/code>.<\/li>\n
  2. Download it next to the server.<\/strong> The same SteamCMD line that installs the server can fetch Workshop items:\n
    steamcmd +force_install_dir C:\\dayzserver +login your_steam_name +app_update 223350 +workshop_download_item 221100 1559212036 +workshop_download_item 221100 1564026768 +quit<\/code><\/pre>\n
      The files land in C:\\dayzserver\\steamapps\\workshop\\content\\221100\\<id><\/code>. If you’re subscribed to the mod in Steam already, the same folder exists under your Steam library’s steamapps\\workshop\\content\\221100<\/code>.<\/li>\n
  3. Copy each mod into the server root<\/strong> and give it a readable name: C:\\dayzserver\\@CF<\/code>, C:\\dayzserver\\@COT<\/code>.<\/li>\n
  4. Copy the keys.<\/strong> Every mod has a keys<\/code> (sometimes Keys<\/code>) folder with one or more .bikey<\/code> files. Copy them into C:\\dayzserver\\keys<\/code>.<\/li>\n
  5. Add the mods to your start line,<\/strong> in load order, with the whole value in quotes:\n
    DayZServer_x64.exe -config=serverDZ.cfg -port=2302 \"-mod=@CF;@COT\" -profiles=profiles -dologs -adminlog -freezecheck<\/code><\/pre>\n<\/li>\n
  6. Start the server and read the log.<\/strong> The .RPT<\/code> file in your profiles folder shows each mod loading, or the error that stopped it.<\/li>\n
  7. Tell your players.<\/strong> They subscribe to the same Workshop items and enable them in the DayZ Launcher before joining.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    On Linux<\/h3>\n
    Bohemia’s Linux guide downloads mods with SteamCMD and links them into the server folder instead of copying, so an update to the Workshop files is picked up straight away:<\/p>\n
    ~\/servers\/steamcmd\/steamcmd.sh +force_install_dir ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/ +login your_steam_name +app_update 223350 +workshop_download_item 221100 1559212036 +workshop_download_item 221100 1564026768 +quit\ncd ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/\nln -s ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/steamapps\/workshop\/content\/221100\/1559212036 ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/1559212036\nln -s ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/steamapps\/workshop\/content\/221100\/1564026768 ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/1564026768\nln -s ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/steamapps\/workshop\/content\/221100\/1559212036\/keys\/* ~\/servers\/dayz-server\/keys\/\n.\/DayZServer -config=serverDZ.cfg -port=2302 \"-mod=1559212036;1564026768;\" -BEpath=battleye -profiles=profiles -dologs -adminlog -netlog -freezecheck<\/code><\/pre>\n
    Link every mod’s keys the same way. Linux file names are case-sensitive, so a mod folder with capital letters in it has to be typed exactly. The full server install is in the DayZ dedicated server guide<\/a>.<\/p>\n
    How to add mods manually<\/h3>\n
    No SteamCMD? Subscribe to the mod in Steam, let it download, then copy its folder from steamapps\\workshop\\content\\221100\\<id><\/code> to the server over FTP or your host’s file manager. Then the same three steps: key into keys<\/code>, folder name into -mod=<\/code>, restart. On a hosted server the start line usually lives in the panel’s startup settings rather than a batch file; with DayZ server hosting<\/a> on GameTeam you upload the folders and keys through the panel’s file manager.<\/p>\n
    Load order and dependencies<\/h2>\n
    Mods load in the order you list them in -mod=<\/code>, and a mod has to come after the mods it depends on. Frameworks go first. Each Workshop page lists its “Required items”; every one of them has to be on the server, in the launch line and in players’ downloads.<\/p>\n