Use RCON on Your Project Zomboid Server
Set an RCON port and password for outside tools on Project Zomboid, using an extra port, and see when the Console tab already does the job.
RCON is the game's remote console: a way for an outside tool, such as an RCON client or a bot, to send commands to your server. If you only want to run commands yourself, you don't need it. The Console tab in the panel already does what RCON does, with nothing to set up (Use your server console and send commands). Set RCON up only when something outside the panel has to talk to the server. Checked against Build 42.21, October 2026.
What you need
- An extra port on your plan. RCON can't use the port players join on. How to add an extra port to your server shows how. If your plan has no extra port, use the Console tab.
- A password. The game's own note on it is "Pick a strong password", so make it long and don't reuse one.
Set it up
- Open Settings, then the Network ports card, and select Add port. Copy the address and port it shows. The number is assigned from our shared range, so you can't pick it.
- Open the Server Settings tab and go to the Advanced card.
- Set RCON port to the number you copied. The field takes 1024 to 65535.
- Type a strong password into RCON password. The field takes up to 64 characters.
- Press Save changes on that card, then restart the server.
The game's own default for the port is 27015, and a blank password keeps RCON switched off. That blank is what a new server starts with.
Leave RCON port on 27015 and nothing outside will reach it: that port stays inside your server's container. Match the setting to your extra port.
Connect your tool
Point the tool at the address from the Network ports card, using the extra port, with the password you set. Which tool you use is up to you. The game's RCON server uses the Source RCON packet types (SERVERDATA_AUTH and SERVERDATA_EXECCOMMAND), so a Source-style RCON client works.
Commands go in the way you would type them in the Console tab, with no leading slash, for example players or servermsg "Restart in 5 minutes". Project Zomboid server command list has the rest. The game runs RCON commands through the same path as the console, and RCON is only on while the password isn't blank.
Turn it off or change it
- To turn RCON off, clear RCON password, save and restart.
- If you release the extra port in Settings, any RCON tool stops working on it.
- If you change the password, update the tool, too.
Frequently asked questions
Why can't I connect on 27015?
27015 stays inside your server's container, so nothing outside can reach it. Use the extra port you added.
Does a blank RCON password leave it open?
No. A blank password keeps RCON switched off.
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