Swarm Hosts / Guides

Factorio

Factorio uses UDP for gameplay and stores saves, mods, and configuration under /factorio. The current managed server version is Factorio 2.0.77.

Quick facts

  • Persistent data: /factorio
  • Gameplay: assigned UDP port
  • First start: creates a save automatically when none exists
  • Files: saves, mods, and server settings persist across restarts
  • Ready signal: the server log reports Hosting game at IP ADDR:
  • Minimum resources: 2 CPU and 2 GB RAM

Launch and settings

  1. Choose Factorio.
  2. Select the target Swarm Host or Swarm Zone.
  3. Set the Swarm Server name and resource limits.
  4. Launch and wait for the server to create or load its save.

Factorio currently has no game-specific settings form. Use Files & Backups → File Manager for saves, mods, and configuration files. Stop the server before editing game configuration. Create a backup before replacing a save or changing a mod set. Platform backups include /factorio/saves, /factorio/config, /factorio/mods, and /factorio/scenarios.

Server Actions

Use Server Tools → Actions to check the server, manage players, send messages, and save the map. Swarm Hosts handles RCON privately inside the game container; you do not need to expose an RCON port or enter console commands.

Available actions include:

  • Server status: pinned version, online count, active save, server settings, and installed mod-archive count.
  • Discover players: refreshes the list of known and online players. Refresh again if your selected player is no longer available.
  • Access lists: refreshes persisted bans, whitelist entries, and administrators for administrator/owner workflows.
  • Broadcast message: sends a bounded server-authored shout without exposing console syntax.
  • Save map now: saves the active map and checks that the updated save archive is complete.
  • Kick, ban, and unban: operate only on a freshly discovered player. Ban changes are verified against server-banlist.json.
  • Whitelist add/remove and administrator promote/demote: owner-approved changes verified against Factorio's persisted JSON lists.

Whitelist behavior

Factorio treats a non-empty whitelist as an allowlist. Adding the first entry restricts access to listed players; removing the final entry allows everyone again.

Unavailable in Server Actions: arbitrary RCON/console input, Lua or scripting commands, cheats, the editor, server quit, caller-selected save names, permission-group mutation, or mod execution hooks. Factorio's own console command reference and headless command-line reference define the runtime semantics used by the adapter.

See Server Actions for the shared action and approval model.

Mods & Content

Factorio mods are managed manually through Files & Backups. There is no Factorio Mods & Content page. Mod ZIPs live under /factorio/mods and execute code in the game runtime.

  • Compatibility depends on Factorio 2.0.77, enabled DLC, dependencies, and each mod's declared version constraints.
  • The current integration does not promise portal discovery, dependency resolution, automatic updates, load ordering, drift repair, or exact-version rollback.
  • Back up saves, configuration, and the complete mod set together before a change. Restart the server after changing mods and verify the load log before players rejoin.
  • Automatic mod updates on startup are disabled by default.

Start a new game

Open Settings → Danger zone, choose Start a new game, and type RESET WORLD to replace the current map while keeping the Swarm Server, configuration, and mods. Swarm Hosts creates and verifies a safety backup before clearing the saves. The next start creates a fresh map; restore the backup if you need the previous one.

Connect

Players can use Factorio's multiplayer browser or direct-connect flow with the published host and assigned UDP port shown on the Swarm Server.