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Host a Terraria Dedicated Server with Swarm Hosts

Create and run a persistent vanilla Terraria world on your own Linux host, use its typed server tools, and connect players over the managed TCP endpoint.

Terraria runs over TCP and persists its config and world files under /opt/terraria/config. Swarm Hosts waits for the TCP listener to open before promoting the Swarm Server to Running.

The server image wraps the community-maintained PassiveLemon Terraria Docker image, which runs the Terraria dedicated server with persistent world and config storage.

  • Server Actions
  • Guided settings
  • Backups
Terraria dedicated server artwork Validated public launch

Hardware and runtime

What Terraria needs

Catalog minimums are a starting point. World size, player count, content, and game settings can require more resources.

CPU
1+ cores
Memory
1+ GiB
Player traffic
TCP
Persistent backup scope
1 catalog-declared path

Launch workflow

From host to running server

If you already uploaded a world file into /opt/terraria/config/Worlds, you can disable auto-create and set WORLDNAME to the uploaded world's name.

  1. Open Launch.
  2. Choose Terraria.
  3. Leave AUTOCREATE=1 for a new server so Terraria creates the first world.
  4. Set WORLDNAME, MAXPLAYERS, optional PASSWORD, and MOTD.
  5. Leave SECURE=1 unless you have a specific reason to allow cheats.
  6. Click Launch.

Networking

How players connect

Players join with the swarm host public IP and assigned TCP port:

text <HOSTPUBLICIP>:<PORT>

After restoring a backup or replacing a world file, restart the Swarm Server and confirm Server overview and List online players both succeed before inviting players.

Managed shared relay when the game, host, and current relay path support it.

Catalog-backed Server Actions

Tools Swarm Hosts exposes for Terraria

Availability comes from the production catalog and verified game guide. Controls stay typed and bounded to the workflow the game supports.

Server overview

Read the pinned server version, port, player limit, and connected-player count.

List online players

Refresh the verified online-player list used by player-targeted actions.

Broadcast message

Send a server-authored message to connected players.

Save world now

Persist the current world and let the pinned runtime complete its save rotation.

Kick player

Disconnect one player selected from a fresh verified online-player list.

Set world time

Move the world clock to a supported vanilla time boundary.

Mods & Content status

None

This pinned image runs vanilla Terraria. Managed tModLoader and TShock content are intentionally not mixed into this runtime.

This image is vanilla Terraria, so Mods & Content reports no managed content strategy. Swarm Hosts does not install tModLoader or TShock into this image and does not treat vanilla worlds as mods. A future modded Terraria offering should be a separately pinned runtime with its own compatibility and management tests.

Know before launch

Current boundaries

  • Production hosting supports Windows 10/11 or Linux with Docker Desktop in Linux-container mode on Windows, or Docker Engine or rootful Podman on Linux.
  • Managed shared relay when the game, host, and current relay path support it.
  • Restored to the public launch catalog by the product owner on 2026-08-27. Historical live Steam client join proof exists; current client-facing actions are queued for owner-led manual acceptance.

Windows 10/11 + Linux

Ready to host Terraria?

Connect the Windows or Linux computer you already own, then follow the game-specific launch path.