How to Install Mods on Your Valheim Server (BepInEx)

Understanding Valheim Mods

Valheim mods come in three types:

Most popular mods (Server devcommands, Epic Loot, PlantEverything, Valheim Plus) are hybrid — the server and all connecting players need the same version.

Always check a mod's Nexus Mods or Thunderstore page to confirm which type it is before installing.

Step 1: Install BepInEx (the Mod Framework)

BepInEx is the mod loader that all Valheim mods use. It must be installed on the server before any mods will run.

1. Stop your server in the panel
2. Go to File Manager
3. Look in the root server directory — does a BepInEx/ folder already exist? If yes, it's already installed — skip to Step 2.
4. If not: download BepInExPack_Valheim from Thunderstore (click the Manual Download button)
5. Extract the zip — you'll get a BepInExPack_Valheim/ folder
6. Inside that folder are BepInEx/, doorstop_libs/, and a few .cfg/.dll files
7. Upload all of those files to the root of your server directory (where valheim_server.x86_64 lives) via the File Manager
8. Start and then stop the server once — BepInEx will generate its folder structure (including BepInEx/plugins/, BepInEx/config/)

Step 2: Upload Your Mod(s)

1. Download the mod from Thunderstore or Nexus Mods. The file you want is a .dll — it's either at the top level of the zip or inside a plugins/ subfolder.
2. Stop the server if it's running
3. In the panel's File Manager, navigate to:

   /BepInEx/plugins/
   

4. Click Upload and select the mod's .dll file
5. Start the server

BepInEx loads every .dll from the plugins/ folder on startup. Check the panel console for lines like:

[Info   :   BepInEx] Loading [ModName 1.0.0]

If a mod fails to load, the error appears here too.

Step 3: Configure the Mod

Most mods generate a configuration file in BepInEx/config/ on their first load. These are plain text .cfg files you can edit in the File Manager.

1. Start the server once to generate the config file
2. Stop the server
3. Navigate to /BepInEx/config/
4. Open the mod's config file (usually named author.ModName.cfg)
5. Edit the values as needed — each setting has a comment explaining what it does
6. Save and restart the server

Installing Multiple Mods

Just upload all their .dll files to /BepInEx/plugins/. You can have many mods running simultaneously.

Tips for managing a mod list:

• Keep a text file (or your Discord server pins) with a list of installed mod names and versions
• When a mod breaks, test by moving suspect .dll files out of plugins/ temporarily to narrow down the culprit
• Make sure all hybrid mods are the same version on the server and all clients

Keeping Mods Updated

When a mod releases an update:

1. Download the new version
2. Stop the server
3. Delete the old .dll from BepInEx/plugins/
4. Upload the new .dll
5. Start the server

If the mod has a config file and the new version adds new settings, the config will be updated automatically on first start.

Common Issues

"BepInEx not loading any mods" → Check that doorstop_config.ini and winhttp.dll (or libdoorstop.so on Linux) are in the root server directory alongside valheim_server.x86_64.

"Failed to load mod X" → The mod may require a dependency. Check the mod's Thunderstore/Nexus page for a list of requirements and install those first.

"Clients can't connect after installing a mod" → The mod is likely a hybrid type and players need to install it too. Share the Thunderstore link with your players and have them install via Thunderstore Mod Manager.

"Server crashes on startup" → Start without mods (move all .dll files out of plugins/) and add them back one by one to find the incompatible one.

Related

• Using Thunderstore Mod Manager for Valheim — the easiest way for players to install matching mods
• Valheim Debug Mode and Cheat Commands — using Server devcommands after installing it