Start your Terraria world

Choose your software first. These plans host the PC game in Poland or France. Console and mobile compatibility is not offered.

Vanilla, mods or plugins?

• Vanilla 1.4.5.8: the original Terraria game. Join using Terraria PC 1.4.5.8. It does not load tModLoader mods or TShock plugins.
• tModLoader stable 2026.07.3.0: runs Terraria 1.4.4.9 with gameplay mods. Every player needs the matching stable tModLoader release and compatible mods. It is a separate client from current Vanilla Terraria.
• TShock 6.1.0: runs Terraria PC 1.4.5.6 with server administration, permissions and server plugins. You need an existing matching PC client. Availability of that older client in your game store and compatibility with newer clients are not verified. TShock plugins and tModLoader mods are different formats.

Configure and connect

1. Choose a world name, size and difficulty. Vanilla also accepts an optional seed. These settings create a new world; changing them does not convert an existing world. Journey worlds require Journey characters.
2. Choose resources and your player limit. Use at least 4 GB for modded worlds; large mod collections can need more. The 2 to 32 slot setting is a join limit, not a performance guarantee.
3. Continue to the billing account. You can set a join password there using 5 to 20 letters, numbers, hyphens or underscores. A blank password permits anyone with the address to attempt to join.
4. After installation finishes, open the server Console and press Start. First world generation takes longer than subsequent starts. Wait for the listening message.
5. In the matching PC client, choose Multiplayer, Join via IP, then enter the address and port shown in the Panel. Enter your join password when prompted.

Add tModLoader mods

1. Prepare and test your mod collection in your local stable tModLoader client. A mod is one extension; a modpack is a selection of mods and settings designed to work together.
2. Stop the hosted server and make a backup. Upload the matching .tmod files and enabled.json into mods using Panel Files or SFTP. Include all required dependencies; do not upload Minecraft JAR files.
3. Start the server and check the Console for missing dependencies or incompatible versions. Test joining with the same client collection before inviting players. No mod collection is installed automatically.

Follow the official tModLoader hosting documentation and each mod author’s instructions. Vanilla and tModLoader are separate installations; changing software on a populated world needs a backup and compatibility checks.

Set up your TShock owner account

TShock includes permissions, groups, region protection, bans, kicks and warps. You can use these features without adding plugins. Complete the owner setup before inviting players. Your server join password and your TShock account password are separate.

1. Start your TShock server and find its private setup code in the Panel Console. Keep the code and tshock/setup-code.txt private.
2. Join with Terraria PC 1.4.5.6. In the game chat, enter /setup <code> using your private code.
3. Create your owner account with /user add <username> <password> owner. Choose a unique password of at least 12 characters, then use /login <username> <password>.
4. Enter /setup again to disable the one-time setup access. Give other administrators only the permissions they need through TShock groups.

Follow the official TShock setup guide. The REST API is disabled in this setup; ordinary administration uses the Panel Console and in-game commands.

Add TShock plugins

1. Choose a plugin whose author supports TShock 6.1.0, Terraria 1.4.5.6 and the .NET 9 runtime. Check the required permissions and dependencies. A tModLoader .tmod file will not work here.
2. Stop the server and create a backup. Upload the author’s plugin .dll and required dependencies to ServerPlugins using Panel Files or SFTP. Keep the bundled TShock files in place.
3. Start the server, check the Console for successful loading, then configure the plugin and grant its specific permissions as the author describes. Verify its behavior with your matching client before inviting players.

Plugin files and setup are managed through Panel Files or SFTP. Third-party plugins are not installed automatically. Use the pinned TShock release notes when checking compatibility.

Save, restart and back up

• Use save in the Console before maintenance, then Stop normally. Avoid killing the server while saving.
• World files live in saves/Worlds. Modded worlds also have .twld data alongside the .wld file. Preserve both, plus the mods and configuration needed to load them.
• For TShock, also preserve tshock and ServerPlugins. They contain the account database, permissions, configuration and plugins that belong with your world. Moving a newer Vanilla world to an older TShock version is not a supported downgrade; use a new or compatible backed-up world.
• Three backup slots are included. Your server is backed up automatically once a day, keeping up to two automatic backups and one free slot. Create your own backup in the Panel before changing software, mods or worlds.
• Software is pinned to the checked release. A restart does not silently move your world to a new game or loader version. Check client compatibility and back up before requesting an update.