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For a basic DayZ dedicated server, Bohemia Interactive lists 6 GB of RAM, a dual-core 2.4 GHz Intel processor or 2.5 GHz AMD Athlon, and 2.5 GB of storage. The company recommends an SSD for the installation and log files. Those are published baseline figures, not a promise that every heavily modded or full server will perform well.
For practical self-hosting, a community-maintained setup guide allows more headroom: 8 GB of RAM and a 20 GB SSD at its minimum tier, or 16 GB of RAM and a 40 GB NVMe drive in its recommended tier. The guide also emphasizes high CPU clock speed, a reliable upload connection, UDP ports 2302–2305, and routine administration. Treat those higher figures as planning advice rather than new official requirements.
Official DayZ dedicated-server requirements
Bohemia Interactive publishes a separate requirement set for the dedicated server. Do not substitute the requirements for the PC game client: Steam lists 8 GB of RAM minimum and 12 GB recommended for playing DayZ, while the dedicated-server page lists 6 GB of RAM.
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|---|---|---|
| Operating system | Windows Server 12–16 or Windows 10 or greater; Linux | Use the exact release support shown on the current official page, because operating-system support can change. |
| CPU | Intel dual-core 2.4 GHz or AMD dual-core Athlon 2.5 GHz | A published baseline for the server application, not a guarantee for large populations or extensive mods. |
| RAM | 6 GB | The official minimum figure for the dedicated server. |
| Storage | 2.5 GB | Bohemia recommends an SSD for installation and logs. |
| Network | Not specified in the extracted official requirement listing | You still need adequate upload capacity, low latency and the ability to expose the server ports. |
The wording “Windows Server 12–16” should be checked against the live Bohemia page before deployment; retain the exact edition and release that the current documentation supports rather than assuming every older or newer Windows Server build is covered.
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Practical headroom for a self-hosted server
A machine that merely meets the official minimum may start the server, but it leaves little room for the operating system, background services, logs, workshop content, backups or a growing player population. The StarDZ-Team community guide presents the following tiers:
| Resource | Guide minimum tier | Guide recommended tier | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | 4 cores at 2.4 GHz | 6 or more cores at 3.5 GHz | Community guidance; not an official Bohemia specification. |
| RAM | 8 GB | 16 GB | Practical headroom estimates; actual use varies with population and mods. |
| Storage | 20 GB SSD | 40 GB NVMe | Room for files, logs, updates and mod content, not a replacement for the 2.5 GB official minimum. |
| Upload bandwidth | 10 Mbps | 50 Mbps or more | Guide estimates, not a universal bandwidth requirement. |
No measured benchmark establishes a single RAM, CPU or bandwidth value for every DayZ configuration. Use the guide’s numbers as a conservative starting point, then watch memory, CPU time, tick performance and network saturation after the server is populated.
How much RAM does a DayZ server need?
6 GB: the published baseline
Bohemia’s dedicated-server listing specifies 6 GB of RAM. This is the number to use when documenting the official minimum, and it may be adequate for a lightly used, close-to-default installation with little else running on the machine.
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8 GB: a more workable minimum
The community guide recommends 8 GB as its minimum tier. That extra capacity gives the operating system and administrative tools some room while the server handles logs and updates. It is still a planning estimate, not a guarantee for a busy public server.
16 GB: sensible headroom for mods and growth
The guide’s recommended tier is 16 GB. This is the safer target when you expect a larger population, several workshop mods, map or gameplay additions, scheduled backups, or other services on the same host. If monitoring shows sustained memory pressure, adding RAM will not fix a CPU or network bottleneck, so check all three resources before upgrading.
CPU: clock speed matters, but do not confuse advice with an official rule
The official listing names a dual-core Intel processor at 2.4 GHz or an AMD dual-core Athlon at 2.5 GHz. The community guide argues that gameplay logic is largely single-threaded and therefore gives greater weight to clock speed than to simply counting cores. Its own tiers are four cores at 2.4 GHz minimum and six or more cores at 3.5 GHz recommended.
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That single-threading explanation and those core-and-clock tiers belong to the guide, not to Bohemia’s published specification. In practice, prioritize a modern processor with strong per-core performance and a high sustained clock, while keeping enough additional cores for the operating system, file compression, monitoring and any other services. Avoid judging a host by core count alone: a many-core processor with weak per-core performance may be a poorer fit than a faster, modern chip with fewer cores.
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Bohemia lists 2.5 GB of storage and recommends an SSD for the installation and logs. That figure describes the published server footprint, not the capacity you should necessarily purchase. Updates, workshop content, configuration files, crash dumps, rotating logs and backups all consume additional space.
The community guide therefore suggests a 20 GB SSD minimum and a 40 GB NVMe drive in its recommended tier. Those capacities provide working room; they are not official DayZ requirements. A larger drive, such as a 2 TB SSD, is convenient only because it leaves space for multiple server instances, retained backups and other applications. It does not make the server faster by itself once the active files already fit on a suitable SSD.
- Use SSD or NVMe storage rather than a mechanical disk for the active installation and logs.
- Reserve free space for updates and temporary files; do not run a system volume at near-capacity.
- Keep backups on separate storage when possible, so a failed drive does not remove both the server and its recovery copy.
Network and port requirements
The official requirement extract does not specify bandwidth. The community guide estimates 10 Mbps upload as a minimum and 50 Mbps or more as a recommended target. These are guide figures, not a universal promise that a particular player count will fit a particular connection. Upload capacity, latency, packet loss, other household traffic and the number of simultaneous players all affect the result.
Ports to forward
The guide identifies UDP ports 2302–2305 for forwarding. Configure those ports on the router and allow them through the host firewall, then verify that your internet service actually permits inbound connections. If the router cannot forward the ports, or the ISP places the connection behind carrier-grade NAT, a home-hosted server may not be reachable from the public internet; a rented server with assigned ports is then the simpler option.
What to monitor
- Upload utilization while the server is populated.
- Packet loss and latency from the regions where your players live.
- CPU saturation on the main simulation workload.
- Available RAM and the size of log and backup directories.
Windows or Linux?
Bohemia’s requirements page lists both Windows and Linux. The community guide gives Windows Server 2016 and Ubuntu 20.04 as its minimum examples, and Windows Server 2022 and Ubuntu 22.04 as recommended examples. Those versions describe the guide’s tested planning tiers; verify current support before choosing an image, because distributions and server editions receive updates and eventually reach end of support.
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Windows Server
Windows is familiar to administrators who already use the graphical firewall, Task Scheduler and Remote Desktop. It can reduce the learning curve for a first server, but reserve resources for the operating system and avoid installing unrelated desktop applications on the game host.
Ubuntu or another Linux installation
Linux can provide a lean, scriptable environment for a long-running service. Bohemia’s Linux hosting guidance explicitly warns: “Do not run the server as root!” Create a dedicated, unprivileged account, grant it access only to the server files it needs, and use a service manager or controlled startup script for automatic restarts.
Self-hosting versus renting a game server or VPS
The right choice depends less on a headline CPU number than on the resources and controls you actually receive. Compare these items before committing:
| Decision factor | Self-hosted at home | Rented game server or VPS |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware | You buy, install and replace the machine; all of its resources are yours. | The provider supplies the host hardware; confirm whether CPU resources are dedicated, shared or capped. |
| Network | Depends on your ISP, router, upload speed and port-forwarding support. | Usually includes a public address and datacenter connectivity, but region and traffic limits vary. |
| Administration | You handle operating-system patches, firewall rules, updates, backups and recovery. | A control panel may simplify game updates, while you still remain responsible for configuration and content. |
| Mods and files | Full access to the filesystem and workshop workflow. | Check mod support, storage limits, file access and whether custom server-side content is allowed. |
| Backups | You design and test the backup and restore process. | Confirm whether backups exist, how often they run, where they are stored and what restore fees or limits apply. |
| Cost | Up-front hardware and electricity costs, with no monthly host renewal. | Recurring rental price; compare the renewal price and included resources, not just an introductory rate. |
| Location | Players connect to your home region. | Select a datacenter near the majority of players and check latency before a long commitment. |
Do not select a host solely because it advertises a large number of virtual cores. Ask for the allocated RAM, storage type and capacity, CPU policy, port access, mod support, backup terms and geographic region in writing.
If you would rather not forward ports and maintain a machine yourself, Godlike.Host offers DayZ server hosting with its own game panel, SFTP access, up to three free backups a day with restore, free DDoS protection and ten data-center locations to choose from. See the current plans for the resources included.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Installing and updating the dedicated server
The community guide and Bohemia’s Linux hosting documentation use SteamCMD. The DayZ server application ID is 223350.
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- Prepare a supported Windows or Linux system with the chosen SSD or NVMe location and a separate directory for logs and backups.
- Install SteamCMD from the official Steam tools distribution for your operating system.
- Use SteamCMD’s application-update workflow with DayZ server app ID
223350. Run the update again whenever you intentionally update the server, and keep a backup of configuration files before changing versions. - Create the server configuration and profile directories. Keep logs in the SSD-backed profile location recommended by Bohemia.
- Configure the server’s listening port and other launch options. Bohemia’s configuration documentation lists parameters including
-port,-profiles,-cpuCount,-limitFPS,-modand-serverMod; use the current documentation for syntax and behavior instead of guessing. - Forward UDP ports 2302–2305 on the router and create matching inbound firewall rules on the host.
- Start the server under a dedicated, non-administrator account. On Linux, never launch it as
root. - Join from a separate client to confirm that the server appears, the expected mods load, logs are being written and the firewall is not blocking traffic.
Public-hive rules and player-count limits
Bohemia’s public-hive rules document, labeled version 12.18, states that public-hive servers may have between 30 and 60 players. It also imposes operational restrictions, including limits related to restarts and monetization. The document says: “Breach of any of these rules may result in a temporary or permanent removal of the server.”
Because the available document is version-labeled rather than accompanied by a clear publication date, check Bohemia’s current rules before advertising a public-hive server or changing its player slots. A private or otherwise differently operated server may not be governed by exactly the same conditions, so identify the server type first.
Common sizing mistakes and fixes
Using the client requirement as the server requirement
The client listing’s 8 GB minimum and 12 GB recommended figures describe the player’s game installation. The dedicated-server baseline is 6 GB; size the host using the server figures and your workload.
Buying cores instead of performance
A high core count does not compensate for poor per-core speed when the main gameplay workload is constrained. Favor strong, sustained clock performance and monitor the server under real load.
Stopping at 2.5 GB of disk space
The official number is a baseline footprint. Use the community guide’s 20 GB SSD minimum or 40 GB NVMe recommendation as planning headroom, especially when mods, logs and backups are involved.
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A powerful machine cannot make up for blocked UDP ports, insufficient upload capacity or unstable latency. Test forwarding and connection quality before inviting players.
Running everything as an administrator
Use a dedicated service account and least-privilege file permissions. This is particularly important on Linux, where Bohemia explicitly prohibits running the server as root.
A sensible starting specification
For a small, mostly unmodded private server, begin with at least 8 GB of RAM, a modern four-core processor around 2.4 GHz or faster, a 20 GB SSD, and an upload connection that can sustain the guide’s 10 Mbps estimate. For a public or mod-heavy installation, the guide’s 16 GB RAM, six-or-more-core 3.5 GHz class CPU, 40 GB NVMe and 50 Mbps-or-better upload tier gives more operational room. Neither tier guarantees a particular frame rate, tick rate or player capacity; measure your actual configuration and expand the bottleneck you observe.
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