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To move a DayZ dedicated server from Chernarus to Badlands, update the server to the 1.30-compatible build, back up the current server, find the Nasdara mission folder inside mpmissions, and set that folder as the template under class Missions in serverDZ.cfg. Stop the server before editing, restart it after the change, and confirm from the log and an in-game connection that the desert mission loaded.
Badlands is the Nasdara Province expansion: an arid terrain west of Chernarus and bordering Takistan. Bohemia Interactive describes it as a 267 km² map, the largest official DayZ map at the time of its 2025 announcement.
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What you need before changing the map
A map switch is a server-mission change, not a rename of your existing Chernarus world. Prepare the following before touching the configuration:
- Access to the dedicated server files or the host’s control panel.
- A server build compatible with DayZ 1.30. A 1.29 server cannot host Nasdara.
- Permission to stop and start the server.
- A complete backup of the current server directory, including the active mission, configuration files, mod list, keys and economy XML.
- A written record of the current
serverDZ.cfgsettings and launch parameters. - The exact Nasdara mission-folder name delivered by the update.
Do not rely on a folder name copied from an old forum post. The pre-launch hosting guides did not publish a final, authoritative folder name; the installed directory is the source of truth for your server build.
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- Use any means necessary to survive a hostile open world for as long as possible.
- Explore the authentic open world of Chernarus, featuring 230 square kilometers of hand-crafted terrain based on real-life locations.
- Become immersed in a tense, emotional experience driven by the emergent interactions of 60 players on a single server, each one fighting for survival.
- Experience a wide variety of complex survival mechanics, from hunting and crafting, through to sophisticated injury simulation and transferable diseases.
- Survive against environmental dangers, including the infected, dynamic weather, and animal predators.
How DayZ selects a map
DayZ starts one mission when the server boots. The mission is selected in serverDZ.cfg, inside class Missions. A typical Chernarus entry looks like this:
class Missions
{
class DayZ
{
template = "dayzOffline.chernarusplus";
};
};For Badlands, replace only the value after template = with the exact Nasdara folder name found under mpmissions. Preserve capitalization, punctuation and underscores. Do not add the parent path, a file extension or quotation marks different from the syntax already used in the file.
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Control-panel change or file-level change?
Managed hosts usually expose the same setting through a panel. If the panel has a field named Mission, Map, Mission template or a similar label, use the Nasdara value supplied by the installed 1.30 files. The panel may write serverDZ.cfg for you.
| Approach | Best for | What you must verify | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Control panel | Administrators who want a guided change and simple restarts | That the panel’s mission list contains the Nasdara folder and that it saved the setting | A panel can show a friendly map label while writing an outdated or incorrect template value |
| File-level editing | Administrators who need exact control over configuration and XML | The folder name, capitalization and the edited serverDZ.cfg copy |
A typo or malformed configuration can prevent startup |
| Automatic mission delivery | Hosts that install official server updates automatically | That the 1.30 update actually created the Nasdara directory | The server may update before a mod or host panel is ready for the new mission |
| Manual file management | Administrators maintaining their own installation | That files came from the same compatible server build | Mixing mission files from different versions can produce startup and economy errors |
GameServerKings describes one server running one mission at a time. LOW.MS likewise states that running Chernarus and Nasdara simultaneously requires two servers, not two mission entries in one instance.
Step-by-step: switch an existing server to Badlands
1. Record and back up the current installation
Stop making configuration changes until you have a rollback point. Copy the complete server data to a separate location, and keep the original backup outside the directory that the update process can overwrite.
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Include:
serverDZ.cfgand any launch scripts or command-line parameters.- The current mission directory, normally under
mpmissions. - Server profiles, logs and persistence storage.
- All workshop or manually installed mod folders.
- Mod keys and signature files.
- Economy and gameplay XML files such as
types.xml,events.xmlandglobals.xml.
Also write down the current template value, for example dayzOffline.chernarusplus. Switching missions starts a separate world while the old mission remains on disk, but an update or an accidental file replacement can still damage the old data. A verified backup is what makes a rollback practical.
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2. Update the dedicated server to 1.30
Apply the server update through your host’s normal update mechanism. Hosts that provide automatic updates should pull the compatible build; self-managed installations must install the 1.30 server files using the method appropriate to that installation.
Check the reported server version after updating. Do not proceed if the server still identifies itself as 1.29 or if the update stopped partway through. Nasdara requires the compatible build, and clients must also be on a matching game version when they connect.
3. Locate the installed Nasdara mission
Open the server’s mpmissions directory and list the folders created by the update. Look for the Nasdara mission delivered with your exact server build. The final folder name was not established in the pre-launch guides, so do not substitute a guessed name.
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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11On a managed host, the equivalent check may be a mission selector or a file manager. If the panel offers Nasdara but the corresponding directory is absent, contact the host or complete the server update first. A template pointing to a folder that does not exist cannot load the map.
4. Stop the server completely
Use the host panel’s Stop command or terminate the dedicated-server process cleanly. Wait until the panel reports it as offline and no server process remains. DayZ reads the mission template during startup; changing the file while the process is active risks editing a file that is later overwritten or leaving the running world unchanged.
5. Change the mission template
Open serverDZ.cfg in a plain-text editor. Find class Missions and its template line. Replace the Chernarus value with the exact Nasdara directory name:
class Missions
{
class DayZ
{
template = "<exact Nasdara folder name>";
};
};The angle-bracket text above is explanatory; enter the real folder name and do not include the brackets. Keep the semicolon, braces and quotation marks. Do not change unrelated settings in the same edit.
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- Use any means necessary to survive a hostile open world for as long as possible.
- explore the authentic open world of chernarus, featuring 230 square kilometres of hand-crafted terrain based on real-life locations.
- become immersed in a tense, emotional experience driven by the emergent interactions of 60 players on a single server, each one fighting for survival.
- experience a wide variety of complex survival mechanics, from hunting and crafting, through to sophisticated injury simulation and transferable diseases.
- survive against environmental dangers, including the infected, dynamic weather, and animal predators
If your host panel has a Mission field, select the installed Nasdara mission there instead of manually editing a generated configuration file. Some panels regenerate the file when you save, so verify the resulting template value before starting.
6. Start the server and read the log
Start the instance and watch the startup console or server log. Wait for the normal mission-loading and ready messages before attempting to join. A clean start should identify the selected mission and proceed to the usual listening state.
If startup fails immediately, stop it and inspect the first configuration error rather than repeatedly restarting. Compare the template value with the directory name character by character, including upper- and lower-case letters.
7. Verify in game
Connect with a client on the matching DayZ build. Confirm that the environment is Nasdara’s arid, sand-and-cracked-soil terrain rather than Chernarus. Check a few expected spawn and landmark areas, then verify that the server’s normal rules, password, time settings and administration tools still behave as intended.
Do not treat a successful connection to the server browser as proof that every custom system migrated correctly. The map can load while an economy XML, trader coordinate or mod still points at Chernarus.
What happens to Chernarus characters, bases and loot?
Changing the mission does not inherently erase the Chernarus world. Each mission has its own storage folder, so the existing Chernarus data normally remains on disk. If the update did not reset or replace that data, changing the template back to dayzOffline.chernarusplus can restore the previous world.
Nasdara starts as a separate world. Characters, bases, vehicles and loot from Chernarus do not carry over automatically. Treat the first Nasdara launch as a new persistence environment and tell players that their old Chernarus progress will not appear there.
Before announcing the change, decide whether you will preserve the old files for a possible return, archive them offline, or eventually remove them. Do not delete the Chernarus mission folder simply because Nasdara is active; that folder is the rollback path.
Rebuild the economy for Nasdara
Mission-specific economy and map files are not interchangeable. Review the Nasdara mission’s defaults before copying any customizations from Chernarus.
Files to review
types.xmlfor item definitions and nominal or minimum quantities.events.xmlfor dynamic events and event-related spawning.globals.xmlfor economy-wide values.- Spawn-point and location files supplied with the mission.
- Any additional XML that defines territory, events, loot locations or mission-specific behavior.
Do not blindly replace Nasdara defaults with Chernarus versions. Nasdara’s item distribution and spawn positions are designed for a different terrain, and a Chernarus file can omit locations or create unsuitable loot patterns. Merge only the settings you intentionally need, preserving the Nasdara structure and entries that your custom configuration does not replace.
Coordinate-based customizations
Audit every feature that stores world coordinates. Trader locations, safe zones, custom buildings, teleports, map markers, event positions and territory boundaries created for Chernarus will not automatically move to Nasdara.
A mod can load without an obvious error and still place an object underground, in the sea or outside the playable area. Check each coordinate-based feature in game, and disable it temporarily if the mod has no Nasdara-compatible configuration.
Mods after the map switch
Wait for each mod author to publish a 1.30-compatible version. The guides specifically warn that animation-related changes may break mods, so a mod that worked on the previous build is not automatically safe on 1.30 or Nasdara.
A controlled mod rollout
- Start the server with vanilla Nasdara and no optional mods, while retaining the required server configuration.
- Confirm that the mission loads, a client can join and persistence works after a restart.
- Add one updated mod and its matching key or signature files.
- Restart, join, and test the feature that the mod provides.
- Record the working version, then add the next mod.
This sequence identifies the first incompatible mod instead of producing a log containing several simultaneous failures. Keep a copy of the last known-good configuration after each successful addition.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Troubleshooting common failures
| Symptom | Likely cause | Recovery |
|---|---|---|
| Server refuses to start after the edit | Template typo, wrong case, missing folder or malformed braces and semicolons | Stop the server, compare the value with the actual mpmissions folder character by character, and restore the backup if needed. |
| Server starts on Chernarus | The panel rewrote the old value or the wrong configuration file was edited | Check the effective serverDZ.cfg, the panel’s Mission field and startup parameters, then set the Nasdara value again. |
| Client receives a version-rejection message | Server and client builds do not match | Update the server and client to the same supported DayZ version before testing again. |
| Client is kicked for a signature problem | Mod files or key files differ between server and client | Install matching 1.30-compatible mod versions and keys, remove stale copies, and retest with the smallest mod set. |
| Map loads but loot, traders or safe zones are wrong | Chernarus XML or coordinates were copied into Nasdara | Restore Nasdara defaults, then merge custom economy entries and coordinates individually after checking them in game. |
| Nasdara is missing from the panel | The server update did not install the mission or the host has not exposed it yet | Confirm the server build, inspect mpmissions, and ask the host to complete or support the 1.30 mission deployment. |
If a clean vanilla Nasdara server will not boot, do not add more mods or XML while diagnosing it. First prove that the base mission and template work; then restore custom files in small, documented steps.
Do players need to own the Badlands DLC?
The cited pre-launch guidance did not confirm the player-entitlement rule for Nasdara. GameServerKings referenced the Sakhal/Frostline precedent but described the Nasdara requirement as expected rather than confirmed. LOW.MS also treated the question as pending.
Do not promise players that they can join without the DLC, and do not promise that ownership is mandatory, until Bohemia Interactive’s launch notes establish the rule. Publish the confirmed requirement in your server’s announcement and whitelist instructions. A player who cannot join because of entitlement is facing a different problem from a version mismatch or mod-signature kick.
Can one server run both Chernarus and Nasdara?
No. The mission template selects the world for that server instance, and the hosting guidance describes one active mission at a time. To operate both maps concurrently, use two server instances with separate ports, configuration files and persistence locations.
Keep the instances isolated. Each should have its own mission template, profile and storage, and administrators should label the server names clearly so players do not confuse the Chernarus and Nasdara communities. If you only need occasional access to the old world, retain the backup and switch the template during a planned maintenance window instead of paying for a second instance.
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If the new map or its mods are not ready, stop the server and restore the previous template value:
template = "dayzOffline.chernarusplus";Start the server and verify that the Chernarus persistence folder is still present. Do not copy Nasdara economy files into the Chernarus mission during rollback. If the update changed files or reset persistence, restore the complete pre-change backup rather than mixing files from both worlds.
When returning to Nasdara later, repeat the controlled procedure: confirm the 1.30 build, verify the mission folder, apply the template, and test the map before re-enabling custom mods.
Administrator launch checklist
- Server build reports 1.30 compatibility.
- Current Chernarus mission and configuration are backed up.
- Nasdara’s actual folder exists under
mpmissions. - Server is stopped before
serverDZ.cfgis edited. class Missionspoints to the exact Nasdara folder name.- Server starts without configuration errors.
- Log confirms the intended mission loaded.
- Client build matches the server build.
- Vanilla Nasdara connection and persistence work before mods are added.
- Economy XML and coordinate-based features have been reviewed for Nasdara.
- Every enabled mod is confirmed compatible with 1.30 and has matching keys.
- Players have been told that Chernarus progress does not transfer automatically.
- DLC access requirements are communicated only after Bohemia confirms them.
What Badlands changes operationally
Nasdara is not simply a visual replacement for Chernarus. Its arid terrain, different travel routes and new locations change where items, events, traders and bases make sense. The 267 km² scale also means that a configuration copied from Chernarus can have practical consequences even when the server technically starts: players may encounter empty areas, unreachable custom structures or poorly placed safe zones.
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Use the first launch as a validation phase. Check the mission itself, then economy, then coordinate-based systems, and finally optional mods. That order separates a map-selection problem from a content-compatibility problem and gives you a reliable rollback point at every stage.
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