How to Join a Don’t Starve Together Server

Before you join: what you need

For a smooth first join, get the basics from the server owner before opening the browser. The game can only connect if your client and the server are on the same version, you are logged into your Klei account, and you are trying to reach the right server entry or the right Master port.

• The server name, if you plan to use Browse Games.
• The IP:port, if you plan to use direct connect. The important port is the Master shard’s server_port, not the Caves port.
• The password, if the server uses cluster_password.
• The same game version as the server. After a DST patch, servers that have not updated yet are hidden from the live list.
• A logged-in Klei account. If you are offline, the game will block normal online joining.
• The correct platform. PC players join PC dedicated servers; Xbox and PlayStation versions do not join PC dedicated servers.

If you run the server, send those details in one message. Most failed joins are not network faults at all; they are missing information, a hidden browser entry, or a version mismatch after an update.

Method 1: Browse Games and search by name

This is the cleanest route for most players, but only if you understand what the browser is filtering out. The key point is simple: on the Online tab, typing into the Search box bypasses the Playstyle filter, so exact-name search is far more dependable than scrolling.

1. From the main menu, open Browse Games.
2. Make sure Connection is set to Online, not LAN.
3. If you are not sure what was changed before, click Reset Filters.
4. Type the exact server name into the Search box.
5. Select the matching server and press Join.
6. If prompted with “Server Requires Password”, enter the password and press Join again.

Why searching the name is the reliable route: the browser has many filters, but the one that catches people most often is Playstyle. If you picked a playstyle, the list only shows servers matching that playstyle. Searching by name on the Online tab bypasses that one filter, so the server can appear even when it would never show up in the normal list. That is why “I can find it only when I search” usually points to a playstyle mismatch, not a broken server.

What searching does not bypass: if the server is on a different game version, it is hidden entirely from the live list until the server updates. Search cannot reveal a version-mismatched live server. The same applies if the server never came online in the first place.

Other filters that hide servers: Hide Paused Servers, Password Protected, Mods Enabled, PvP, Server Type, Previously Visited, Friends, Steam Group, Show Full Servers, Min Slots Open and Show Empty Servers all change what you see. Sort order does not reveal a hidden server; it only reorders the servers that already passed the filters.

If the server name is replaced by “This server name has been filtered”, the browser is showing the server but not its chosen name. In that case, use the IP:port instead so players can identify the right target directly.

Do not use Quick Join to find a private world. Quick Join is a scoring system, not a locator. It only considers servers that are not PvP, dedicated, not passworded, not modded, in survival mode, not full, and with ping between 0 and 200. Friends already playing, an existing character on the server, and a few active players raise the score, but a passworded or modded private server will still never be picked.

Method 2: direct connect with c_connect

Direct connect is the best fallback when the browser list is getting in the way. It bypasses search and listing problems, but it still needs the correct address, the correct port and a server that is actually online.

Open the console from the main menu. The default key is ~; on AZERTY keyboards it is ù; the current hotkey is listed in Options > Controls. Then type one of these:

c_connect("IP", port, "password")
c_connect("IP", port)

The IP goes in quotes, the port is a plain number, and if there is a password it also goes in quotes. This command only works from the menus; the game refuses it while you are already inside a world. If you need the console basics, our console and admin commands guide covers the menu console as well.

Which port to use

Use the Master shard’s server_port from server.ini. Its documented default is 10999. On rented servers, the panel normally shows the IP and port clearly. If the cluster has caves, do not tell players to connect to the Caves port: the Caves shard is a separate process reached in-game through sinkholes after the player has joined the Master.

Why that matters: DST expects new players to arrive on the Master shard first. The Master handles the initial join path for the cluster, while inter-shard travel moves the character to Caves later. If the Caves shard is down when someone tries to travel, the game shows “Destination Not Responding — The destination server is not responding. Please try again.”

How to tell direct connect helped: if search could not find the server but c_connect opens a password prompt or starts a connection attempt, the problem was the browser view, not the server address. If c_connect fails with version, password or access errors, the command is still useful because it exposes the real cause instead of leaving you guessing at filters.

Method 3: LAN and offline servers

Some DST servers are meant only for people on the same local network. Those are easy to miss because the browser separates them from public online servers.

1. Open Browse Games.
2. Change Connection from Online to LAN.
3. Look for the server there instead of on the public list.

Servers with lan_only_cluster = true or offline_cluster = true are only reachable on the same local network. For players on that LAN to see the server in their listing, the server’s server_port must be between 10998 and 11018.

What offline changes: an offline_cluster server is not listed publicly and Steam features are off. Joining one shows “Offline World — You will not be able to receive or use Collection Items in this world.” That is normal behaviour, not a broken world.

The trade-off for owners: LAN-only and offline settings keep the world private and simple for a local event, but they remove public discoverability. Players who keep looking on the Online tab will never see it, no matter how many times they refresh.

Which way to join is best?

What happens when you join a modded server

For most players, a modded dedicated server does not mean “go and install every mod manually first”. If the server runs mods that every client needs, the game downloads the required versions automatically as temporary mods when you join, enables them only for that server, and temporarily disables mods on your side that the server is not using.

That is why the first join to a modded world can take longer: the client is pulling Workshop files, writing them locally, and setting up the temporary mod set for that one server. The trade-off is convenience against dependency on the Workshop item being available, current and visible to the joining player.

Expect one or both of these warnings:

• “This server has mods enabled. Klei won’t be able to help if you encounter issues while playing on a modded server.”
• “Client Mods Disabled — Your client mods will be temporarily disabled while playing on this server.”

If the join fails with “Disconnected Due To Missing Mods”, the body tells you exactly which server-side problem you are dealing with:

• “This server requires mods that are not available on the Steam Workshop. You will need to manually download the missing mods.” The required mods are not available through the normal auto-download path.
• “The server is running mods with an old version. The server owner must update the mods for new players to join.” Existing players may still be present, but new handshakes fail because the server’s advertised mod state is behind.
• “Download of the required mods from the Steam Workshop failed. Please try again.” The fetch itself failed; try again first, then check the server’s mod setup if it repeats.
• “Download of the required mods from the Steam Workshop failed because one or more mods is not visible to you.” At least one required Workshop item is not visible to the joining player, often because it is private or friends-only.

For owners, the fix is usually in dedicated_server_mods_setup.lua and each shard’s modoverrides.lua. The site’s Don’t Starve Together mods guide explains that setup in more depth.

The server does not show up: use this decision logic

Work through these checks in order. The goal is to separate “browser hid it” from “server is not reachable”.

• Can you find it by exact name search on the Online tab? If yes, the server is fine and a filter was hiding it. The usual cause is Playstyle, but Reset Filters is the quickest clean-up.
• Does it appear only when you unhide paused worlds? Then the owner has pause_when_empty = true and nobody is online. The world is not dead; the browser is just respecting the paused flag. Joining shows “Paused World — Are you sure you want to join a paused world? You will not be able to play until the server is unpaused.”
• Did it vanish straight after a game patch? Then check versions before anything else. Live servers on a different version are hidden entirely from the list until the server updates.
• Is it actually a LAN-only or offline server? If so, it will never appear on the Online tab. Switch Connection to LAN and make sure the owner used a server_port between 10998 and 11018 for LAN listing.
• Does the server name look wrong or filtered? If you see “This server name has been filtered”, stop relying on the name and use the Master IP:port instead.
• Does direct connect fail too? Then the issue is not the browser. Owners should check that the dedicated server actually came online, that the cluster token is valid, and that the server updated after the latest patch.

A missing or invalid cluster token causes the dedicated server to fail before it can come online at all. In that state there is nothing for players to discover or join. If you are building or repairing the server itself, the dedicated server setup guide covers the core files, and the backup and transfer guide helps when moving an existing cluster between machines.

Error messages decoded

These messages are more useful than they look. Most of them map directly to one server-side setting, launch option or state.

For server owners: the settings that decide who can join

If friends are failing to get in first time, the cause is usually one of a small set of settings in cluster.ini, plus the Master shard’s port in server.ini. These are not cosmetic; they directly change browser visibility, access rules or capacity.

When inviting people, send three things: the server name, the Master IP:port, and the password if there is one. If the world is LAN-only, offline, group-only, or uses reserved slots, say that in the same message so players do not misread the error.

[GAMEPLAY]
max_players = 16
pause_when_empty = false

[NETWORK]
cluster_name = Your server name
cluster_description =
cluster_password =
whitelist_slots = 0
lan_only_cluster = false
offline_cluster = false

[STEAM]
steam_group_only = false
steam_group_id = 0

The excerpt shows the documented defaults for the keys that decide who gets in; blank cluster_password means no password. If the server vanishes after a game patch, update the dedicated server as well as the clients so versions match again. If the server never appears anywhere, check the cluster token first: a missing or invalid token stops the dedicated server from coming online at all.

If you are still building the server, the DST dedicated server setup guide covers the file layout, and the world backup and transfer guide is the one to use when moving an existing cluster without losing shard data or config files.

Don’t Starve Together server FAQ

Which port do I use if the server has caves?

Use the Master shard’s server_port. Players arrive in the forest and reach the caves through a sinkhole; the Caves shard is a separate process with its own port that the game handles for you during travel.

Why does searching the exact server name work when scrolling the list does not?

On the Online tab, name search bypasses the Playstyle filter. Scrolling only shows servers that already match the current filter set, so a wrong playstyle can hide the server completely until you search or press Reset Filters.

Do players need to install a server’s mods before joining?

Usually not. If the server uses required client mods, DST downloads the needed versions temporarily during the join and enables them only for that server. If that fails, the exact body under “Disconnected Due To Missing Mods” tells you whether the problem is visibility, old versions or a simple download failure.

Why did the server disappear from the list after a game update?

Because live servers on a different game version are hidden from the browser entirely. The fix is on the side that did not update: players update the client if the server is newer, and owners update the dedicated server if it is older.

What should a server owner send to friends so they get in first time?

Send the exact server name, the Master IP:port, and the password if one is set. Also mention any restrictions such as LAN-only, offline mode, Steam group-only access, or reserved slots, because those settings produce errors that otherwise look mysterious.

More Don’t Starve Together server help

Set the server up, add mods and admins, or move a world between hosts.