How to Install Mods on a Euro Truck Simulator 2 Server

How mods work on an ETS2 Convoy server

An ETS2 dedicated server is a referee, not a mod host. It does not own DLC, cannot download Workshop items, and never mounts your .scs or .zip mod files. What it does load is a session configuration plus two exported package files that describe the map, DLC requirements and mod list for the convoy.

That is why the export step matters so much. The profile on your PC is the real master copy: whatever was active there, in that order, becomes the server’s advertised truth. The files are not linked to your account, so you can export on one machine and upload on another, but the server still depends on that export being current.

Think of the process as a pipeline from one known-good profile out to the server and then to the joining players.

Plan the mod list before you export

Make a separate Convoy profile just for the modded server, and back up Documents\Euro Truck Simulator 2\profiles before you start changing the list. That is not overcautious: SCS warn that, in rare cases, removing or changing a crucial mod can damage a profile. A separate profile contains that risk and makes update rollback easier.

Also keep the list disciplined. When SCS added mod support to Convoy in 1.42, they capped a session at 70 mods. Treat that as a ceiling, not a target. A long list mainly increases admin overhead, player-side storage and mismatch risk; it does not make the server better.

Use this rule: if a mod changes the shared world, shared vehicles or anything friends are meant to see, lean towards required. If it only changes your own screen or sound, lean towards optional.

Load order is part of the export. In Mod Manager, the mod at the top of the active list has the highest priority and overrides files from mods below it. For map mods and their dependencies, follow the author’s order exactly. If you export the wrong order, the server will faithfully advertise the wrong order.

Export the server packages from your PC

This is the part most short guides rush past. The reason it works is simple: you are asking the game client, which actually has the mods and DLC checks available, to produce the package description the headless server cannot build by itself.

uset g_console "1"
uset g_developer "1"

1. Close the game and edit Documents\Euro Truck Simulator 2\config.cfg to enable the console. The first line above is the essential one. Many hosts also tell you to enable g_developer; it is commonly used alongside the console.
2. Start ETS2 and load the profile that has exactly the mods you want. Double-check the active list and its order in Mod Manager first. The export will contain whatever is active at that moment, in that order.
3. Load into the map, not just the menu. The export reads the loaded map and the mods mounted for it, so be in the world with your truck, then run the command.
4. Open the console with the ~ key (below Esc).
5. Run export_server_packages or add a filename if you want. The game writes server_packages.sii and server_packages.dat to Documents\Euro Truck Simulator 2\.
6. Copy those two files somewhere safe. They are the server package pair you upload. Keep them together; they describe one state of one profile at one moment.

Before you upload, open server_packages.sii in a text editor and sanity-check the structure. You are looking for the right game version, the expected DLC lists and, most importantly, the expected mod_list entries in the right order.

SiiNunit
{
server_packages_info : ... {
 version: ...
 dlc_essential_list[]: ...
 dlc_non_essential_list[]: ...
 mod_list[]: ...
 map_name: ...
 map_dimensions[]: ...
 roads_data_file_name: ...
 time_stamp: ...
}
}

If the list is wrong here, the server will be wrong after upload. Fix the profile, export again, then upload. Do not try to “patch” the server by hand; the export should stay the source of truth.

Upload the packages to the server

On a rented Linux server, upload server_packages.sii and server_packages.dat into the home folder, typically .local/share/Euro Truck Simulator 2/, overwrite the old pair, then restart the server. On host panels you may see file manager, FTP and startup parameter tools, but there is no Workshop install button that solves this for ETS2 because the dedicated server never loads Workshop files.

For self-hosting a game server, the same rule applies: place the files in the server home folder, or in whatever location the server start command points to with -homedir. server_config.sii lives beside them and controls the session settings.

Always overwrite both package files together. server_packages.sii is the advertised description; server_packages.dat is the matching internal map data. Updating one without the other is how you create stale, confusing states that waste time in the browser and sync window. The cost of doing it properly is only a little disk I/O and a restart.

If the server does not start correctly, check server.log.txt. If the files are missing or in the wrong home folder, you will see:

<ERROR> [MP] Error: Server packages file not found. This is required to load proper map, DLCs and mods

If the log shows that error, fix file placement before touching the mod list. server.crash.txt is there as well if the process exits unexpectedly.

Make optional mods actually optional

Optional mods only work when three separate conditions are true. Miss one of them and the server will still force the mod on every player.

SiiNunit
{
server_config : ... {
 ...
 mods_optioning: true
 ...
}
}

• The server must have mods_optioning: true in server_config.sii.
• The mod author must have marked the mod optional with mp_mod_optional: true in the mod’s manifest.
• The player must allow optional-mod servers in their session browser filter.

Map mods ignore the optional flag and are always required. Also, with mods_optioning left false, every exported mod becomes mandatory no matter what the author intended.

How do you check a mod’s flag? Read the mod’s manifest.sii, or inspect the relevant entry in the exported server_packages.sii. This is worth doing before you promise friends that a graphics or sound pack is “optional”. If it is not flagged properly, players will hit a join wall instead of getting a choice.

Optional mods are best used to cut admin friction, not to avoid proper planning. They reduce profile churn and missing-mod support work, but the trade-off is that not everyone sees or hears the same thing.

How players join a modded server cleanly

When a player highlights the server in the session browser, the mod requirements appear on the right. Each server carries an icon: green means you can join, red means you cannot (the session is full, or the map or game version does not match), and orange means you are only missing mods, which the sync window can fix.

Clicking an orange server opens the sync window. The player’s active mods are on the left and the server’s required list is on the right. Missing Steam Workshop mods can be subscribed through the in-game Steam overlay. Third-party mods must be downloaded manually from the same source, and the game cannot verify their version for you.

The confirm button only activates when everything matches. That is why sending friends a clean mod pack note beforehand saves so much time: include the source for each mod, the exact order and which ones are truly optional. This does not change server CPU or bandwidth, but it removes the biggest human bottleneck in modded Convoy.

Ask players to back up their profile folder before joining a heavily modded session, or better still use a separate Convoy profile. For manual mods, the local files usually sit in Documents\Euro Truck Simulator 2\mod\.

Handle mod updates and game updates without breaking joins

If the server worked yesterday and now says wrong mod version, the usual cause is a Workshop update. Players get the new mod version automatically, but the server still advertises the old exported list until you replace the package pair. The server cannot auto-update mods because it does not have the mods in the first place.

Safe update routine

1. Let the exporting PC update the game or Workshop items.
2. Open the dedicated Convoy profile and make sure the mod list still loads in the intended order.
3. Re-run export_server_packages.
4. Upload the new server_packages.sii and server_packages.dat together.
5. Restart the server and tell players to update and relaunch before joining.

At the time of writing ETS2 is on 1.61. After any major game update, wait for map mod updates before exporting again. Map mods are the most likely to break, and some non-Workshop mods also use compatible_versions in their manifest to block unsupported game versions.

For third-party mods, “same mod” must mean byte-identical file with the same filename. On Windows, compare the files in the mod folder with PowerShell:

Get-FileHash -Algorithm md5 *.scs

If the hashes differ, the files differ, and the game cannot sort that out on its own. You will know the fix worked when the server stops showing a mismatch and players can confirm the sync window again.

Go above 8 players without making the server disappear

Since 1.50, an ETS2 session can hold up to 128 players, but the default cap is 8. Raising it is a three-part change, not one toggle.

• In server_config.sii, raise max_players to the size you want, up to 128.
• In the server’s config_ds.cfg, raise g_max_convoy_size to the same value, up to 128.
• On every player PC, with the game closed, raise g_max_convoy_size in Documents\Euro Truck Simulator 2\config.cfg to the same value, up to 128.

The last part is the one groups miss. If players leave their client at the default, they may not find the server in the browser at all. max_players controls the session cap; g_max_convoy_size controls what the server and clients consider a valid convoy size for listing and joining.

More players also mean more traffic to keep in sync and more moderation. A big map stack with lots of players asks far more of the setup than a few local-only sound mods ever will.

Symptom, likely cause, first fix

If several things changed at once, debug in layers: game version first, then DLC availability, then mod files, then load order, and only then the uploaded server packages. That order saves the most time.

Tune what you have, or move to a cleaner server setup

Once the install method is correct, the next question is not “more mods or less”, but “what is actually stressing the setup?” Big player counts mostly raise CPU and bandwidth. Heavy map packs make update timing more fragile. Very long mod lists raise admin and sync overhead more than raw performance. If you want a refresher on game server hardware requirements, start there before changing plan size blindly.

Euro Truck Simulator 2 server FAQ

Can you use mods on a Euro Truck Simulator 2 Convoy server?

Yes. Convoy arrived in 1.41, mod support in Convoy arrived in 1.42, and dedicated server support arrived in 1.46. On a dedicated server, the modded session works by exporting package files from a client profile and uploading those files to the server.

Do my friends need the same mods to join my ETS2 server?

They need the same game version and the same required mods in the same order. Optional mods do not have to match, but only if the mod author marked them optional, the server enables optional mod handling, and the player allows optional-mod servers in their browser filter.

Can I install Steam Workshop mods directly on an ETS2 dedicated server?

No. The dedicated server has no Workshop access, no DLC and no mod files of its own, so it cannot download or update Workshop items. What you upload is the exported server_packages.sii and server_packages.dat, not the Workshop content itself.

Why does my ETS2 server say wrong mod version after a mod update?

Because the players’ Workshop copies updated automatically while the server is still advertising the old exported mod list. Re-export the package files from the updated profile, upload both files together, restart the server and ask players to relaunch before joining.

Can players join my modded ETS2 server without the same DLC?

Sometimes, yes. In Convoy, players do not all need the same map DLCs by default, but any mod with dlc_dependencies cannot be activated without that DLC, which effectively makes that DLC mandatory for anyone who needs that mod active. In practice, the mod list decides the answer.

More Euro Truck Simulator 2 server help

The host comparison, plus our guides on running and sizing a game server yourself.