How to Install Mods on a Palworld Server (UE4SS)

What UE4SS does on a Palworld dedicated server

UE4SS is the Unreal Engine 4/5 Scripting System. For Palworld, it acts as the modding API that lets more advanced mods run, especially Lua or script-based mods that list UE4SS as a required dependency. If a mod page says it needs UE4SS, the server process must be able to load UE4SS before that mod can do anything.

This matters because the dedicated server is its own program. A player subscribing to a Workshop mod on their PC does not install that dependency on the server. In Steam, the player side is simpler: Library → Palworld → Workshop to subscribe, then in game Options → Mod Management and turn Enable Mod on. That only covers the client side. If the mod also needs to run on the server, the dedicated server still needs the UE4SS files in its own Win64 install.

The reason people get stuck here is that Palworld can look as if a mod is “installed” in more than one place at once. A player can have a subscribed client mod, but the server can still be missing the loader entirely. In that case the client has content, the server has no idea what to do with it, and the result is usually silence rather than a helpful error.

Check that your server can run UE4SS at all

Before touching files, confirm that the server is a Windows install with a real Win64 folder. UE4SS is not officially supported on Linux. A Linux dedicated server needs Wine or Proton to run the server under Windows for UE4SS to work, and even then some mods are marked as incompatible with Proton or Wine. If your host’s file list shows only Linux folders and no Win64, the server is on the wrong platform for a straightforward UE4SS install.

That one folder check tells you a lot. UE4SS works by placing a loader DLL beside the Palworld shipping executable, so if there is no Windows executable folder, there is nowhere for that loader to hook into startup. No amount of re-uploading mods fixes that.

• Windows: good starting point, because the server has the expected Win64 layout.
• Linux with no Win64: not a working UE4SS target unless the host can switch the server to Windows or run it under Wine/Proton.
• Consoles: not supported for this method. As the Palworld modding docs put it: “This is meant for the PC version. You can’t do modding on consoles!”

Also check how you will upload files. Use FTP if your host offers it. A browser file manager can corrupt uploads into 0KB files, which is especially nasty here because the file name looks right while the file itself is empty. UE4SS then fails in confusing ways: the folder exists, the DLL name exists, but there is no code in the file for the server to load.

Some providers also block or interfere with mod loaders. If the provider does not support mods properly, you can end up chasing folder problems that are really platform or panel limits.

Download the right UE4SS build for Palworld

The safest choice is the Palworld-specific fork named like UE4SS-Palworld-xxxxxxxxx.zip. The important check is simple: the zip should contain a ue4ss folder and a dwmapi.dll file. That fork already includes the memory layout file Palworld needs.

If you are using the manual route, the supported alternative is an official build named like UE4SS_v3.0.1-xxx-xxxxxxxx.zip, then a separate MemberVariableLayout download. After installation, MemberVariableLayout.ini must sit inside the ue4ss folder. Do not use the build released on 14 February 2024, and do not use anything before 3.0.1.

The reason old or generic builds break is not cosmetic. Palworld patch 0.4.15 changed engine memory layout around UEnum. A default or outdated UE4SS build can then read the wrong offsets when a mod touches those engine objects. That is why some servers seem fine until one specific mod starts using a menu option, data table, or other enum-driven feature, and then the server crashes. MemberVariableLayout.ini tells UE4SS where Palworld’s engine data actually lives after that patch.

• Use the Palworld fork if possible.
• If you use the manual zip, add MemberVariableLayout.ini inside ue4ss.
• Do not use UE4SS Signatures. If UE4SS_Signatures exists in Win64 or WinGDK, delete it.
• Avoid Vortex and the CurseForge Client for Palworld. They currently install UE4SS and its mods incorrectly.

Install the loader in the server’s Win64 folder

On a rented server, search the file manager or your FTP client for Win64. Host layouts differ, so do not assume the top-level folders will look exactly like a local Steam install. On a self-hosted server, look in the PalServer folder from SteamCMD or the Palworld Dedicated Server tool in Steam. The layout matches the client install idea: you are still targeting the server’s Pal/Binaries/Win64 folder, just inside the server install instead of the game client install. If you are still setting up the base server, our guide to hosting a Palworld 1.0 dedicated server covers that part first.

Upload dwmapi.dll and the entire ue4ss folder into that Win64 folder. If you used the manual official zip, also make sure MemberVariableLayout.ini is inside the ue4ss folder after upload. Some hosts offer an automatic UE4SS installer, but an outdated auto-installer is more trouble than help. If your panel lets you turn it off, do that and use the current Palworld fork yourself.

The placement matters because dwmapi.dll is the loader entry point. It sits next to the shipping executable so the Palworld server process sees it at startup, then that loader pulls in UE4SS.dll from the ue4ss folder. Put it one folder too high or too low and nothing happens. That is why a missing log file later usually means the injector never ran at all, not that a mod failed.

Win64/
├─ dwmapi.dll
└─ ue4ss/
   ├─ UE4SS.dll
   ├─ UE4SS-settings
   ├─ MemberVariableLayout.ini
   └─ Mods/
      ├─ BPModLoaderMod/
      ├─ BPML_GenericFunctions/
      └─ ExampleMod/
         ├─ enabled.txt
         └─ Scripts/
            └─ main.lua

Change the UE4SS settings that matter on a live server

Inside the ue4ss folder, open the UE4SS-settings file and make the small changes that suit a live dedicated server. These are not cosmetic toggles. They cut out developer-only behaviour that can hurt performance on a server that is meant to sit quietly in the background and process mod logic.

bUseUObjectArrayCache = false
GuiConsoleEnabled = 0
GuiConsoleVisible = 0

If bUseUObjectArrayCache is set to true, change it to false. The Palworld modding docs note that true causes lag and stutters and is only useful for developers using LiveView. For an admin, the trade-off is easy: keep it off unless you are actively developing or debugging with that tool.

Set GuiConsoleEnabled and GuiConsoleVisible to 0 if you are only running mods. The GUI console is for mod developers and severely impacts performance. There is no player-facing benefit to leaving it on in a dedicated server environment, so disabling it removes pointless overhead.

Once the loader side is stable, keep your game rules and rates separate from your mod loader settings. For the Palworld side of server tuning, use our Palworld server settings guide rather than trying to force gameplay changes through UE4SS.

Install Lua mods in ue4ss/Mods, not anywhere else

A working Lua mod normally arrives as its own folder under Mods. Inside that folder, you should expect at least enabled.txt and a Scripts folder containing main.lua as the entry point. Put the whole unzipped mod folder inside ue4ss/Mods. Do not dump its loose files directly into Win64, and do not create a separate Mods folder next to Win64.

This is the folder mistake that wastes the most time because it often fails silently. UE4SS looks in its expected mod directory. If you put a mod in Win64/Mods instead, the server can still boot normally because nothing is technically broken; the loader simply never sees that folder. To you it looks installed. To UE4SS it does not exist.

• Leave the default BPModLoaderMod and BPML_GenericFunctions folders in place. They are part of UE4SS’s normal operation.
• Do not replace or wipe mods.txt or mods.json. Those files are required by UE4SS.
• If a mod author or host panel tells you to add a line such as RemoteFastTravel: 1 to mods.txt, add the line without deleting the default entries already there.
• If you find a leftover Win64/Mods or WinGDK/Mods folder from an older setup, move any actual mod folders from it into ue4ss/Mods. If asked to replace something, choose NO. Then delete the leftover old Mods folder.

Always read the mod’s own instructions and check that it matches the current Palworld version. A mod that worked in single-player last patch can still fail on a dedicated server after an update, even when the folder layout is correct.

Know which side needs the mod: server, client, or both

Palworld mods generally fall into three groups:

• Server-side: installed by the server owner and affects everyone who joins.
• Server and client: installed in both places because both the server and each player’s game must understand the same modded content or behaviour.
• Client-side: each player installs them locally; they do not belong on the server.

A dedicated server admin gets into trouble when they assume “Workshop subscribed” means “server ready”. It does not. If the mod is marked for both sides, players also need the matching client install and must turn Options → Mod Management → Enable Mod on so the game actually loads it. In Steam Workshop, they should use Subscribe or Subscribe to All if the item lists required dependencies such as UE4SS.

Back up the world save before adding or removing mods. That is not just a safety habit. Mods can change what the save expects to exist, so removing one later can leave broken references or missing behaviour. Install one mod at a time, restart, and test before adding the next. When several mods go in together, you lose the clean cause-and-effect that makes troubleshooting quick.

You can also use .pak mods alongside UE4SS mods, but keep their instructions separate. A single-player mod is not automatically safe on a dedicated server, because server authority, persistence, and client expectations are different.

Confirm that UE4SS and the mod actually loaded

After launching or restarting the dedicated server, go into the ue4ss folder and look for UE4SS.log. On systems that hide file extensions, it may appear as a file named UE4SS. If that file is missing, UE4SS is not correctly installed. That is the first hard check because the log is created only after the loader starts.

Then confirm the basic file chain is intact: dwmapi.dll inside Win64, UE4SS.dll inside the ue4ss folder, and the UE4SS-Settings file inside that same folder. If any of those are missing, redo the installation cleanly instead of tinkering around the edges.

A present log proves that the injector ran. It does not prove every mod works. For that, confirm each mod folder is under ue4ss/Mods and contains what the author documented, then do a practical server check: join the server, use storage, open Palboxes, place and remove building pieces, assign Pals, and do a clean restart. Those actions touch common server-side systems and saved state, so they expose half-working mods better than simply seeing the server online.

If UE4SS.log exists but one specific mod does nothing, the next suspects are an outdated mod, the wrong folder structure, or a missing client-side install for a mod that needs both sides.

Troubleshooting: no load, silent mods, or crashes

Most UE4SS problems reduce to a short chain: the loader never started, the loader started but cannot read its files, or the loader started and a mod is outdated or in the wrong place. Work from the loader outward. Do not start by swapping random mod files until you have confirmed that the UE4SS base install is sound.

What each common fix is actually doing

• Re-uploading with FTP: replaces name-only or corrupt files with real binaries the server can read from disk.
• Deleting xinput1_3.dll: removes a leftover hook from an older UE4SS install that can clash with the current loading method.
• Adding MemberVariableLayout.ini: gives UE4SS the Palworld-specific engine layout it needs after patch 0.4.15, especially when mods touch UEnum.
• Moving mods into ue4ss/Mods: puts the mod where the current UE4SS build actually scans for Lua mod folders.
• Removing mods one by one: isolates the exact mod that crashes or fails after the loader itself has been confirmed working.

If you have added several mods and the server now crashes, remove the added mods one by one until it stops. If the problem is wider than UE4SS itself, our Palworld crash and connection-error troubleshooting guide covers the broader server checks separately.

Choose a host that makes UE4SS straightforward

If you are still deciding where to rent, judge the host on admin access rather than marketing around “mod support”. For UE4SS, the useful signs are simple: a Windows Palworld server option, direct file access to the real server folders, FTP support, and no forced automatic UE4SS installer that pins you to an old build.

A host that only exposes a restricted web uploader, hides the file structure, or keeps reinstalling an outdated UE4SS package turns every Palworld update into extra work. A host that lets you reach Win64 cleanly makes this job routine: upload the current fork, drop mods in ue4ss/Mods, restart, and verify the log. If you are comparing providers, our Palworld server hosting comparison is the right place to check for the admin basics that matter here.

Palworld server FAQ

How do I install UE4SS on a Palworld dedicated server?

Find the server’s Win64 folder, then upload the ue4ss folder and dwmapi.dll from the current Palworld UE4SS build into it. If you used the manual official zip instead of the Palworld fork, also place MemberVariableLayout.ini inside ue4ss. Restart the server and check for UE4SS.log.

Why are my Palworld server mods not loading?

The usual causes are the wrong platform, the wrong folder, or the wrong UE4SS build. A Linux server with no Win64 folder will not load UE4SS normally, and mods in Win64/Mods instead of ue4ss/Mods are simply ignored. If UE4SS.log exists, focus next on the mod structure, enabled.txt, and whether the mod is outdated for the current Palworld patch.

Do players also need to install Palworld mods?

Some do, some do not. Server-side mods only need the server install, but mods marked for both server and client must be installed in both places. On the player side, they may also need to subscribe in Workshop and turn Options → Mod Management → Enable Mod on so the client actually loads the mod.

Can I run Palworld server mods on Linux?

UE4SS is not officially supported on Linux. A Linux server would need Wine or Proton to run the server under Windows for UE4SS to work, and even then some mods are marked as incompatible with Proton or Wine. If your host cannot give you a Windows Palworld server with a real Win64 folder, UE4SS is the wrong fit for that setup.

How do I know UE4SS actually started on my Palworld server?

Look inside the ue4ss folder for UE4SS.log after starting the server. If the log is missing, the loader did not start, so check dwmapi.dll in Win64, UE4SS.dll in ue4ss, and the UE4SS-Settings file in ue4ss. Then do a practical server test with the mod’s actual feature, not just a folder check.

More Palworld server help

Set up the server itself, tune its settings, or compare hosts that give you real file access for UE4SS.