Modding is easier here than in most survival games
If you’ve dealt with mod installs in other games, Vintage Story is refreshingly simple in one specific way: players don’t need to do anything. Since version 1.16, the client automatically detects and downloads the mods a server is running the moment you connect — no matching versions by hand, no separate download links to chase down. That’s a genuinely different experience to games like DayZ, where every player has to manually track down and install the exact same mod list as the server. See our guide to playing with friends for how that plays out on the joining side.
What’s left is the server owner’s side: getting mods onto the server itself. That’s what this guide covers.
Installing mods on your Vintage Story server
Two methods exist — an in-game command that pulls straight from the mod database, and a manual upload for anything it can’t find. Most people only ever need the first one.
mods.vintagestory.at/primitivesurvival, the ID is primitivesurvival. There’s no fully consistent naming standard across every mod, so if the obvious guess doesn’t work in step 2, check the mod’s Files tab for the exact name./moddb install primitivesurvival 3.2.1..zip file directly from its ModDB page, then upload it via SFTP or your host’s File Manager into the data/Mods folder specifically — not the root /Mods folder, which is a common mistake that silently prevents mods from loading.Install mods a few at a time rather than dumping in a full list at once — not every mod on the database is actively maintained, and if something breaks, a small batch makes it far easier to identify which one caused it. Once you’re happy with your mod list, it’s worth reviewing our server settings guide too, since heavier modpacks are exactly when settings like MaxChunkRadius start to matter for performance.
Server-side vs client-side mods
Not every mod needs to go on the server at all. ModDB pages are usually tagged to make this clear:
Install these on the server only. They affect every connected player automatically, and — per the automatic sync covered above — players don’t need to install anything themselves.
Usually visual or UI enhancements. These install only on an individual player’s own game and don’t need to touch the server at all — installing them there does nothing useful.
Common mod problems
| What you see | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| “Mod not found” on install | Guessed mod ID doesn’t match | Check the mod’s Files tab on ModDB for the exact ID |
| Mod installed but not working | Server not restarted, or missing dependency | Restart the server; check the mod’s Required Items list |
| Manually uploaded mod doesn’t load | Uploaded to /Mods instead of data/Mods | Move the .zip to the data/Mods folder specifically |
| Players get errors connecting after a mod update | Server and mod version mismatch | Re-run /moddb install with the matching version number |
For anything not covered here — crashes, world corruption, connection errors — see our full Vintage Story server troubleshooting guide.
Vintage Story mods — common questions
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