Terraria itself has no built-in administrator account. To become an admin, run the TShock setup flow: use the one-time setup code to claim temporary superadmin access, create a permanent account in the owner group, log in, and disable setup mode.
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What “admin” means on a Terraria server
On a vanilla Terraria dedicated server, there is no account system with administrator roles. The commands commonly described as “becoming admin” belong to TShock, a server-side modification that adds accounts, groups, permissions, moderation tools and other server controls.
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The command names in this guide follow the current TShock setup flow described in guidance available on October 14, 2026. Older installations and older tutorials may use different names, especially /auth and superadmin; those differences are covered later.
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Before you start
- Confirm that TShock is running. The server startup output, folder structure or hosting panel should identify TShock. If the server is vanilla, these commands will not exist.
- Keep console access open. The first setup code appears in the server console, and console access is also the recovery route if the code is lost.
- Have a player account name and password ready. Choose a name that is easy to recognize and a long, unique password that you do not use elsewhere.
- Back up the TShock data. In particular, protect
tshock.sqlite. It stores important TShock server data, and losing it can force you to repeat the setup process. - Know which server you are joining. If you run more than one instance, make sure the setup code and the player connection both belong to the same instance.
1. Find the TShock setup code
On a fresh TShock installation, the first server boot prints a setup code in the console. TShock also writes the code to the server’s tshock folder in a file named setup-code.txt.
- Start the TShock server and watch the console output.
- Copy the setup code exactly as displayed. Do not add quotation marks, brackets or extra spaces.
- If the startup message has scrolled away, stop the server only if necessary and open
tshock/setup-code.txtwith the server’s file manager or operating-system file browser. - Keep the code private while setup is incomplete. Anyone who can use it on your server may be able to claim the temporary setup privileges.
The code is a bootstrap credential, not the password for your permanent account. Your goal is to use it once, create an owner account, and turn setup mode off.
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Join the TShock server with your Terraria client. In chat, run the setup command with the code you copied:
/setup YOUR_SETUP_CODE
Replace YOUR_SETUP_CODE with the actual value; do not type the placeholder or the angle brackets. A successful command temporarily gives your connected player the setup-level privileges needed to create the permanent owner account.
If the command succeeds, continue immediately to account creation. If it fails, do not repeatedly guess codes: check that you joined the same server whose console produced the code, recopy the value from setup-code.txt, and verify that the server is actually running TShock.
3. Create the permanent owner account
While your temporary setup privileges are active, create a named account in the current owner group:
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/user add YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD owner
Replace each uppercase token with your chosen values. The final word, owner, is the current group name used for the highest built-in TShock account level. Do not include the brackets shown in older tutorials or type the words YOUR_USERNAME and YOUR_PASSWORD literally.
Use a unique password and avoid sharing it in public chat. If your host provides a protected console input, you can use the server console for account creation instead; otherwise, enter the command in game chat and be careful that other players cannot read or repeat it.
If TShock reports that the username already exists, do not create a second account with a confusingly similar name. Use an account you control and change its group from the console if necessary, as described in the recovery section.
4. Log in with the new account
Creating an account does not automatically authenticate your current player. Log in explicitly:
/login YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD
After a successful login, the permissions attached to the owner group apply to that account. The account is stored in TShock’s database, so it can be used again after a restart; you do not need the setup code for routine logins.
If login fails, check the spelling and capitalization of the username, make sure you are using the password assigned in the /user add command, and confirm that the account was created on this server instance rather than another world or panel container.
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5. Turn setup mode off
Once the owner account is created and you have logged in, disable the setup system by running:
/setup
This second use of /setup turns off setup mode. It also stops the setup-code notice from appearing on later server boots. Leaving setup mode enabled is unnecessary and keeps the bootstrap path available, so treat disabling it as the final required step rather than an optional cleanup.
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Complete command sequence
The entire current flow, in order, is:
| Stage | Command or action | Expected result |
|---|---|---|
| Get the code | Read the startup console or tshock/setup-code.txt |
You have the one-time setup code for this TShock instance. |
| Claim temporary access | /setup YOUR_SETUP_CODE |
Your connected player receives temporary setup privileges. |
| Create the owner | /user add YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD owner |
A permanent account is created in the current owner group. |
| Authenticate | /login YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD |
Your player is logged in as the owner account. |
| Close setup | /setup |
Setup mode is disabled and the recurring setup notice stops. |
Using a hosting-provider control panel
Panel-based servers use the same TShock commands, but the controls may be split between a web console and a file manager.
- Open the panel’s live server console and start or restart the Terraria instance.
- Copy the setup code from the console output. If it is no longer visible, use the panel’s file manager to open the server’s
tshock/setup-code.txtfile. - Join the server in Terraria and enter the setup command in chat.
- Run the account-creation and login commands exactly as shown above.
- Run
/setupagain after logging in. - Use the panel’s backup feature, if available, to preserve the TShock data directory and especially
tshock.sqlite.
Panels differ in how they handle console input and file permissions. If a command is rejected by the panel rather than by TShock, use the panel’s documented console field or ask the host whether the instance is actually running TShock. Do not assume that a panel account marked “administrator” grants in-game TShock permissions.
If you lost setup-code.txt
Losing the text file does not always mean you are locked out. Choose the branch that matches your server.
An owner account already exists
If you previously created an owner account, log in with /login YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD. The setup code is only needed for the initial bootstrap; it is not required for normal owner access. If you also lost the owner password, use a console-based account recovery method or restore a known-good backup rather than deleting tshock.sqlite.
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No owner account exists, but you have console access
A console operator can create the owner account directly with:
/user add YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD owner
After the account is created, join the server, log in, and run /setup to disable setup mode. This route is useful when the setup file is missing but the server database and console are still available.
You can register a player but need to promote it
Some TShock servers allow player self-registration with:
/register YOUR_PASSWORD
Register an account only if that command is enabled on your server. Then, from the server console, assign that exact username to the owner group:
/user group YOUR_USERNAME owner
Log in with /login YOUR_USERNAME YOUR_PASSWORD, and turn setup mode off with /setup. Enter the username exactly as TShock records it; a spelling mismatch changes which account receives the group.
No setup file, no owner and no console access
Ask the server host for console or file-manager access. Without either an existing owner account or a trusted console operator, there is no safe in-game way to recreate the bootstrap credentials. Do not replace or delete tshock.sqlite as a first response; doing so can remove existing TShock account and permission data.
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Why older tutorials mention /auth and “SuperAdmin”
TShock’s terminology has changed. Older guides commonly instruct players to run /auth AUTHCODE and create an account in a superadmin group. One older naming convention used SuperAdmin for the top group before Terraria 1.4-era setups. Current guidance uses /setup and the lowercase owner group.
| Instruction you see | What it usually indicates | What to do |
|---|---|---|
/setup plus an owner group |
Current TShock setup terminology | Follow the five-step flow in this guide. |
/auth AUTHCODE |
An older TShock version or older tutorial | Check the installed TShock version’s documentation before substituting commands. |
superadmin or SuperAdmin |
Legacy group naming | Do not assume it is interchangeable with owner; use the group names exposed by your installation. |
If /setup is reported as an unknown command, first verify that TShock is installed and loaded. If it is loaded but clearly uses the legacy command set, follow documentation for that specific version rather than mixing a modern command with an old group name.
Protecting the owner account
The owner group is powerful enough to change permissions and affect the whole server. Treat the account as a break-glass administrator rather than a shared convenience login.
- Use a unique password. Never reuse the owner password for Steam, email, hosting-panel or other accounts.
- Keep the account private. Do not give the owner credentials to every moderator. Create separate staff accounts instead.
- Disable setup mode. Run
/setupafter the first successful login so the bootstrap notice and setup path are closed. - Back up before upgrades or permission changes. Preserve
tshock.sqliteand the surroundingtshockdata so you can restore accounts if a migration fails. - Protect the setup code. Anyone who obtains an unused code may be able to claim temporary setup privileges before you close setup mode.
- Review self-registration. The
/registercommand can let players create ordinary accounts, but registration alone should not grant an elevated group.
Use custom staff groups instead of the owner account for routine work
For day-to-day moderation, community guidance generally recommends creating a custom group with only the permissions staff members need. Keep the owner account for server ownership, recovery and permission administration.
The exact group-management commands and permission names depend on the TShock version and enabled plugins. Use the commands supported by your installation to create a staff group, grant narrowly scoped permissions, and assign individual staff accounts to it. Test the group with a non-owner account before giving it to moderators.
This separation limits the damage from a compromised moderator password and makes it easier to revoke one staff member without changing the owner account. It also prevents routine moderation mistakes from affecting settings that only the server owner should control.
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Troubleshooting common failures
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| “Invalid setup code” | The code was copied incorrectly, belongs to another instance, or setup is already closed. | Read the code again from that server’s console or tshock/setup-code.txt. If an owner already exists, log in normally instead of using the code. |
/setup is unknown |
The server is vanilla, TShock failed to load, or the installation uses an older command set. | Check startup output and the installed TShock version. Older installations may document /auth instead. |
| The account name is already in use | A player account with that username is already stored in TShock. | Use that account if you control it, or have a console operator assign the correct account to owner with /user group. |
| Login fails after account creation | Username or password was mistyped, or the account was created on another server instance. | Check the exact account details and the target instance. Avoid repeatedly creating near-duplicate accounts. |
| Owner commands are denied | The temporary setup step did not succeed, login was not completed, or the account received the wrong group. | Verify the successful order: setup code, account creation, login, then inspect or correct the group from the console. |
| The setup notice returns after every restart | Setup mode was never disabled. | Log in as the owner and run /setup once without a code. |
| Privileges disappear after a restart | The TShock database was replaced, deleted or restored from an older backup. | Check that the server is using the intended tshock.sqlite, restore the correct backup, and avoid wiping the TShock data directory. |
How to confirm the setup is complete
You are finished when all of the following are true:
- Your named account can log in with
/login. - The account belongs to the intended
ownergroup on the current TShock version. - An owner-only administrative action appropriate to your installed version succeeds.
- Running
/setupwithout a code disables setup mode rather than starting a new bootstrap session. - A restart no longer displays the recurring setup-code notice, and the account still works afterward.
At that point, preserve a backup of the working TShock data and create separate, limited staff groups if other people need moderation access.
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