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How to Set a Password on a Squad Server

Edit SquadGame/ServerConfig/Server.cfg and set ServerPassword=YourPassword for a persistent join password. This guide also covers the temporary admin command, rented hosts, RCON separation, restarts, and verification.
Length7 min Posted Quest giverVGSources Team
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To require a password when players join your Squad server, open SquadGame/ServerConfig/Server.cfg, add or edit ServerPassword=YourPassword, save the file, and restart the server. An authorized administrator can instead change the password temporarily with AdminSetServerPassword <Password>. These are different credentials from the password in Rcon.cfg, which authenticates RCON connections.

Choose the method that fits your server

Squad has two ways to protect player joins. Editing Server.cfg is the durable method because the value is read when the server starts. The administration command is useful when you need to change access immediately and have administrator permission, but a runtime change may disappear at the next restart.

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Method Where it is used Access required Survives a restart? Best use
ServerPassword in Server.cfg Self-hosted Windows or Linux files, or a host control panel that exposes those files Access to the server configuration file Yes, provided the file remains saved A standing password for a private or scheduled server
AdminSetServerPassword <Password> Live server administration console An authorized administrator with the required command permission Not necessarily; treat it as runtime state A quick, temporary change without editing a file

The official Squad server-configuration reference documents the file setting, while the server-administration reference documents the command and its access level.

What you need before changing the password

  • Administrative access to the machine, service, or hosting panel that runs the dedicated server.
  • A way to stop and start, or restart, the Squad server after saving a configuration change.
  • The correct server instance if the machine hosts more than one installation.
  • A second Squad client, or a player who is not already authenticated, for a clean join test.

Do not edit the RCON file when your goal is to restrict players joining the game. RCON authentication and the in-game join password are separate systems.

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Set a persistent password in Server.cfg

Use this method when the password should be restored automatically whenever the server starts.

  1. Stop the Squad server if your service manager or hosting panel recommends stopping it before editing. If your environment supports safe live editing, still plan a restart after the file is saved.
  2. Open the server’s SquadGame/ServerConfig directory. The official installation documentation describes the corresponding server directories for Windows and Linux deployments.
  3. Open Server.cfg in a plain-text editor. If the file already contains a ServerPassword line, change its value rather than creating a second line.
  4. Add or edit the setting so it follows this format:
ServerPassword=YourPassword
  1. Replace YourPassword with the value you want players to enter. Keep the setting on its own line and preserve the ServerPassword= name exactly.
  2. Save the file as plain text in the same ServerConfig directory. Confirm that your editor did not create a second extension such as Server.cfg.txt.
  3. Restart the Squad server. A file edit does not reliably change the already-running process until it starts again.

Windows installations

On Windows, locate the dedicated-server installation directory first, then follow its SquadGameServerConfig path. The drive letter and parent folders depend on where you installed the server, so there is no single universal absolute path to copy. Use the directory belonging to the service or shortcut that actually launches your server.

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Linux installations

On Linux, follow the server installation’s SquadGame/ServerConfig path using the account and directory that run the dedicated-server service. A system can contain several user-owned or service-owned installations; editing a similarly named folder that is not used by the running service will have no effect.

If a password line already exists

Keep one authoritative ServerPassword entry. Replace the old value, save the file, and restart. Leaving conflicting duplicate entries makes it unclear which value the server will use and complicates troubleshooting.

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Change the password while the server is running

An authorized administrator can use the administration command:

AdminSetServerPassword <Password>

The administration documentation lists this command under the private access level. The command changes the live server state, so the administrator must have the permission required to execute private commands.

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Remove a runtime password

Supply an empty string as the command argument to remove the runtime password. In consoles that accept quoted arguments, this is commonly entered as:

AdminSetServerPassword ""

If your administration interface has its own command-entry rules, use its documented way to pass an empty string. Removing the live value does not rewrite Server.cfg; a password stored in that file will be applied again after the next restart.

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When the command is the right choice

  • You need to close or open access immediately during an event.
  • You have private-command permission but do not have file-system access.
  • You are testing access before committing a value to the persistent configuration.

For a password that must remain in force after maintenance, crashes, or scheduled restarts, put the final value in Server.cfg as well.

Do not confuse the join password with the RCON password

Squad uses separate configuration entries for two different audiences:

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Credential File What it protects Who uses it
ServerPassword Server.cfg Joining the game server Players connecting through the Squad client
Password Rcon.cfg Remote-console authentication RCON tools or administrators connecting remotely

The configuration reference identifies these as separate settings. Changing the Password line in Rcon.cfg will not create a player join prompt, and changing ServerPassword will not authenticate an RCON client.

Set the password on a rented server

Rented providers generally expose the same server files through a web file manager or a control panel. The exact button names, directory browser, and restart workflow vary by provider, so avoid assuming that one host’s instructions apply to another.

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  1. Sign in to the provider’s control panel.
  2. Open its file manager, configuration editor, or equivalent server-files area.
  3. Navigate to the Squad installation’s SquadGame/ServerConfig directory.
  4. Open Server.cfg and add or change ServerPassword=YourPassword.
  5. Save the file using the panel’s save or apply control.
  6. Use the provider’s restart control or documented service procedure.
  7. Connect with a client that is not already authenticated and enter the new value.

If the panel hides Server.cfg, gives you only command access, or automatically regenerates configuration files, ask the provider how to edit the Squad server’s persistent configuration. A host-specific restart button or service command is not universal. A general walkthrough showing the same configuration concept is available from Game Host Bros, but its panel labels should not be treated as instructions for every provider.

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Verify that the password works

Test the result as a player rather than relying only on the saved text.

  1. After the restart completes, wait until the server is visible and accepting connections.
  2. Use a client that was not connected before the change, or fully disconnect and reconnect so an existing authenticated session cannot mask the result.
  3. Select the server and confirm that Squad requests the configured password.
  4. Enter the exact value saved in Server.cfg or set by the runtime command.
  5. Confirm that a correct value permits entry and an incorrect value does not.

A clean-client test matters because an already connected player may not be asked to authenticate again after you change the setting.

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Troubleshoot a password that does not work

The server never asks for a password

  • Confirm that the line is in SquadGame/ServerConfig/Server.cfg, not in Rcon.cfg or another similarly named file.
  • Check that the setting name is exactly ServerPassword and that the file was saved as plain text.
  • Make sure you restarted the correct server instance after editing.
  • Test from a client that was not already connected when the setting changed.

The old password still works

  • Verify that you edited the configuration directory belonging to the running service, especially if several Squad installations exist.
  • Check for another ServerPassword entry and leave only the intended value.
  • Restart again after confirming the file’s timestamp and contents.

The runtime command is rejected

  • Confirm that you are authenticated as an administrator who can use the private command level.
  • Enter the command name exactly as AdminSetServerPassword and provide the argument in the format accepted by your console.
  • If you lack command permission, use the persistent file method or ask the server owner to make the change.

The password disappears after a restart

This indicates that the live value was changed without a matching persistent value, or that the persistent file was not saved in the active installation. Put the desired value in Server.cfg, save it, restart, and repeat the fresh-client test.

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RCON stopped working after the change

Check the two credentials independently. A player join password belongs in Server.cfg; an RCON password belongs in Rcon.cfg. If an RCON tool fails, troubleshoot its RCON credential and connection separately instead of replacing ServerPassword.

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Practical setup patterns

Permanent private server

Store the chosen value in Server.cfg, restart once, and distribute it only to the players who should join. Re-test after any provider migration or server-directory change because the active installation may differ from the one you originally edited.

One-off event or closed play session

Use AdminSetServerPassword <Password> when an authorized administrator needs an immediate change. If the event password must remain after a planned restart, also save it in Server.cfg before that restart.

Opening the server again

Remove the runtime value with an empty-string argument when you need an immediate change, and remove or update the persistent ServerPassword entry before the next restart if the open state must continue. Otherwise, the file setting will restore the password when the server starts.

Quick checklist

  • Use Server.cfg for a password that persists.
  • Place the setting under SquadGame/ServerConfig.
  • Write ServerPassword=YourPassword on its own line.
  • Save the file and restart the correct server instance.
  • Use AdminSetServerPassword <Password> only when you have the required private-command permission.
  • Use an empty argument to remove a runtime password.
  • Keep the RCON credential in Rcon.cfg; it is not the player join password.
  • Verify the result with a client that was not already authenticated.

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