Adding, Removing, and Swapping Mods on Your Terraria Server

Mods allow you to enhance gameplay and customization of your Terraria server. We always recommend using tModLoader for mods.

Step 1: Install tModLoader on your game

First, install tModLoader on your PC through the Steam store.

Step 2: Install tModLoader on the server

If you did not select tModLoader at checkout, you will need to contact us to have it changed. There is no price change for this, but we will need to reinstall the server, so we recommend taking a backup. You can reach out through the Client Area or through a support ticket in our Discord.

Step 3: Subscribe to your mods

Using the Steam workshop, subscribe to the mod(s) you’ll be using on the server. All players will need to install the same mods to join the server.

Step 4: Locate the .tmod files

Now that you’ve subscribed to the mods, navigate to SteamLibrary/steamapps/workshop/content/1281930 in your PC’s File Explorer. This is where each mod’s .tmod file is hiding. Each folder you see there is a mod. You’ll see folders within each mod’s folder such as 2024.5, 2025.9, etc. Enter the newest directory, and you’ll see the .tmod file.

Step 5: Upload the mods to the server

Navigate to your server’s File Manager and head to the mods folder. This is where you will upload all the .tmod files. If a mod is more than 100MB in size, you’ll need to upload it using SFTP.

Step 6: Edit enabled.json

Once the mods are uploaded, the last step is to edit enabled.json. This file tells the server what mods to look for when it loads. You can start with this template.

[
  "CalamityMod",
  "ThoriumMod",
  "RecipeBrowser",
  "BossChecklist"
]

Add each mod’s filename on its own line, and ensure you use valid syntax. The last entry ("BossChecklist") shouldn’t end in a comma, but the rest should. After that, start the server and you should be good to go!

Removing or Swapping Mods

Removing or swapping a mod is the same flow as adding, just in reverse. The server only loads what’s listed in enabled.json, so you can leave old .tmod files in the mods folder and they’ll be ignored.

To remove a mod

1. Stop your server from the Console page
2. Open enabled.json in the File Manager
3. Delete the mod’s entry from the list, keeping the JSON syntax valid (no trailing comma after the last entry)
4. Click Save
5. Optionally, delete the mod’s .tmod file from the mods/ folder. Leaving it there is harmless.
6. Start the server

To swap one mod for another (e.g. replace a fishing-minigame mod with an autofisher)

1. Stop your server
2. Upload the new .tmod file to the mods/ folder following the steps above
3. In enabled.json, remove the old mod’s entry and add the new one
4. Save and start the server

Per-Mod Config Files

Many tModLoader mods (Calamity, Thorium, Magic Storage, etc.) generate their own config files when the server first runs with that mod enabled. The configs are JSON files stored in the tModLoader ModConfigs/ folder on the server.

1. Make sure the mod is uploaded and listed in enabled.json
2. Start the server once. The mod creates its config file on first load.
3. Stop the server
4. In the File Manager, open the tModLoader/ directory and look for the ModConfigs/ folder
5. Edit the relevant .json file (press CTRL+F to search for the field you want to change)
6. Save and start the server

If the mod’s config folder isn’t where you expect, search the File Manager for a file matching the mod’s name. Some mods place configs in their own subfolder.