# How to Change Player Slots on Your 7 Days to Die Server (/docs/7-days-to-die/player-slots)





import { Step, Steps } from 'fumadocs-ui/components/steps';

Control how many players can connect, plus reserve slots for admins and VIPs.

Change Max Players [#change-max-players]

<Steps>
  <Step>
    Set via Startup tab [#set-via-startup-tab]

    In the [XGamingServer Panel](https://panel.xgamingserver.com), click **Startup** and change the **MAX PLAYERS** field. Restart from **Console**.

        <img alt="Startup variables showing Max Players" src={__img0} placeholder="blur" />
  </Step>
</Steps>

Or via serverconfig.xml [#or-via-serverconfigxml]

```xml
<property name="ServerMaxPlayerCount" value="16" />
```

Reserved Slots [#reserved-slots]

Reserved slots are carved **from** the max count. They let privileged players join when the public slots are full.

```xml
<property name="ServerReservedSlots" value="2" />
<property name="ServerReservedSlotsPermission" value="100" />
```

Example: max 16, reserved 2 = 14 public slots + 2 reserved for players with permission level 100 or lower.

Admin Slots [#admin-slots]

Admin slots are **extra** slots beyond the max count. Admins can always join, even when the server is completely full.

```xml
<property name="ServerAdminSlots" value="1" />
<property name="ServerAdminSlotsPermission" value="0" />
```

Performance Considerations [#performance-considerations]

| Players | RAM Impact  | Notes                                       |
| ------- | ----------- | ------------------------------------------- |
| 2–4     | Low         | Good for any server                         |
| 8       | Moderate    | Default, works well for most setups         |
| 12–16   | Significant | May need to reduce `MaxSpawnedZombies`      |
| 24–32   | Heavy       | Requires strong hardware and tuned settings |

Each additional player increases:

* RAM usage (more chunks loaded)
* CPU load (more zombie spawns and AI pathfinding)
* Bandwidth consumption

> 💡 **Tip:** If performance drops with many players, reduce `MaxSpawnedZombies` from 64 to 48 or 32. This has the single biggest impact on server performance.

> ⚠️ **Crossplay limit:** Crossplay servers are hard-capped at **8 players maximum**.

Related Guides [#related-guides]

* [Server Configuration](/docs/7-days-to-die/server-config)
* [Crossplay Setup](/docs/7-days-to-die/crossplay)
* [Admin Setup](/docs/7-days-to-die/admin-setup)