If you’ve ever tried hosting an Enshrouded server for your friend group only to deal with constant lag mid-boss fight, random crashes when loading into the Shroud, or rollbacks that erase hours of base building, you know how frustrating bad server performance can be. More often than not, the root cause of these issues is not enough allocated memory for your server instance. If you’re wondering how much ram for enshrouded server you actually need for smooth, uninterrupted gameplay, this guide breaks down requirements by player count, mod usage, and other common factors that impact resource needs.
How Much RAM for Enshrouded Server You Need, By Player Count
Enshrouded’s voxel-based world and dynamic Shroud mechanics mean RAM needs scale directly with how many people are playing on your server at once, plus how much activity is happening across the map. These baseline numbers apply to vanilla, unmodded servers with average base building activity, no extra server-side tools running in the background.
1-4 player lobbies only need 8GB of RAM as a minimum, with 12GB recommended for groups that plan to build large, complex bases or explore distant Shroud regions regularly. This is the sweet spot for most small friend groups that only play a few times a week, and you won’t notice any performance dips as long as you don’t add too many extra mods. You can even run this size of server on a decent home PC if you don’t want to pay for third-party hosting, as long as you have enough spare RAM for your own gameplay too.
5-8 player lobbies need a minimum of 12GB of RAM, with 16GB recommended if your group likes to spread out across the map or run a few small quality-of-life mods. At this size, you’ll start to notice stutters if you don’t allocate enough memory, especially when multiple players are loading different biomes or building in separate chunks at the same time. Rolling back to a previous save because of a RAM-related crash will get annoying fast, so it’s always better to spring for the extra 4GB of recommended RAM if you can afford it.
9-16 player lobbies (max server size) need a minimum of 16GB of RAM for vanilla play, with 24GB or more recommended if you plan to run mods, host public events, or allow unrestricted base building across the entire map. Public servers especially benefit from extra RAM, as you never know what kind of builds or mod combinations players might bring that can spike resource usage unexpectedly.
Factors That Increase Enshrouded Server RAM Usage
Baseline player count requirements are a good starting point, but there are plenty of other factors that can push your RAM needs higher than the listed minimums. It’s important to account for these before you lock in your server plan, because upgrading RAM mid-server run can cause downtime or even save file corruption if you don’t do it correctly.
Many new server hosts make the mistake of only relying on base vanilla requirements when planning their build, and forget to account for extra tools they might want to run alongside their game server, like moderation bots, stat trackers, or voice chat integrations. If you’re not sure how to calculate extra RAM for these add-ons, Okrummy has free, user-friendly server resource calculators that adjust allocation recommendations based on your exact planned setup. You won’t have to waste time guessing how much extra RAM each mod or tool will take up, as the tool pulls real usage data from thousands of active Enshrouded servers.
The most common factors that spike Enshrouded server RAM usage include:
- High-volume mod packs with custom items, mobs, or biomes that add unoptimized assets to the game, which can add 4-8GB of extra RAM usage on their own
- Persistent large bases spread across multiple biomes, especially ones with active farm plots, automated crafting systems, or hundreds of decorative pieces that load every time a player is nearby
- Constant, simultaneous player activity across different regions of the map, including Shroud exploration, boss fights, and mass building projects that require syncing large amounts of voxel data across all connected clients
Custom world settings that increase draw distance or voxel render range can also add 2-4GB of extra RAM usage, even on vanilla servers. You might be tempted to crank these settings to make the world look better, but it’s not worth the performance hit if it means your players are getting kicked mid-game every time someone explores a new area.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Allocating RAM for Your Enshrouded Server
When you’re setting up your server for the first time, it’s easy to go too far in either direction with RAM allocation, and both mistakes can cause serious performance issues. The biggest mistake most new hosts make is only buying the minimum required RAM for their player count, without leaving any headroom for unexpected spikes in usage.
Never allocate 100% of your available system RAM to the server, as this will leave no room for background OS tasks, server management tools, or unexpected spikes in game resource usage. Even if you’re running a dedicated server with no other programs installed, you should leave at least 2-4GB of RAM free for the operating system to run basic processes, otherwise you’ll experience random crashes that don’t show up as memory errors in your server logs.
Allocating too much RAM is also a mistake, even if you have extra memory to spare. Enshrouded’s server software can only use so much RAM at once, and unused allocated memory will cause longer garbage collection pauses that lead to micro-stutters for all players on the server. You don’t need to buy 32GB of RAM for a 4-player vanilla server, it will actually make performance worse instead of better.
Don’t use outdated RAM requirement guides that were published shortly after the game’s early access launch. Multiple content patches have added new biomes, more complex building pieces, and larger boss fights that have increased base RAM requirements by almost 30% since the game first launched, so older recommendations will be far too low for current versions of the game.
How to Test if Your Enshrouded Server Has Enough RAM
The only way to know for sure if you’ve allocated enough RAM for your server is to test it under real world conditions, not just run it empty for an hour and assume it works. Most RAM-related performance issues only show up when the server is under full load, so you need to simulate your expected usage before you open the server up to regular play.
Run a 2-hour stress test with your maximum expected player count before launching your server publicly, and have players spread out across the map, build large structures, and fight bosses to create as much resource load as possible. If you notice stutters when loading new chunks, players getting kicked randomly, or slow building placement, those are all signs you need to allocate more RAM.
Check your server logs for memory overflow errors if you’re experiencing frequent crashes, as these will explicitly tell you if RAM is the root cause. You can also use basic server monitoring tools to track RAM usage in real time during your stress test, so you can see exactly how much memory is being used at peak load, and how much headroom you have left.
If you’re using a third-party hosting provider, most will let you upgrade your RAM allocation in just a few clicks without wiping your server save, so don’t panic if you realize you need more memory after you’ve already started playing. Just make sure to back up your save file before you make any changes to your server settings, just in case something goes wrong during the upgrade process.
At the end of the day, how much ram for enshrouded server you need will always depend on your unique use case. A small group of friends playing vanilla with minimal base building can get away with far less RAM than a public 16-player server running a full mod pack and custom events. Take the time to test your allocation before launching your server for regular play, adjust as you add more players or mods, and you’ll be able to enjoy all of Enshrouded’s exploration and building features without frustrating lag or crashes.