The Ultimate Guide to Hosting a Palworld Dedicated Server on Linux (High RAM Optimization)

Palworld is a massive multiplayer survival hit, but managing a server comes with a well-known technical challenge: severe memory leaks. As your world expands, the server's RAM usage skyrockets.

If you want a flawless multiplayer experience, you need to host a Palworld Dedicated Server on Linux using a machine equipped to handle massive memory loads (64GB+ RAM).

In this tutorial summary, we cover the essential sysadmin steps to optimize an Ubuntu server for Unreal Engine 5 game hosting.

The Architecture Problem

Palworld currently has unresolved memory leaks tied to UE5 and in-game pathfinding. As players build, the server retains object data in its active memory. Standard 16GB instances will inevitably trigger the Linux OOM killer. Over-provisioning hardware and scheduling memory dumps is required.

Core Optimizations

When setting up your Ubuntu 22.04/24.04 LTS environment, several structural steps are vital:

1. User Isolation: Never run SteamCMD or the game server as root. Always create a dedicated palworld user.
2. Swap Configuration: Even with 64GB RAM, a 16GB swap file acts as a critical overflow buffer.
3. Systemd Daemon: Creating a service ensures the game recovers gracefully.
4. Thread Optimization: Passing -useperfthreads, -NoAsyncLoadingThread, and -UseMultithreadForDS via the ExecStart parameter dramatically improves performance.
5. Cron Automation: Setting a daily cron job (0 4 * * * /bin/systemctl restart palworld) is currently the most effective memory leak mitigation strategy.

Hosting a massive world requires serious infrastructure.

For more details, visit the tutorial link: https://www.fitservers.com/tutorials/howto/host-palworld-dedicated-server-linux/