How to Wipe Your Rust Server

Wiping is how a Rust server stays alive. A fresh map resets everyone to nothing, and a predictable wipe day is what brings players back week after week. Your panel has a dedicated wipe tool that changes the map, renames the server for the new cycle and deletes exactly the files you choose, either now or on a schedule.

1Open the Wipe Page

• Log in to your game panel and click your Rust server.
• Click Rust Wipe in the left menu under GAME SERVER.
• Take a manual backup before your first wipe. Once you know your settings are right you will not need one every time, but the first run is worth protecting.

2Set the Server Identity

• Server name and Description are what players see in the browser. Load current fills in what the server uses now, so you can edit rather than retype.
• %DAY% and %MONTH% are replaced with the date on the day the wipe runs. A name like Vibe Rust 2x [WIPE %DAY%/%MONTH%] advertises its own freshness, and on a schedule it updates itself every cycle without you touching it.
• This matters more than it sounds. Players sort the browser looking for servers that just wiped.

3Choose the Map

• Map size and Seed generate a procedural map. Around 4000 is a common size; smaller feels busier with fewer players, larger feels empty.
• Random seed generates a new seed each wipe, so every cycle is a different world.
• Random level picks from your custom map list instead.
• Custom map URL points at a specific map file and overrides both size and seed.
• Custom maps you use often can be saved in the Custom maps panel on the right, so you do not paste URLs every time.

4Choose What Gets Deleted

• Files to delete takes one path per line, and Browse files lets you pick them rather than typing.
• The usual pair is the map file and the player data, for example *.map and UserPersistence.db in your server's identity folder.
• * wildcards work but make the wipe slower, so use them only where you need them.
• Wipe blueprints decides whether players keep what they have learned. Leaving it off is a blueprint-keep wipe, which is gentler and common for weekly cycles. Turning it on is a full wipe, usually saved for the monthly force wipe.

5Wipe Now or Schedule It

• Press Wipe now to run it immediately. The server restarts and comes back on the new map.
• Turn on Schedule wipe instead to save it for later. Set the Timezone in the right hand panel first, since every scheduled time uses it.
• Scheduled wipes are listed on the right, so you can see what is coming.

Good to Know

• Force wipe is the first Thursday of the month. Facepunch ships a Rust update and forces every server to wipe. Your players expect it, so schedule around it rather than fighting it.
• Modded servers may not start straight after a force wipe. The Rust update usually needs a matching Oxide or Carbon update first. See how to install Oxide or Carbon.
• Admin survives a wipe. Deleting the map and player data does not clear your admin list, which lives in users.cfg. See how to make yourself admin.
• Tell your players first. A wipe with no warning reads as a server that lost everything. Announce the day, and put it in the server name so nobody has to ask.

Finished

Your server is on a fresh map and ready for a new cycle. Make sure the browser shows it correctly with server tags, so players filtering for your wipe schedule can find you.