How to Wipe a Rust Server

This guide shows you how to wipe your Rust server. A wipe resets the map, player buildings, inventories, and sometimes learned blueprints — giving everyone a clean slate and preventing established players from holding an unfair advantage. Whether you need a map wipe, a blueprint wipe, or a full wipe, the process involves deleting specific files so the server generates a fresh world on restart.

This guide covers the different types of wipes, the standard wipe schedule, and step-by-step instructions for each kind of wipe.

Rust Wipe Schedule

Official servers force wipe on the first Thursday of every month — a schedule set by Facepunch to align with major game updates. This resets blueprints on all official servers.

Community and modded servers choose their own schedule. Common cadences include:

• Weekly — map wipe only, keeps gameplay fast-paced
• Bi-weekly — map wipe every two weeks
• Monthly — full wipe alongside the forced wipe

Types of Wipes

Map Wipe

Resets the world — terrain, monuments, resources, and all player-built structures are removed. Learned blueprints and tech tree progress are kept. This is the most common wipe type.

Blueprint Wipe (Player Data Wipe)

Resets all learned blueprints and scrap progress. Players must re-learn crafting recipes from scratch. The map and buildings are not affected. Blueprint wipes usually happen alongside major updates.

Full Wipe

Combines both — the map is regenerated and all blueprints are reset. This gives everyone a completely fresh start and is typically done on a monthly cycle.

Where to Find Your Server Files

How to Map Wipe

1. Stop your Rust server.
2. Access your server files via SFTP, FTP, or the Game Panel File Manager.
3. Navigate to server/[identity]/ — the identity is the name of your server's save folder and is usually Rust.
4. Delete these files:
   • proceduralmap.*.map
   • proceduralmap.*.sav
5. Start your server. A new map will generate using your configured seed and world size. Blueprints are preserved.

How to Blueprint Wipe

1. Stop your Rust server.
2. Access your server files via SFTP, FTP, or the Game Panel File Manager.
3. Navigate to server/[identity]/.
4. Delete these files:
   • player.blueprints.db
   • player.tokens.db
5. Start your server. Players will have to re-learn all blueprints, but the map and buildings remain unchanged.

How to Full Wipe

1. Stop your Rust server.
2. Access your server files via SFTP, FTP, or the Game Panel File Manager.
3. Navigate to server/[identity]/.
4. Delete all of the following:
   • Map files (*.map)
   • Save files (*.sav, *.sav.1, *.sav.2, etc.)
   • Player data files (player.blueprints.db, player.tokens.db, etc.)
5. Start your server. The world and all player progress will be completely reset.

Using the Game Panel Rust Wiper

If your server is hosted with us, you can also use the Rust Wiper tool in the Game Panel to schedule manual, one-time, or recurring wipes without touching any files manually. See the Rust Wiper setup guide for full instructions.

Important Notes

• Always stop the server before deleting files. Wiping while the server is running can corrupt data.
• Plugins and their configurations are stored separately in the oxide/ or cfg/ folders and are not affected by wipes. (Oxide is the plugin framework for Rust — see the Oxide install guide.)
• Some plugins store their own data (e.g., economics, clans) in separate database files — you may need to reset those manually if desired.