How to Change the Size of Your World on Your Eco Server
This guide will show you how to change the size of the world on your Eco server.
This is done by changing values in a config file called WorldGenerator.eco, which is used by the game to create new worlds. Changing world size will require that a completely new world be created, and any progress on earlier worlds cannot be carried over to a new world.
Increasing the size of a world in the game Eco will increase the amount of RAM and CPU required by the server to run the world. The standard size for worlds is 72 by 72. Increasing world size to very large numbers (200 - 300 or even higher) will require a drastically increased amount of RAM to run the world map.
Open the Configs Folder
The folder called Configs is where the config files for the game are stored, including the file WorldGenerator.eco.
Locate the WorldGenerator.eco Config File
Inside the Configs folder, please locate the config file WorldGenerator.eco. The files are in alphabetical order, so you will have to scroll down to find it.
There is another config file named
WorldGenerator.eco.templatein the "Configs" folder. Config files that end in ".template" are essentially backup copies, and the game will not read or load any settings in file that end in ".template".
To edit the file, click on the box to the left of it's name, and then click on the "Edit" button. We have a more detailed guide on how to use the file editor in the file manager, which you can find here: How to Use the File Editor in the Nodecraft File Manager.
JSON (.json) Format
The config file WorldGenerator.eco is in JSON format. JSON files have very specific syntax rules, and the overall format, quote marks, brackets, and commas are required. The text editor in the Nodecraft file manager will warn you if the syntax is violated, and provide indicators for where the issue is possibly located.
The guide mentioned above also has a section on editing JSON files (at the very end of the guide). It shows what those syntax warning indicators look like. A link to that same guide again is located here: How to Use the File Editor in the Nodecraft File Manager.
Editing the WorldGenerator.eco Config File
To change the size of the world being generated, look for the section labelled "Dimensions", and then change the numbers after the values "x" and "y". In the screenshot below, these are lines 5 through 6, and they are marked with two red arrows in the screenshot.
When choosing the world size, there are two important rules that have to be followed:
The "x" and "y" values need to be the same number (it has to be a square)
The number has to be divisible by 4.
Also, please be careful of the JSON format when editing the "x" and "y" values:
When editing the "x" value, the line needs to end with a comma, directly following the size value.
The "y" value does not need a comma at the end.
Remove Existing Worlds
If there's an existing world on the server, it will skip creating a new world, and the game will simply keep loading the existing world over and over.
The settings in the WorldGenerator.eco config file are only used when it creates an entirely new world. So, you will need to remove the existing world (by deleting, moving, or downloading the files) so the the server does not detect an existing world. It will then generate a whole new world on startup instead.
World Files are Stored in the Storage Folder
The files for the world are stored in the folder Storage, located in the main directory.
Inside, you will frequently see a the files Game.db, Game.eco, and a folder called Backups. Delete or move all of these files in the Storage folder so that the game will not detect an existing world. It will then create a new one on next server startup.
If you want to keep the original world, you can move or download the files mentioned above, or simply rename them (like adding .old to the end of the file name). If the game cannot find the exact filenames Game.db and Game.ecoin the folder, it will create a new world. Renaming them is effectively the same as deleting them.
We have a guide on how to copy, move, and rename files in the file manager, which is located here: Copying, Moving, and Renaming Files in the File Manager .
Restart the Server
After the size of the world has been changed (and any existing worlds removed), restart the server and it will create a whole new world of your chosen size!