The short answer
A BeamMP server sets its map with one line in ServerConfig.toml:
Map = "/levels/NAME/info.json", where NAME is the map's folder name, not the
name shown in the game. West Coast, USA is west_coast_usa, Italy is
italy, the grid map is gridmap_v2. Change the line, restart the server.
Custom maps work the same way once their .zip is in Resources/Client.
Key points
- BeamNG.drive ships 14 maps a BeamMP server can use with no download.
- Folder names are lowercase with underscores and case-sensitive.
Italyis notitaly. - Keep the leading slash and the
/info.jsonending. Both are part of the value. - The server does not validate the Map line. A typo shows up as "map not found" when someone joins.
- One server, one map. Two maps means two servers.
gridmapandcliffare legacy. Old guides still list them.
The BeamMP map code table
These are the maps every copy of BeamNG.drive includes, as listed in the official BeamMP server documentation, with the display name you see in the game, the folder name the server needs and the full value for the Map line. Terrain sizes are from BeamNG's own documentation.
| Map | Folder name | Map value | Size | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grid, Small, Pure | gridmap_v2 | /levels/gridmap_v2/info.json | Small | The default on a fresh server. Flat test grid, ramps and obstacles. Fastest to load. |
| West Coast, USA | west_coast_usa | /levels/west_coast_usa/info.json | 2048 x 2048 | City, highway, docks and hills. The all-rounder for freeroam servers. |
| East Coast, USA | east_coast_usa | /levels/east_coast_usa/info.json | 2048 x 2048 | Rural roads, small towns, a long highway loop. |
| Italy | italy | /levels/italy/info.json | 4096 x 4096 | The largest map. Coastal roads, villages, an airfield. Longest to load. |
| Utah, USA | utah | /levels/utah/info.json | 2048 x 2048 | Desert canyons and dirt roads. Off-road and rally. |
| Johnson Valley | johnson_valley | /levels/johnson_valley/info.json | 3072 x 3072 | Open desert off-road. The second largest map and heavy on performance. |
| Jungle Rock Island | jungle_rock_island | /levels/jungle_rock_island/info.json | 2048 x 2048 | Tropical island with a rally stage and a volcano road. |
| Small Island, USA | small_island | /levels/small_island/info.json | 1024 x 1024 | Compact island loop. Light on performance. |
| Industrial Site | industrial | /levels/industrial/info.json | 1024 x 1024 | Factory yard, drift course and a small track. Crash and drift events. |
| Hirochi Raceway | hirochi_raceway | /levels/hirochi_raceway/info.json | 1536 x 1536 | Circuit with several layouts and a drag strip. Racing servers. |
| Automation Test Track | automation_test_track | /levels/automation_test_track/info.json | 2048 x 2048 | Test track with highway and country sections. Racing and testing. |
| Driver Training | driver_training | /levels/driver_training/info.json | 1024 x 1024 | Listed in BeamNG as the ETK Driver Experience Center. Skid pads and handling courses. |
| Derby Arenas | derby | /levels/derby/info.json | 1024 x 1024 | Several arenas and a figure-eight. Demolition derby servers. |
| Small Grid | smallgrid | /levels/smallgrid/info.json | Tiny | A bare grid with nothing on it. Mod testing only. |
| Grid Map (legacy) | gridmap | /levels/gridmap/info.json | 1024 x 1024 | Replaced by gridmap_v2. Still quoted in old guides; does not load on a current game. |
| Cliff (legacy) | cliff | /levels/cliff/info.json | 2048 x 2048 | Removed from BeamNG.drive. Some host knowledge bases still list it. |
You will also see port, glow_city and a Showroom level in old lists and
in the game's own files. They are not maps a BeamMP server should be pointed at, and the
BeamMP documentation does not list them. If a guide tells you to use one, it is out of date.
How the Map line works
The server loads a map from a path inside the game's level files, and that path has a fixed shape. Every working value looks like this:
Map = "/levels/west_coast_usa/info.json"- The leading slash
- Part of the value.
levels/west_coast_usa/info.jsonwithout it is a different string and will not load. levels, plural- Not
level, notmaps. It is the folder BeamNG.drive keeps every map in. - The folder name
- Lowercase with underscores for the vanilla maps, and whatever the mod author used for a custom map. Case-sensitive either way.
/info.jsonat the end- The file the server reads to find the map. Leave it off and the path points at a folder, which fails.
- Quotes
- The value sits inside straight double quotes in
ServerConfig.toml. A hosting panel field takes the value without them.
The server does not check the Map line when it starts. A typo starts fine and looks healthy in the log; the first player to join is told the map was not found and dropped. Copy the value from the table rather than typing it.
How to change the map
-
Stop the server
The map is read at start-up. Changing the line while the server runs does nothing until the next restart, and stopping first means nobody is mid-drive when it changes.
-
Set the Map line
At home, open
ServerConfig.tomlin a text editor and replace the value on theMapline with one from the table. On a hosted server, open the server settings in the control panel and change the Map field. Some panels offer a dropdown of the 14 vanilla maps; a custom map is typed in by hand. -
Save and start
Start the server and join. If you land on the new map, done. If the launcher says the map was not found, see below.
Everyone on the server is on the same map, so a change moves the whole lobby. Players already in the game are disconnected by the restart and rejoin onto the new map.
Custom maps
A modded map is a client mod with one extra step. The .zip goes in Resources/Client
like any other mod, so players download it on their first join, and then the server has to be
told to load it.
-
Upload the map .zip to Resources/Client
As downloaded, not extracted. The mods guide covers the upload, pack sizes and what to do when a mod breaks joins.
-
Find the folder name inside the zip
Open the .zip on your PC without extracting it and look in its
levelsfolder. There should be exactly one folder in there, for examplemyawesomedriftmap2021. That name, spelled exactly as it is, is the map name. -
Set the Map line to that name
Map = "/levels/myawesomedriftmap2021/info.json" -
Restart
Players download the map when they join and load straight into it. Maps are the largest mods you will host, so expect the first join to take a while on a big one.
If the folder name inside the zip is not obvious, or the map still will not load, the official
fallback is to install the map in singleplayer, enter it, open the console with the tilde key
and run print(getMissionFilename()). It prints the exact name the game uses. Some
map zips are packed with an unusual layout; if there is no levels folder at the top
of the archive, the map was not packaged for this and needs repacking before it will work.
Map not found, check server config
That message comes from the launcher when the server's Map value does not point at a map the server can load. Work down this list; one of them is it.
- Typo or wrong case
West_Coast_USA,westcoastusaandwest coast usaall fail. Copywest_coast_usafrom the table.- Display name instead of folder name
/levels/Italy/info.jsonis wrong;/levels/italy/info.jsonis right. The game's menu name is never the value.- Missing slash or suffix
- The value needs the leading
/and the trailing/info.json. levelinstead oflevels- Easy to miss when typing. The folder is plural.
- Custom map zip not on the server
- The Map line points at a map in
Resources/Clientthat is not there, was extracted, or sits in a subfolder. Put the .zip directly in the folder and restart. - Legacy map
gridmaporclifffrom an old guide. Usegridmap_v2, or pick another map.- Changed without a restart
- The server is still on the previous value. Restart it.
Which map to run
There is no wrong answer and switching costs a restart, but the maps do suit different servers.
- Freeroam and cruising
- West Coast, USA for the mix of city and highway, East Coast, USA for country roads, Italy when you want the longest drives and do not mind the load time.
- Off-road
- Johnson Valley is built for it, Utah is the lighter alternative, Jungle Rock Island adds a rally stage.
- Racing
- Hirochi Raceway for circuits and the drag strip, Automation Test Track for a proper test loop.
- Crashes and derbies
- Derby Arenas, then Industrial Site. Both are small, so they load fast and keep everyone close together.
- Testing mods
- Grid, Small, Pure. Instant load, no scenery to get in the way. Small Grid if you want nothing at all.
- Small friends servers
- A 1024 or 2048 map. Italy and Johnson Valley are large enough that three friends will spend the evening looking for each other.
On a hosted server the map is one field and a restart, so trying three maps in an evening is
normal. The set-up guide explains the rest of
ServerConfig.toml around the Map line.