Players may encounter an error on their Project Zomboid servers that causes them to be kicked, displaying a 'Malformed Packet' error. This error originates from the server's anti-cheat protections and can be resolved by disabling the associated anti-cheat settings. By solving the error, players can stop worrying about impending disconnections and even explore various mods that may not be available with anti-cheat enabled.
Note: Disabling anti-cheat can allow cheaters to play on the server; ensure the server is secured with a password or whitelist before disabling anti-cheat.
1. Log in to the BisectHosting Starbase panel.
2. Stop the server.
3. Go to the Files tab.
4. Find the following directory: /home/container/.cache/server .
5. Open the [SaveName].ini file.
6. Disable all anti-cheat protections by changing their values to false.
Note: Specific protections related to the error number can be disabled; however, it is safer to disable all of them to prevent the issue from recurring.
7. Press the Save button.
8. Start the server.