How to Add Mods to Your Left 4 Dead 2 Server

Plugins on a Left 4 Dead 2 server run through Metamod:Source and SourceMod. You need both: Metamod:Source hooks into the Source Engine, and SourceMod builds on top of it to provide the plugin environment and the admin features.

Important

Your server runs on Linux. Always download the Linux package (.tar.gz) of Metamod:Source and SourceMod — the .zip package is the Windows build and will not work.

Note

Your players do not have to install anything. Plugins are executed server-side only, no downloads are required on the player's side.

Install Metamod:Source

Download Metamod:Source
Download the current stable version of Metamod:Source for Left 4 Dead 2 as a Linux package (.tar.gz).
Stop the server
Stop your server via the dashboard.
Connect via SFTP
Connect to your server via SFTP.
Upload the files
Extract the archive and upload the addons folder it contains to the following directory:
```
/left4dead2/
```
Afterwards the folder /left4dead2/addons/metamod/ exists.
Start the server
Start your server and check in the server console with meta version whether Metamod:Source was loaded.

Note

You do not have to create your own metamod.vdf for Left 4 Dead 2 — the matching file is already part of the package. According to the Metamod documentation a self-made VDF file is only required for Left 4 Dead 1 and third-party mods.

Install SourceMod

Download SourceMod
Download the current stable version of SourceMod (currently the 1.12 branch) as a Linux package (.tar.gz).
Stop the server
Stop your server via the dashboard.
Upload the files
Extract the archive and upload the addons and cfg folders it contains via SFTP to the following directory:
```
/left4dead2/
```
Existing folders are merged, not replaced. Afterwards the folder /left4dead2/addons/sourcemod/ exists.
Start the server
Start your server and check in the server console with sm version whether SourceMod was loaded.

Install plugins

Download the plugin
Download the plugin you want. Ready-to-use plugins come as a .smx file.
Stop the server
Stop your server via the dashboard.
Upload the plugin
Upload the .smx file via SFTP to the following directory:
```
/left4dead2/addons/sourcemod/plugins/
```
Start the server
Start your server and check with sm plugins list whether the plugin was loaded.

Folder structure at a glance

/left4dead2/addons/metamod/
/left4dead2/addons/sourcemod/
/left4dead2/addons/sourcemod/plugins/     <- .smx plugin files
/left4dead2/addons/sourcemod/configs/     <- configurations, e.g. admin lists
/left4dead2/cfg/                          <- server.cfg and other configurations

Verify the installation

Enter the following commands in the server console:

Command	Description
`meta version`	Show the Metamod:Source version
`meta list`	Show the extensions loaded by Metamod
`sm version`	Show the SourceMod version
`sm plugins list`	Show the loaded SourceMod plugins

Warning

If the server answers one of these commands with Unknown command, that component was not loaded. In that case check whether you used the Linux package and whether the folders really are located under /left4dead2/addons/.

Warning

Always stop your server before uploading files. After a game update Metamod:Source, SourceMod and individual plugins can become incompatible — check whether updates are available in that case.

Tip

To learn how to give yourself admin rights with SourceMod afterwards, see Add Admin.

How to Add Mods to Your Left 4 Dead 2 Server ​

Install Metamod:Source ​

Install SourceMod ​

Install plugins ​

Folder structure at a glance ​