DarkRP Server Troubleshooting: Why Won't It Start?
If you already know how to set up DarkRP and just need the step-by-step, see our setup guide. This page is different: it's what to do when something that used to work stops working, organised by what you're actually seeing in the console, sourced from the same crash signatures our own panel's Crash Doctor recognises automatically on a live DarkRP server.
Server won't start at all
Nothing loads, or it silently falls back to sandbox
Server starts but loads Sandbox instead of DarkRP
Why: The gamemode folder isn't named exactly "darkrp" (lowercase), or the +gamemode darkrp startup parameter isn't set. GMod falls back to the default gamemode silently rather than erroring, which is why this one is easy to miss.
Fix: Check the folder name under garrysmod/gamemodes/ is exactly darkrp, all lowercase. Then confirm gamemode darkrp is set in your startup parameters or server.cfg. Restart and check the console: it names the loaded gamemode on boot.
DarkRP loads but every job/config option is missing
Why: darkrpmodification isn't installed. DarkRP itself only provides the framework: jobs, shipments, and settings all live in the separate darkrpmodification addon. Without it, DarkRP runs with nothing configured.
Fix: Install darkrpmodification through the Mod Manager the same way you installed DarkRP, then restart.
Address already in use / Failed to bind to port
Why: Another process, usually a previous server instance that didn't shut down cleanly, is still holding the port.
Fix: Restart the server from your panel rather than trying to start a second instance. A clean restart releases the port before rebinding.
Server starts, then crashes within seconds
It boots, then dies almost immediately
attempt to index/call a nil value (in the console log)
Why: An addon tried to use something that doesn't exist: a missing global, an undeclared variable, or a function from a dependency that isn't installed. This is the single most common DarkRP crash signature.
Fix: The console names the file and line. If the file is inside a specific addon's folder, disable that addon and restart. If it's inside darkrpmodification itself, check jobs.lua and shared.lua for a stray character or an incomplete edit: a single syntax error in either file can take down the whole gamemode.
Couldn't include file / tried to access a file that doesn't exist
Why: An addon is trying to load a Lua file that isn't actually on the server, usually a half-uploaded addon, a missing dependency the addon needs but doesn't declare, or a broken Workshop download.
Fix: Re-install the addon from scratch rather than patching it: a half-uploaded addon is often missing more than the one file named in the error. If it came from Workshop, re-validate your Workshop content first, it may just not have finished downloading.
stack overflow / C stack overflow / server hangs then dies
Why: An addon has recursed or looped without a stopping condition, and the server ran out of call-stack space. This is a bug in the addon's own code, not something a config change fixes.
Fix: Disable the addon that was loading right before the crash (check what you installed or updated most recently). If you wrote the addon yourself, look for a function calling itself without a base case, or a hook that triggers the same hook again.
Workshop item failed to download
Why: A Workshop addon in your collection couldn't be fetched, either the item was removed/made private by its author, or Steam had a temporary outage during your server's boot.
Fix: Re-validate your Workshop content from the panel. If one specific item keeps failing, check it still exists and is public on the Workshop, then remove it from your collection if it doesn't.
Server runs, but something is visibly broken
It's up, players can join, but it's not right
Players see ERROR models, or pink and black checkered textures
Why: Missing Workshop content on the player's end, not a server problem. The server has the addon; the connecting player's game doesn't.
Fix: Confirm your Workshop collection ID is set in your startup parameters (so it auto-downloads for joining players), or add resource.AddWorkshop calls for each addon in a server-side autorun script. Ask an affected player to verify the content actually downloaded in their GMod addons list before assuming it's still broken.
DarkRP loads but jobs list is empty or incomplete
Why: A Lua syntax error inside jobs.lua. A single mistake anywhere in the file (a missing comma, an unclosed bracket) silently prevents every job below it, sometimes every job in the file, from registering.
Fix: Open jobs.lua in the Browser IDE and check the console for the exact line number the error names. Fix that line specifically rather than rewriting the file: the syntax error is almost always small.
The server ran fine for hours, then crashed with no obvious cause
Why: Very often RAM. GMod servers grow their memory footprint as more players connect and more entities exist in the world; a server sized for 10 players can genuinely run out of RAM at 25, especially with a heavy addon list.
Fix: Check your panel's memory graph around the crash time. If it climbs steadily to the plan ceiling before the crash, that's your answer: reduce active addons, or move to a plan with more RAM. If memory looks flat and normal, the crash is more likely one of the Lua error classes above; recheck the console log from just before the crash.
You don't have to diagnose this by hand
Every Zeros Host server has Crash Doctor built into the panel: after a crash, it reads the crash reason and recent console log, matches it against known error patterns like the ones above, and names the likely cause with a one-click fix, disable the addon, restart, or re-validate Workshop content. It's the same matching logic this page is built from, running automatically on your actual server instead of you reading console output line by line.
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Start your free DarkRP server →Frequently asked questions
My console shows a Lua error but the server is still running. Do I need to fix it?
Depends on what the error touches. If it's from an addon initialising (common right after installing something new) and the server is otherwise working normally, it may just be that one addon failing to load its own feature, not the whole server. If the same error repeats every few seconds, or players report a specific feature broken, treat it as real and disable the addon named in the error.
How do I know which addon is causing a crash?
The console log names it directly in almost every case: Lua errors include the file path, which usually starts with the addon's own folder name (addons/<addon-name>/lua/...). If you're not sure, Zeros Host's Crash Doctor reads the crash automatically and tells you the addon by name, with a one-click disable.
I disabled the addon the error named but the server still won't start. Why?
Two common reasons: another addon depends on the one you disabled (check for further errors after restarting, they'll name the next broken dependency), or the error wasn't actually about the addon you disabled: some error messages reference a Lua file path that doesn't obviously match the addon folder name. Read the full path, not just the first word after 'addons/'.
Do I need to restart every time I install an addon?
Yes. GMod loads addons at server start; installing one while the server is running does not add it to the live session. Install, then restart, then check the console before assuming it worked.
Is a crash on startup different from a crash during play?
Usually yes, and it's a useful signal. A crash that happens every time on startup, before any players connect, is almost always a config or addon-loading problem: fixed once, stays fixed. A crash that happens after players have been on for a while is more often a runaway script, a memory ceiling, or something a specific player action triggers: harder to reproduce, worth checking the RAM graph in your panel first.