Revision history

v1.0: January 2024 — First edition.
v2.0: September 2026 — Full rewrite. Added how to tell Java Edition from Bedrock Edition, agreeing to the EULA, the port number in the connection address, the main settings, plugins and mods, backups, and troubleshooting.

This guide is for Java Edition

This guide covers Minecraft Java Edition servers.
If you play on a smartphone, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, or the Windows app from the Microsoft Store, you are on Bedrock Edition, which is a different product with a different procedure. Java Edition and Bedrock Edition servers cannot connect to each other either.

If you are not sure which one you have, the launcher will tell you. If you open Minecraft Launcher and start the game from the entry labelled “Java Edition”, you are on Java Edition. If the game is installed as a Microsoft Store app, or the title screen says “Bedrock”, you are on Bedrock Edition.

What you have	Where to go
Java Edition (PC, the Java Edition entry in Minecraft Launcher)	Carry on with this page.
Bedrock Edition (phone, Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, Windows app)	Minecraft Bedrock Edition - Initial Setup / Minecraft dedicated servers
You want to run a whole Forge modpack	Setting Up a Minecraft Modpack Server / Minecraft: Forge Modpack dedicated servers

If you realise after ordering that you picked the wrong server, please contact us through a support ticket as soon as you can.

From order to a working server

Once your payment goes through, the server is built automatically. There is nothing for you to do.

Your order and payment complete.
The server is built automatically. This normally finishes within a few minutes.
When the build finishes, a confirmation is sent to your registered email address.

While the build is running, the game panel shows almost no information. Give it a few minutes and the normal screen appears.

Log in to the game panel

Everything you do with the server happens in the game panel, which runs in your browser.

Use the details in your order confirmation email to log in to the game panel.
After logging in, select your Minecraft server.
The left-hand menu takes you to Console, Files, Backups, Network, Schedules, Startup and so on.

The game panel can display in English, Japanese, Korean, Chinese and other languages. Change it in your account settings after logging in.

Agree to the Minecraft EULA

The first time you start the server, it stops again on its own. This is not a fault.
A Minecraft server will not run until you have agreed to the Minecraft EULA. You only need to do this once.

The first time you press Start, this line appears in the console and the server stops.

The console on the first start. The server asks you to agree to the EULA and then stops.

Right after it stops you will also see lines such as Detected server process in a crashed state! and Exit code: 0. The wording is alarming, but nothing is broken. You simply have not agreed yet. Follow either method below and the server starts normally.

Method 1: press the accept button on screen (recommended)

If you start the server with the Console screen open, a dialog titled “Accept Minecraft® EULA” appears after a short while. Read it, then press “I Accept”. Once you accept, the server carries straight on with starting up — there is nothing else to do.

The agreement dialog that appears automatically when you start the server. Read it and press "I Accept". This dialog is in English whatever language the panel is set to.

This dialog is shown in English even when the panel is set to another language. If you press “Cancel”, nothing is agreed and the server stays stopped.

Method 2: edit eula.txt

If you closed the dialog, or you would rather not work from the Console screen, you can agree by editing the file directly.

Press Start once in the game panel.
The console shows You need to agree to the EULA... and the server stops.
Open Files in the left-hand menu.
Click eula.txt in the home directory to open it.
Change eula=false to eula=true and press Save Content.
Press Start again.

Do not skip step 1. eula.txt is created by that first start. On a server that has never been started, eula.txt is not in the file list at all.

The Files screen after one start. eula.txt has been created in the home directory.

What you are agreeing to is the Mojang / Microsoft end user licence agreement. You can read it at the Minecraft EULA. The agreement is made by the person running the server, so we do not accept it on your behalf.

Start the server

Once you have agreed to the EULA, press Start on the Console screen of the game panel.

When this line appears in the console, start-up is finished and players can join.

The sign that start-up finished: Done (…s)! For help, type "help".

The first start can take several minutes, because the world has to be generated. It may look as though nothing is happening — please wait. Preparing spawn area is normal progress.

To stop the server, press Stop, or type stop in the console. Stop the server before editing files — it is safer that way.

Join the server

The connection address is shown at the top of the game panel, in the form IP address:port number (for example 203.0.113.10:30000).

The connection address at the top of the game panel. Copy it including the port number. The numbers shown are an example.

Do not leave the port number out.
Minecraft’s default port is 25565, but we assign each server its own port number. If you enter the address on its own, the game tries to reach port 25565 and you will not get in. Copy the IP address:port number shown in the panel exactly as it is.

Start Minecraft (Java Edition) and open Multiplayer from the title screen.
Press Add Server.
In “Server Address”, enter the address from the panel including the port number.
Save it, then pick the server from the list and join.

When you pass the address to friends, include the port number there too.

Change the main settings

Server settings such as difficulty and player count live in server.properties, in the home directory on the Files screen. That file is created by the first start.

Setting	What it does	Default
`difficulty`	Difficulty (`peaceful` / `easy` / `normal` / `hard`)	`easy`
`gamemode`	Game mode (`survival` / `creative` / `adventure` / `spectator`)	`survival`
`max-players`	How many people can play at once	`20`
`white-list`	Whitelist (only approved players can join)	`false`
`pvp`	Whether players can attack each other	`true`
`motd`	The description shown in the server list	`A Minecraft Server`
`view-distance`	Render distance (higher is heavier on the server)	`10`
`level-seed`	World seed (random when left empty)	(empty)
`spawn-protection`	Protected radius around the spawn point	`16`

Please do not change server-port. It already holds the port number we assigned. Changing it can stop the server from starting, or stop players from joining.

Make setting changes with the server stopped, then start it again. If you edit while it is running, the file can be overwritten with the old contents when the server shuts down.
To use the whitelist, set white-list=true and then run whitelist add <player name> from the console.

To start a fresh world, delete (or rename) the world folder and start the server; a new world is generated. The old world cannot be brought back, so take a backup first.

Plugins and mods

This product runs Paper (compatible with Bukkit and Spigot), so you can add plugins directly. The procedures have their own articles.

Forge and Fabric mods do not run on Paper as they are. To run a whole modpack, please use our separate Minecraft: Forge Modpack product (see Setting Up a Minecraft Modpack Server).

After adding a plugin, check whether players need the same thing installed. Most plugins are server-side only, but a few need something on the player’s machine as well.

Backups

Backups are something you create yourself, and none are taken by default. If your world matters to you, it is worth setting this up early.

Procedure for setting a regular schedule on a game server — fix a day and time and backups are taken automatically
Restoring from a backup — how to put one back, and what to watch for

Taking one by hand before a big change — adding plugins, changing settings, regenerating the world — is worth the minute it costs.

If something does not go to plan

Symptom	What to check
I press Start and it stops on its own	You may not have agreed to the EULA yet. See Agree to the Minecraft EULA. `Exit code: 0` and `crashed state` do not mean anything is broken.
I cannot join / the server is not found	Check that you entered the port number too. See Join the server.
“Server is out of date” or a version mismatch	Match the server to the version of the game you are running. Set the server side in `MINECRAFT_VERSION` on the Startup screen, then restart.
Start-up is taking a long time	The first start generates the world and takes a few minutes. `Preparing spawn area` is normal progress.
I cannot join from Bedrock Edition	Java Edition and Bedrock Edition cannot connect to each other. Check which edition you have — see This guide is for Java Edition.
The server stopped starting after I added a plugin	Remove the plugin you added last from the `plugins` folder and try again. It may not match your server version.
It will not start whatever I do	See Reinstallation procedure when the server fails to start. Take a backup before reinstalling.

If the problem persists, send us the message shown in the console exactly as it appears. We support English, Japanese, Korean and Chinese.

Next steps

Install a plugin — plugin management on Paper
Logging into the Game Panel and Feature Overview — how the panel works
Procedure for setting a regular schedule on a game server — automatic restarts and backups
Restoring from a backup
Minecraft dedicated servers — plans and pricing