Download The Minecraft Server
The first step in downloading a Minecraft server is to download the Server.jar file from the Minecraft website.
Optional: If you want an older version, you can find a list of Minecraft versions below. Be sure to click the Server jar on the version you want to make sure you have the Server.jar required for the next step.
Once on the page, click the Download Minecraft server jar link as shown.
Note: You may have a different version number than shown in the picture. This is okay as the latest version of Minecraft is constantly being updated.
Your computer may notify you that the file could be harmful to your computer. This is because any .jar file is treated as harmful when downloading in most browsers and computers. Just click Keep as this is an official Minecraft server .jar file we can trust.
Before we run this .jar file we want to create a folder for it that will hold all of the files. A common practice is to create the server folder on your desktop. To do this, go to your desktop and right click on an open space. Go to New > Folder and click to create a new empty folder.
Once it is clicked it will let you change the name of the folder, so name it something so you know it is your Minecraft Server.
Now return to your Downloads folder the same way we did earlier and right click on the Server.jar to copy it as we will paste it into the new folder we made in the next step.
How To Make A Minecraft Server For Free Without Port Forwarding
If you want to host a Minecraft server without port forwarding, do the following:
- Turn off port forwarding and delete any Minecraft shortcuts
- Create a run.bat file and paste this code:
java -Xmx1024M -Xms512M -jar minecraft_server.jar nogui
- Open your control panel and go to System and Security
- Find IPSEC Service, set it to Manual, and start the device
- Go back to services and find QoS Packet Scheduler
- Set it to Automatic and start the service
- Restart your PC and open Minecraft
How To Setup Minecraft On A Server Running Linux
This section will show you how to create a Minecraft server on a machine running on Ubuntu or CentOS. The minimal operating system requirements are Ubuntu 16.04 or CentOS 7.
Keep in mind that this setup process also requires root SSH access to the server. Hostinger users can find the login credentials in the Server Management area of the hosting account.
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Creating Your Own Minecraft Mods
If you enjoy Minecraft Mods and want to create your own custom mods for use in your own servers, CodaKid has a series of courses that can teach you how to make your own custom creatures, biomes, dimensions, insane explosions and special effects, and more!
Minecraft coding is fun and creative, and teaches you real Java programming with the Eclipse IDE.
Our courses even include messaging and screen share support from live engineers if you ever get stuck, and our courses even come with a two-week free trial!
We also offer private online coding lessons that teach Minecraft Modding, Roblox Game Development, Python, Scratch 3.0, JavaScript, Unity, Unreal Engine, and more.
We hope you enjoyed How to make your own Minecraft Server, the Ultimate Guide. If you enjoyed our Minecraft server tutorial, wed love it if you could share it with friends.
Also for fans of modding, check out this free tutorial called How to install Minecraft Forge. Hope you find it helpful!
If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below! If your server configuration is not working, please make sure to follow this tutorial again and double check your work. You can also write us and ask questions however please keep in mind that we are extremely busy serving customers and we may take a few days to respond.
How To Make A Public Minecraft Server For Free

You can create a public Minecraft server for free using this simple process.
- Open a new text file
- Copy the command java -Xmx1024M -Xms1024M -jar minecraft_server.1.16.4.jar nogui.
- Replace the line minecraft_server.1.16.4 with the server version you downloaded
- Save the text file as run.bat and run it
- Open the file eula.txt
- Open Minecraft, click multiplayer, and enter localhost in the server address field
- Find your internal and external IP addresses
- Port forward and open Minecraft port 25565
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Benefits Of Running Your Own Minecraft Server
So, having reached this point in the article, are you now wondering why on earth youd go through the headache of finding your own server to host Minecraft on?
While I wouldnt blame you for shying off at this point, there are some very positive aspects of Minecraft hosting to think about.
If youve ever played a game and gotten frustrated because the version youre on doesnt have certain mods enabled, it can be frustrating. These plugins might even be readily available, just out of your reach. By hosting your own Minecraft server, you get a free choice of what to install.
Humans are social creatures and while it can be a lot of fun to be with friends, time doesnt always permit. Thankfully the digital world removes distance and Minecraft can be a great way for you to build a small community of your closest friends. Your own world within the world, so to speak.
With hosts that support a large community, rules are often created for a huge blanket effect for the benefit of the majority.If you host your own Minecraft server, you only need to consider rules that will affect your little group. Even better it will be at your pleasure and no one elses.
Creating A Minehut Account
Also Check: What Versions Of Minecraft Are There
Everything Else You Need To Know About Creating A Minecraft Server
There are a few things to know before you run off to create your own persistent online world.
If you want to customize your world, the text file server properties in the Minecraft Server folder can be tweaked to your liking.
If you plan on having friends from outside the house join your server, the code theyll need is your IPv4 plus some extra digits.
To find your IPv4 number, just search what is my IPv4 number? on Google. Each IPv4 number is specific to each computer, so ours will be different to yours.
You should get something like 100.20.511.329 .
Take your IPv4 and add a colon followed by 25565 so you end with something that looks like the following:
100.20.511.329:25565
Your version of the above number is your server address other players will need to enter when joining.
Finally, to allow other players to join you need to forward your router ports to allow access from other parties. YouTuber Voizdev has a great explanation and walkthrough on this should you find yourself a little confused.
Keeping The Server Running
Now that you have your server up, you want it to remain running even after you disconnect from your SSH session. Since you used screen earlier, you can detach from this session by pressing Ctrl + A + D. You should see that youâre back in your original shell:
Run this command to see all of your screen sessions:
Youâll get an output with the ID of your session, which youâll need to resume that session:
OutputThere is a screen on:3626.pts-0.minecraft-22041 Socket in /run/screen/S-root.
To resume your session, pass the -r flag to the screen command and then enter your session ID:
When you are ready to log out of the terminal again, be sure to detach from the session with Ctrl + A + D and then log out.
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Adjust The Settings Of The Minecraft Server
As a server owner, you can make numerous settings for your Minecraft world. This is done primarily via the server.properties file. You can set the number of players , change the difficulty level , enable or disable PvP and make many other modifications. To do this, enter the desired number in the respective line or change the command to true or false.
For an overview of the various settings options, see the article about the server.properties file on the official Minecraft wiki.
Make a statement with your own .gg domain and let the games begin. Register your own .gg domain now with IONOS.
Point A Domain At Your Minecraft Server
Providing players with an easy-to-remember domain name instead of a complicated IP address makes it even easier for people to connect to your Minecraft server.
Its super simple: Update your domains DNS records by adding an A record for your domain , or subdomain , that points to your Minecraft servers IP address.
Note that it can take up to ~24 hours for DNS changes to take effect globally.
If youre not sure how to change DNS records, take a look at this Help article for adding an A record.
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Choose A Location For Your Minecraft Server Files
Before you download the Minecraft server software, choose a location on your PC where youd like to run the server from.
When you first run the server, itll create a few configuration files. Its best to have all these files stored in a dedicated folder.
You could place this folder on your Desktop, in your Documents folder, in your Programs folder, or anywhere else youd like. Its entirely up to you.
What If You Dont Want To Host Your Server At Home

Hosting any kind of server from home means youre exposing your home network to the world.
If youd rather not take that risk, then you can use a hosting provider instead. Youll need to pay a monthly or annual fee, but you wont have to deal with the hassle of managing the server hardware.
A GoDaddy Virtual Private Server is a good fit if youre just getting started. Just keep in mind that youre sharing hardware with other users, so keep an eye on resource usage.
If you need a little more oomph and you want to hook up a lot of players, you might try a dedicated server instead.
Also Check: Minecraft For Free To Play
Writing A Script To Launch The Server
It’s definitely boring to have to remember the command-line options for your server every time you launch it. Luckily, we can write it down in a file and just run that instead.
On Windows
The windows version of a script is called a batch file. Create a text file in the folder where you put the jar as “start.bat”, and then right click it to edit using notepad. Paste the following in:
Double click the file to start your server. You may get a “Class_Not_Found” and ServerGuiConcole error, just ignore these errorsand you should see your “Server Thread/INFO” dialog start the server.
The “pause” command is there to keep the window open so you can read what happened after the server stops.
On macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD
All these systems use a common scripting language called the “POSIX shell script” on the command line. Create a text file in the folder where you put the jar as “start.sh” and write the following in:
#!/bin/shcd"$"exec java -Xms1G -Xmx1G -jar server.jar --nogui
Now save the file. Run chmod a+x start.sh to make it executable. You can now run the file by double-clicking or by running ./start.sh in the folder .
If you want to add a pausing part like the Windows example, remove the exec word, and add a line of read -n 1 -p “Waiting…” to the end. This is useful if you are running the script by double-clicking on the GUI.
On Plan 9
Connecting To Your Minecraft Server
Now lets connect to the server. The very first step is to run our batch file to launch the server.
With the server launched, open your Minecraft launch page and make sure you load the version of Minecraft that matches the jar you downloaded. As of the writing of this article, Minecraft version 1.15 was the latest version and the server that was downloaded. However, if this becomes outdated I can make a new server or simply load up the 1.15 version of Minecraft. It will be a good idea to make a launch version of Minecraft that we can always connect to our server with. To do this you can go to the Installations tab and click the +New button.
Once here, you should name the installation with the server and version number of Minecraft and select the version as the release number your server download is. This is shown below for version 1.15 so make sure you change this to your Minecraft server version. Make sure to click create to finish this installation.
Next find it in your list and click Play to launch Minecraft.
Once Minecraft is launched go to the Multiplayer tab.
Once in the multiplayer tab, click Add Server.
Once this is done you should see your server made and trying to connect. If you have a failed connection, check the ip address you entered as well as the port forwarding settings. If you see a green connection bar with open spots to connect to your server, you can launch in and enjoy playing in your very own custom server!
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Connecting To Your Server
Players can join your server by following these steps:
If you encounter any problems, check if your server is accessible by entering your public IP address into the Minecraft Server Status Checker.
Three Possible Minecraft Server Options At Ionos
Whichever server model you choose, at IONOS youll find various tariffs that differ in terms of the performance offered. Which of these tariffs is suitable for your purposes depends on how large the Minecraft world is and how many players are going to be active on your Minecraft server at the same time. In the following table, we present three possible scenarios for your gaming server including the appropriate rates within the three server models to help you decide.
Rent your Dedicated Server at IONOS to enjoy the world of Minecraft together with friends and acquaintances at any time!
Also Check: How To Play Local Multiplayer On Minecraft
Where To Host Your Server
For your server to be accessible, it needs a place to live.
If youâve downloaded a server and launched it on your computer, your server will only be online for as long as your computer is running it. Turn the computer off , and bye-bye custom Minecraft world.
So you need a computer that will remain online and accessible for the players 24/7.
For this, you can use a generic hosting provider and rent a dedicated server to host your game world.
Once you have remote access to your rented server:
Start the server via the Java command java -Xmx1024M -Xms1024M -jar minecraftserver.1.17.1.jar nogui
Set up your connection parameters, find the IP-address and ports to connect, etc.
While this is a very popular method for setting up your own Minecraft Multiplayer server, we agree that it involves a bit of work.
So letâs look at some other solutions.
Configure Your Minecraft Game Panel
All Hostinger Minecraft plans come with the Game Panel control panel to run the game hassle-free. Here are the steps to set up the control panel and access its dashboard:
Congratulations, your Minecraft server is now up and running. You can start playing different Minecraft versions and mods after creating an instance.
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