Server

Minecraft servers allow players to play online with other people. They may either be run on a hosted Minecraft server service, a dedicated server, a Virtual Private Server or a home machine.

Server installation and configuration
For a full tutorial on setting up a Minecraft server, please read the installation and configuration guide.

General recommendations

 * Setting up a server takes some time, and some technical knowledge. Don't try to set up a server unless you have some basic computer and networking abilities. Your best bet is to look on the internet for a guide on how to set up a server.
 * Hosting and playing on the same machine does not usually matter, unless you have a slow computer.
 * Netbooks and Notebooks don't usually make for good server machines. They typically have lower end hardware in comparison to desktops and dedicated server machines.
 * Hosting a server with many players in a wireless network (WLAN and especially WWAN) is not recommended. Use wired network instead, such as Ethernet.
 * If you decide you don't want to host, but still want to play online, check out the public server options in the Minecraft servers area of the Minecraft forum.
 * If you still want to manage a server, but not from home, check out the Minecraft server hosting area of the Minecraft forum or other websites. One would usually expect to pay monthly for this type of server, however there are rarely some hosts that provide free hosting.

Server requirements

 * The more memory that your server has, the better. It is recommended to have at least 3 GB. That way, plenty of RAM is left over for the operating system, and you have the possibility of allocating more to the Minecraft server.
 * Minecraft servers, as of 1.1.0, can use multiple cores, so now they will not sit idle.
 * You can use http://CanIHostAMinecraftServer.com to get a rough idea how many players you can host.

Here is a simple recommendation to help you get started and/or help decide which hosting option is best for you:
 * Note that these requirements are for the server only you will need to allocate more resources to the OS!

Running a LAN Party type Server (since 1.3.2)

 * Minimum requirements: (2-6 Players)
 * CPU : Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon 64 x2
 * RAM : 3GB
 * HDD : At least 200MB for world saves
 * Be sure to have at least a low-ping internet connection. (Such as DSL or Cable)

Running a Dedicated type Server

 * Minimum requirements: (2-10 Players)
 * CPU : Intel Pentium 4 2.0 GHz or AMD Athlon XP 2000+ and better
 * RAM : 1GB for UNIX, 2GB for Windows
 * HDD : 2GB empty space (5GB if you are doing frequent backups)
 * WAN : 4Mbps Upload, 2Mbps Download (Minecraft can barely, but still run on a ~0.5Mbps Upload connection.)
 * Please note that Windows OSes uses more resource than UNIX-based OSes, be sure to allocate resources accordingly.


 * Medium requirements: (10-18 Players)
 * CPU : Intel Core 2 Duo or AMD Athlon 64 x2 and better
 * RAM : 2GB for UNIX, 3GB for Windows
 * HDD : 10GB empty space
 * WAN : 8Mbps Upload, 4Mbps Download


 * Recommended requirements: (18-24 Players)
 * CPU : Intel Nehalem-Based CPUs or AMD K10-Based CPUs and better
 * RAM : 3GB for UNIX, 4GB for Windows
 * HDD : 15GB empty space
 * WAN : 16Mbps Upload, 8Mbps Download


 * Optimal requirements: (45+ Players)
 * CPU : Intel Nehalem-Based CPUs or AMD K10-Based CPUs and better
 * RAM : 4GB+
 * SSD : 25GB empty space
 * WAN : 50Mbps Upload, 30Mbps Download

Running a Server-grade Server

 * Minimum requirements: (160+ Players)
 * CPU : Intel Xeon 4 Cores or AMD Opteron 4 Cores and better
 * RAM : 16GB+
 * SSD : 120GB empty space
 * HDD : 1TB backup drive
 * WAN : 100Mbps Upload, 100Mbps Download


 * Recommended requirements: (300+ Players)
 * CPU : Intel Xeon 6 Cores or AMD Opteron 6 Cores and better (better is recommended)
 * RAM : 32GB+
 * SSD : 350GB empty space
 * HDD : 2TB backup drive
 * WAN : 100Mbps Upload, 100Mbps Download


 * Optimal requirements: (750+ Players)
 * CPU : Intel Xeon 8 Cores or AMD Opteron 6 Cores and better
 * RAM : 64GB+
 * SSD : 500GB empty space
 * HDD : 4TB backup drive /w RAID 1
 * WAN : 1Gbps Upload, 1Gbps Download
 * RAMDisks can considerably accelerate world saving/loading in a very populated server.

Server commands
The server commands page has a list of useful commands.

See the known bugs page for known single/multiplayer issues.

Special note: Atheros and Realtek network adapters are known to not work well with servers in general. If you experience a total loss of internet (requiring a reboot), or constant disconnects, check and see if you have either brand of network adapter installed. If you do, you can try updating the driver for the device directly from the manufacturer. If a driver update does not fix the issue, the general solution is to buy a new adapter (anything from Intel is recommended as a replacement).

Types of servers
There are numerous kinds of Minecraft servers, usually distinguished by the level used in them or how players in them are supposed to behave. Many special types of servers rely on the use of map editors.

General
Some servers exist where not only survival or PvP or creative exist but all three! They are similar to each individual type of server, as they presses the perks (or ideas) of each.

Survival
Standard servers usually have relatively regular maps, allowing players to build or destroy whatever they want (though griefing is often against these servers' rules.) No destroying villages.

Creative
Usually a server that allows players to make whatever they want, more focused on building and griefing is not allowed. Unfortunately griefing is very easy to be done on creative servers. (This often is dealt with by protecting builds via systems like WorldGuard.)

Roleplay
A server, usually with a normal map, where players are encouraged to take on roles like Mayor, Blacksmith, Cook, and act as them in the game. These servers often attempt to simulate settlement in some foreign land or similar, and require the gathering of resources to build structures. There are generally factions that can be made in these servers.

PvP
A server where players are encouraged to fight versus other players (thus the appellation PvP, meaning Player versus Player). Stealing is sometimes allowed. Some servers do not have pvp.

Hardcore PvP
A type of server which is like PvP, but fully allows griefing. Also, stealing is fully allowed. So Players can blow up people's homes and steal their items and gear. Users are usually not allowed to report / spam that they were griefed, as it may result in a ban or mute.

Prison
In prison servers, there typically is no wilderness, and players must earn money in order to advance in the prison. There are servers that allow you to gain freedom as you advance in the ranks of the prison, in which you can gain or earn your freedom or there are other servers from which you can escape and be free. Sometimes PvP is allowed in this type of gameplay.

Faction
Faction Servers are like a clan or guild server, create your Faction or join one and fight or raid other factions. Usually griefing is allowed, but some servers do not allow it. The leader of the faction is able to choose the name of the faction. The moderator of the faction is able to claim land for the faction.

Challenge
Usually these servers have some sort of a challenge, such as surviving underwater, living on a small island with few materials, or a block in the sky (SkyBlock).

Economy
These servers often use a plugin that allows you to have a type of currency. You can usually buy and sell and make your own shops. Many servers also allow you to buy land plots or even ranks in the server.

City
A server that has a city-like region where you make a house on your own protected land. Mostly these servers have in some area a free place where anyone can build/take. The main point is usually to try to get many natural resources so you can have the best house and possibly rank up. iConomy is a typical plugin on these servers.

Zombie
These types of servers provide endless battles of Zombies allowing you to either fight along side with friends or fight others for supplies. Some servers have leaderboards and allow ranking up to unlock new classes. To sum it up they put survival and zombies together.

Delete player
If you want to delete a player from the game, you can remove the player's .dat file. Navigate to the Minecraft server directory, open the world folder, open the player's folder, and delete the PLAYERNAME.dat file. In Minecraft version 1.2.4, this folder is at "minecraft\world\players", where "minecraft" is the folder where minecraft was installed on the server. This will cause the player to start over at the spawn point with no inventory. The player's changes to the world will be untouched, along with any inventory stored in chests. This will not ban the player that has been deleted.

Ban player
If you want to ban a player from playing on your server, edit the minecraft\banned-ips.txt", where "minecraft" is the folder where minecraft was installed on the server and add the user you want to ban to this banned-ips.txt file. Bans an IP address from the server, the full IP address must be specified; wildcards are not valid. Players who are banned through this method will see "Your IP address is banned from this server!" when attempting to connect.  Alternatively an operator can use the "ban-ip" command via "ban-ip ipaddress" where "ipaddress" is the IP address of the user you wish to ban.  This can be undone via the operator issuing the "pardon-ip ipaddress" command or editing the server's banned-ips.txt file

Edit player
If you don't want to delete a player completely, but want to remove something from him or move him to a different spot, or even give him an enchanted item, you can edit the PLAYERNAME.dat file with NBTedit similar to how you would a level save. (Only the player needs to be offline. No server restart needed.)

Creating backups
Enter save-all into the console or /save-all in Minecraft (as a server op). Enter save-off into the console or /save-off in Minecraft (as a server op). Copy the world folder to create the backup. DO NOT MOVE IT! (No server restart needed) Enter save-on into the console or /save-on in Minecraft (as a server op).

Resetting the Nether or the End
Ensure there are no players in that dimension, stop the server. Delete the "DIM-1" folder to reset The Nether, delete the "DIM1" folder to reset The End. Any builds inside those dimensions will be lost, the Ender Dragon will also reappear for The End. Restart the server.

Setting the server's texture pack
You can set a default texture pack for your server and the client will download it and use it for your server. (Please note: the client can turn off the texture pack)
 * 1) Choose a texture pack.
 * 2) Upload the texture pack to Dropbox, or similar. The important thing is that you can have a DIRECT link to the .zip file.
 * 3) Set the file to public. (at least on dropbox)
 * 4) Open your server.properties file.
 * 5) Find   and edit it like this:  . For example:
 * 6) Restart the server & log on to check the texture pack

Death messages
Death messages are broadcast to everyone on the server upon a player's death. These messages relate to how the player died and are intended to be humorous. Death messages were added in Beta 1.8 Pre-release.

Drowning
 * [player] drowned

Falling
 * [player] hit the ground too hard

Player versus Player (PvP)
 * [victim] was slain by [killer]
 * [victim] was shot by [killer] Only happens for kills using a bow
 * [victim] was killed by [killer] Only happens for kills using a splash potion

Void
 * [player] fell out of the world

Lava
 * [player] tried to swim in lava

Fire Block
 * [player] went up in flames

Fire Effect
 * [player] burned to death

Explosion including the attacks of Creepers, Ghasts and Withers
 * [player] blew up

Hostile Mob
 * [victim] was slain by [mob]
 * [victim] was shot by [mob]
 * [victim] was fireballed by [mob] Only caused by Blazes and Ghasts
 * [victim] was killed by [mob] Only caused by Witches

Potion of Harming
 * [player] was killed by magic When shot from a dispenser or drunk

Suffocation
 * [player] suffocated in a wall

Cactus
 * [player] was pricked to death

Starvation
 * [player] starved to death

Dispenser when using arrows (previously [player] was shot by Herobrine) (replaced in Minecraft 1.0)
 * [player] was shot by arrow

Other (also caused by /kill command) Ouch. That looks like it hurt.
 * [player] fell out of the world

Wither effect
 * [player] withered away

Unused This message is rarely used since snowballs, chicken eggs and ender pearls do not cause any damage to players, it will only hit them.
 * [victim] was pummeled by [killer] Happens when killed by a Snowball, a Chicken Egg or an Ender Pearl

Anvil
 * [player] was squashed by a falling anvil

Renting a server
While you can build your own server, sometimes renting a server can be a better option if your Internet or computer can't handle the amount of players you want on the server. You can search for hosts on the Internet, or find them in the Minecraft Server Hosting section of the Minecraft Forums or Similar websites. Avoid sites that don't have good reputation or look suspicious, as this can lead to hackers and griefers that are hard to deal with.