I recently wrote this in attempt to help those who might need advice on running a server. It doesn't give advice on how to start a server, but it does give some real knowledge on how to be an admin and leader.
There are plenty of guides on how to start your server. It’s fairly basic: know what you want, have money, do it! And, some day I may even make my own guide for you all, because it is important information. However, when I was first starting my server I realized there weren’t any guides to on how to be a good admin. There wasn’t any advice from other admins. This information is applicable for guild leaders or any type of community leader.
As someone who has been a guild leader to two different WoW RP guilds and who has also run a few different Minecraft servers, I’ve definitely learned from my mistakes. This can be a thankless job at times, but I’d like to share some advice to those who wish to pursue it. Starting a Minecraft server is hard work, but there is a certain amount of pride you get out of it when you build your own community with people you (usually) hand select).
Have the time to play and manage the server:
This is number one for a reason: it is the most important piece of advice I can give you. I’m sure we’ve all belonged to a server where there admin slowly faded away and the server with it. I’ve been at fault for breaking this rule, myself. Sadly, that server did fade away fast because I didn’t have time for it. In truth, I decided to stop running my server because I wanted to work on my artwork and Twitch. You have to be able to dedicate hours out of each day to work AND play on the server. Don’t let your joy for the game falter. The moment you get bored or busy then your community will suffer.
Find someone you can trust as a co-admin or demi-admin:
Your server will most likely be too small for you to get any mods. In fact, I would suggest not modding anyone for a few months while you get to know your new players. My suggestion is to go into this with a friend. Someone you can trust with your cpanel (if you’re in a pinch) and who you know will enforce any server rules. This can be a 50/50 ownership or if you prefer it can be less balanced, with you taking up more responsibilities. However, having someone who can step in to run the server if you take a break or have a bad week can be the difference between a dying and thriving community. Communicate often with your other OP and make sure you forge a strong friendship with them. You will depend on each other and you should be able to get along.
Know what kind of a server and community you want to build:
This is very important. Do you want adults, mature, or free to all? What type of people are you looking for to play with you? And, what kind of server do you want: vanilla, games, modded, plugins? Above all else, make sure to decide what you want and then stick with it. Tweaking your server and rules is just fine. However, do not continue to change your server, plugins, and players based on what one or two vocal players or because you think it will bring more people in. Mold your server based on what you would like to play on and run. Otherwise, you will exhaust yourself jumping through hoops trying to make everyone happy.
Have a website, a MC Forums thread, and a YouTube channel for your server:
Your website is an important resource for your players. It serves as a wiki for your players who might not know the ins and outs of your server. It also serves as a beacon for potential players because SEO works quite well with both website and YouTube. So, in case someone searches “mature modded minecraft server with bibliocraft” your server might pop up first. Websites are easy to set up and you have a variety of choices (SquareSpace, WordPress, Blogger, Wix, PHPBB Forums, or Tumblr) and domain names are inexpensive via NameCheap. Don’t be fooled thinking you can pull a lot of players through Reddit or websites like Planet Minecraft. Remember that players won’t likely participate in server forums, so if you create one make it short, simple, and informative.
The majority of your recruitment will be via friends of players, MC Forums, Google searches, and YouTube. Remember to link to your MC Forums recruitment thread on both your website and every video you post. In terms of YouTube, at least have a welcome video that shows that you’re a friendly, dedicated admin. Show off your server and explain what the features of your server are.
You can read the full post here, packed with tons more helpful tips:
I agreed with most of the part, except the give the co-owner to friends. Usually the friend will be abuse his powers and thinks that he is the owner's friend, then no reason he couldnt abuse. Otherwise, this is well made
I recently wrote this in attempt to help those who might need advice on running a server. It doesn't give advice on how to start a server, but it does give some real knowledge on how to be an admin and leader.
There are plenty of guides on how to start your server. It’s fairly basic: know what you want, have money, do it! And, some day I may even make my own guide for you all, because it is important information. However, when I was first starting my server I realized there weren’t any guides to on how to be a good admin. There wasn’t any advice from other admins. This information is applicable for guild leaders or any type of community leader.
As someone who has been a guild leader to two different WoW RP guilds and who has also run a few different Minecraft servers, I’ve definitely learned from my mistakes. This can be a thankless job at times, but I’d like to share some advice to those who wish to pursue it. Starting a Minecraft server is hard work, but there is a certain amount of pride you get out of it when you build your own community with people you (usually) hand select).
Have the time to play and manage the server:
This is number one for a reason: it is the most important piece of advice I can give you. I’m sure we’ve all belonged to a server where there admin slowly faded away and the server with it. I’ve been at fault for breaking this rule, myself. Sadly, that server did fade away fast because I didn’t have time for it. In truth, I decided to stop running my server because I wanted to work on my artwork and Twitch. You have to be able to dedicate hours out of each day to work AND play on the server. Don’t let your joy for the game falter. The moment you get bored or busy then your community will suffer.
Find someone you can trust as a co-admin or demi-admin:
Your server will most likely be too small for you to get any mods. In fact, I would suggest not modding anyone for a few months while you get to know your new players. My suggestion is to go into this with a friend. Someone you can trust with your cpanel (if you’re in a pinch) and who you know will enforce any server rules. This can be a 50/50 ownership or if you prefer it can be less balanced, with you taking up more responsibilities. However, having someone who can step in to run the server if you take a break or have a bad week can be the difference between a dying and thriving community. Communicate often with your other OP and make sure you forge a strong friendship with them. You will depend on each other and you should be able to get along.
Know what kind of a server and community you want to build:
This is very important. Do you want adults, mature, or free to all? What type of people are you looking for to play with you? And, what kind of server do you want: vanilla, games, modded, plugins? Above all else, make sure to decide what you want and then stick with it. Tweaking your server and rules is just fine. However, do not continue to change your server, plugins, and players based on what one or two vocal players or because you think it will bring more people in. Mold your server based on what you would like to play on and run. Otherwise, you will exhaust yourself jumping through hoops trying to make everyone happy.
Have a website, a MC Forums thread, and a YouTube channel for your server:
Your website is an important resource for your players. It serves as a wiki for your players who might not know the ins and outs of your server. It also serves as a beacon for potential players because SEO works quite well with both website and YouTube. So, in case someone searches “mature modded minecraft server with bibliocraft” your server might pop up first. Websites are easy to set up and you have a variety of choices (SquareSpace, WordPress, Blogger, Wix, PHPBB Forums, or Tumblr) and domain names are inexpensive via NameCheap. Don’t be fooled thinking you can pull a lot of players through Reddit or websites like Planet Minecraft. Remember that players won’t likely participate in server forums, so if you create one make it short, simple, and informative.
The majority of your recruitment will be via friends of players, MC Forums, Google searches, and YouTube. Remember to link to your MC Forums recruitment thread on both your website and every video you post. In terms of YouTube, at least have a welcome video that shows that you’re a friendly, dedicated admin. Show off your server and explain what the features of your server are.
You can read the full post here, packed with tons more helpful tips:
http://buffydoesbroadcast.tv/2015/10/25/practical-guide-to-running-a-successful-minecraft-server/
Good guide. Spreading this to people who need to see this
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I agreed with most of the part, except the give the co-owner to friends. Usually the friend will be abuse his powers and thinks that he is the owner's friend, then no reason he couldnt abuse. Otherwise, this is well made