This is a server tutorial I wrote almost a year ago and totally forgot about, so here it is from the lost files. So without further ado here is 2.5K words that should help you create your own Minecraft server.
Hello everyone! You can call me Matt. I am a long time server owner, and server manager. The first time I ever created a Minecraft server I was very confused and did not know where to start. After nearly two years of learning how Minecraft servers work and the in’s and out’s of them, I have decided to share my knowledge of servers with a full tutorial about creating servers. So sit back, relax and enjoy this lengthy tutorial.
Table Of Contents
Prologue
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Home servers
Renting minecraft servers
Renting Dedicated servers
Jars
Vanilla Servers
Bukkit Servers
Spigot Servers
Modded servers
Core Plugins
More plugins
Staff
Introduction
Before you even start thinking about what type of server you want to create, you must think about how you want to host your server and who you want to create the server for. There are three different options for hosting servers. Some of these options are better for different types of servers. I shall explain this below.
Option A
The first option is to host your server from your house on a computer. This option is by far the cheapest for you but can cause a jump in your monthly data usage on your Wi-Fi. Also, to host from your house, your router must be port forwarded.
The website above is a list of routers. You must determine what router brand you have. Once you have determined what router brand you have, choose the brand. It will bring you to a step-by-step guide on how to port forward your router. Port forwarding lets an outsider connect to your router through a certain port of your choosing.
In my opinion home-hosted servers are very good for beginners after the port forwarding part XD. Files are very easy to maneuver through and plugins are easy to configure .
Option B
Your second option is renting a Minecraft server from a website. When renting Minecraft servers there are usually many different tiers. Renting a low range Minecraft server that has a good connection and high uptime can cost $3-7 dollars. Those servers will have close to a gigabyte to a gigabyte and a half of RAM. A mid ranged server can range from $10-25. These servers will have 3-4 gigabytes of RAM. Higher ranged servers are pointless in my opinion. If you want to buy a more expensive server I would recommend saving for a dedicated server. When renting servers you are usually given the option to pay a few more $$ for pre setup (Ie; setting up jar file and plugins) this is a good option if you are new to running Minecraft servers. There are many great website hosts, just take your time deciding! Renting Minecraft servers come with an easy to control Multicraft panel with many different options. I will discuss more about this later.
Option C
Your third option is by far the most expensive and least used. Renting a dedicated server can be very costly with up to $100-400+ Dedicated servers are practically another computer you are just renting. I do not have very much experience with dedicated servers. Although I do know that they can host multiple Minecraft servers at once.
But here is a great tutorial showing you how to setup a dedicated minecraft server with Linux
It was hard deciding what to put first. Deciding what type of Minecraft server you want to make and choosing how you are going to host them are both very important. So in this Second section I will explain four different types of Minecraft Jars that should fit what you need.
Before I go any deeper I just want to define what Jars and Plugins are.
Jar: A Jar is a bunch of Java files compressed together to create a jar. Jars are the basis to every minecraft server. They are where the server goes to get all of its information.
Plugin: A plugin is an extra jar that can be added to the game, so in our case Minecraft. It can add new commands and change the play style of the game.
Option A: Vanilla Minecraft servers
Vanilla servers are normal Minecraft servers without plugins. Vanilla Minecraft jars can be downloaded at Mojang’s website. If you are renting a Minecraft server there are usually one click installs to install common jars. In my opinion Vanilla servers are easiest to configure and get running. If you and your friends just want to get together and play some classic survival, this is the type of server for you. Vanilla servers are constantly updated right away after a new Minecraft version comes out.
Bukkit servers are the most commonly used way to host a Minecraft server. They offer plugin support so now you can add new commands and other cool things. If you have plugin on your Bukkit server it can be more confusing to set up and get running but it offers a whole new way to play Minecraft. (More on plugins soon)
NOTE: In-between Minecraft version, Bukkit can take a few months to update. And Bukkit is currently in Legal issues with Mojang so they are not updating.
Currently no download link for Bukkit. Read below about other options
Option C: Spigot servers
Spigot is my favorite type of Minecraft server of the three so far. Spigot is pretty much Bukkit but with more options and it is very well updated. Although Spigot can be somewhat buggy from time to time. Spigot is also better for servers if you wish to connect multiple servers together (Which will not be covered in this tutorial). Other than that there is not much to say about spigot. When setting up spigot on rented servers there should be a one-click install for a Spigot 1.8/1.9 version.
Modded Minecraft servers are very tricky to set up. They come with custom jars and an extra folder with all of the mods in them. If you are using a public modpack there will usually be a link to download the server. Other than that it is like setting up a normal vanilla server. If you are renting a server there should also be a one-click install for many of the larger modpacks.
Note: Some modded servers do have support for plugins while some don’t.
Core Plugins
In the section above I covered different types of Minecraft servers (ie: Vanilla, Bukkit, Spigot, and Modded Minecraft servers) In this section I will explain some of the main/core plugins most Bukkit and Spigot servers have. I will also give a brief tutorial about what they do and how to use it. To install any of these plugins drag and drop them into your plugins folder. This process is more confusing for people renting Minecraft servers. What you need to do is download an FTP client. (I recommend: https://filezilla-project.org) Install this program and enter the login information given to you by your server host. This will bring you to a file directory with all of your server files. This is also the easiest way to upload and download files to and from your computer.
Note: After installing every plugin to your server, always restart your server or else the plugin will not work right away. (Don’t /reload your server. Its bad for it.)
Essentials
Essentials is literally essential (best pun ever). Essentials is pretty much the basis to any Minecraft server with plugins. It brings over a hundred new commands and loads of cool things. It is constantly updated. When downloading Essentials there will be four different jar files, the only needed one will be essentials.jar. The unused three jars are different plugins that you don’t need or there are better versions of.
Once you have installed Essentials, in your plugins folder there will now be an essentials folder. In that folder there will be man different config files. In config.txt there are many different options to play around with. (If you don’t know what one thing does. Don’t touch it.)
World Edit
World edit is the basis to creating anything big on a server. With world edit you can save tons of building time on your server. World edit brings many different building commands to the game! There are no important configurations with World Edit.
World guard is a plugin that goes along with World Edit. World guard is used to protect areas to prevent other people from building in places. It can also be used to edit rule regions like certain people being able to enter it…etc. It is also a very in-depth plugin with lots of commands.
Note: You must have World Edit for this plugin to work.
Permissions
After world edit and Essentials. Permissions are the key thing that prevents the server from being destroyed. Sure you have /op which gives you all permission. But what if you have someone you don’t totally trust but they still deserve staff? This is where permissions come in. Permissions let’s you decide what a player can and can’t do. Permissions are by far the trickiest plugin to learn and grasp but it holds many powerful possibilities!
Now there are really only two main contenders for permission plugins:
PEX (Which is the one I use Religiously (Not really XD)):
Note: I left Group Manager out because as of the time I wrote this the plugin was outdated.
Final Notes
These four plugins are the basis for practically every Minecraft server. I urge everyone that is just learning these plugins to sit around and just play with these plugins. That is how I learned. It is also the most enjoyable way to learn them.
More plugins!
Now it is time to go more in-depth with what types of Minecraft servers YOU want. There are four different types of minecraft servers I will cover for now. As I update this post I will add more types. For now, I shall list the recommended plugins for the type of server. Pvp servers/factions, and Survival/Semi-vanilla, are the types of servers I sha cover for now.
Pvp and faction servers:
These servers are built for fighting against each other with some aspects of survival. There are multiple things to consider when creating a pvp server.
- Pvp servers must have a very low ping and a very fast connection.
- The less plugins there are on a pvp server the less lag there will be and there will be more free ram available. So if you think there are not many plugins listed below, it’s because I’m trying to make the server faster while still having some good pvp plugins on the server.
When I originally first created my server I had many friends who also played minecraft and were very active. So I already had a great basis for staff. With little question my friends joined me and helped me build and create the server. But over the years they all started to disappear, either getting too busy or growing out of Minecraft. Them leaving meant I had to find a new source from my staff. In the section below I will show you a few different techniques for finding decent staff members who actually know something and want to work with you.
Friends
As I just said above IRL friends are great ways to gain trustworthy staff. If you have some friends that play minecraft speak to them and see if they are interested. In most occasions they will take up the opportunity to join. The only problem with this is that if any drama happens it can affect your real life relationship.
MORE TO COME SOON!
ToDo List:
How to setup Spigot/Bukkit/Craftbukkit from your own computer
One thing a lot of people find difficult is how to actually obtain a Spigot.jar file.
Currently, you need to compile them yourself with the buildtools.jar, using Git.
I'd be more than happy to provide a text bit or a video showing how if that's something you'd like to also add to your guide
Otherwise, this needs to be stickied. It's ridiculous how many people come here asking "how do i minecarft server", without taking 0.03 femtoseconds to google one of the 128361273 trillion guides.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Want to host a dedicated server yourself, easily, and for free? Click here!
Need to post a DXDiag log and don't know how? Here you go!
One thing a lot of people find difficult is how to actually obtain a Spigot.jar file.
Currently, you need to compile them yourself with the buildtools.jar, using Git.
I'd be more than happy to provide a text bit or a video showing how if that's something you'd like to also add to your guide
Otherwise, this needs to be stickied. It's ridiculous how many people come here asking "how do i minecarft server", without taking 0.03 femtoseconds to google one of the 128361273 trillion guides.
Yea thats a great idea, preferably a text. I remember the days when it was much easier. XD
Prologue
This is a server tutorial I wrote almost a year ago and totally forgot about, so here it is from the lost files. So without further ado here is 2.5K words that should help you create your own Minecraft server.
Hello everyone! You can call me Matt. I am a long time server owner, and server manager. The first time I ever created a Minecraft server I was very confused and did not know where to start. After nearly two years of learning how Minecraft servers work and the in’s and out’s of them, I have decided to share my knowledge of servers with a full tutorial about creating servers. So sit back, relax and enjoy this lengthy tutorial.
Table Of Contents
Introduction
Before you even start thinking about what type of server you want to create, you must think about how you want to host your server and who you want to create the server for. There are three different options for hosting servers. Some of these options are better for different types of servers. I shall explain this below.
Option A
The first option is to host your server from your house on a computer. This option is by far the cheapest for you but can cause a jump in your monthly data usage on your Wi-Fi. Also, to host from your house, your router must be port forwarded.
http://portforward.com/english/applications/port_forwarding/Minecraft_Server/
The website above is a list of routers. You must determine what router brand you have. Once you have determined what router brand you have, choose the brand. It will bring you to a step-by-step guide on how to port forward your router. Port forwarding lets an outsider connect to your router through a certain port of your choosing.
In my opinion home-hosted servers are very good for beginners after the port forwarding part XD. Files are very easy to maneuver through and plugins are easy to configure .
Option B
Your second option is renting a Minecraft server from a website. When renting Minecraft servers there are usually many different tiers. Renting a low range Minecraft server that has a good connection and high uptime can cost $3-7 dollars. Those servers will have close to a gigabyte to a gigabyte and a half of RAM. A mid ranged server can range from $10-25. These servers will have 3-4 gigabytes of RAM. Higher ranged servers are pointless in my opinion. If you want to buy a more expensive server I would recommend saving for a dedicated server. When renting servers you are usually given the option to pay a few more $$ for pre setup (Ie; setting up jar file and plugins) this is a good option if you are new to running Minecraft servers. There are many great website hosts, just take your time deciding! Renting Minecraft servers come with an easy to control Multicraft panel with many different options. I will discuss more about this later.
Option C
Your third option is by far the most expensive and least used. Renting a dedicated server can be very costly with up to $100-400+ Dedicated servers are practically another computer you are just renting. I do not have very much experience with dedicated servers. Although I do know that they can host multiple Minecraft servers at once.
But here is a great tutorial showing you how to setup a dedicated minecraft server with Linux
http://www.minecraftforum.net/forums/support/server-support/server-administration/1891264-tutorial-on-running-minecraft-on-a-dedicated
Jars
It was hard deciding what to put first. Deciding what type of Minecraft server you want to make and choosing how you are going to host them are both very important. So in this Second section I will explain four different types of Minecraft Jars that should fit what you need.
Before I go any deeper I just want to define what Jars and Plugins are.
Jar: A Jar is a bunch of Java files compressed together to create a jar. Jars are the basis to every minecraft server. They are where the server goes to get all of its information.
Plugin: A plugin is an extra jar that can be added to the game, so in our case Minecraft. It can add new commands and change the play style of the game.
Option A: Vanilla Minecraft servers
Vanilla servers are normal Minecraft servers without plugins. Vanilla Minecraft jars can be downloaded at Mojang’s website. If you are renting a Minecraft server there are usually one click installs to install common jars. In my opinion Vanilla servers are easiest to configure and get running. If you and your friends just want to get together and play some classic survival, this is the type of server for you. Vanilla servers are constantly updated right away after a new Minecraft version comes out.
For people hosting from home, here’s where you can download the server jar: https://minecraft.net/download
Option B: Bukkit servers
Bukkit servers are the most commonly used way to host a Minecraft server. They offer plugin support so now you can add new commands and other cool things. If you have plugin on your Bukkit server it can be more confusing to set up and get running but it offers a whole new way to play Minecraft. (More on plugins soon)
NOTE: In-between Minecraft version, Bukkit can take a few months to update. And Bukkit is currently in Legal issues with Mojang so they are not updating.
Currently no download link for Bukkit. Read below about other options
Option C: Spigot servers
Spigot is my favorite type of Minecraft server of the three so far. Spigot is pretty much Bukkit but with more options and it is very well updated. Although Spigot can be somewhat buggy from time to time. Spigot is also better for servers if you wish to connect multiple servers together (Which will not be covered in this tutorial). Other than that there is not much to say about spigot. When setting up spigot on rented servers there should be a one-click install for a Spigot 1.8/1.9 version.
Spigot downloads can be found here: http://www.spigotmc.org
Option D: Modded servers
I will only briefly cover this topic, but if you wish for more information check out this tutorial (use this if you are using a custom modpack): http://minecraft.gamepedia.com/Tutorials/Setting_up_a_Minecraft_Forge_server
Modded Minecraft servers are very tricky to set up. They come with custom jars and an extra folder with all of the mods in them. If you are using a public modpack there will usually be a link to download the server. Other than that it is like setting up a normal vanilla server. If you are renting a server there should also be a one-click install for many of the larger modpacks.
Note: Some modded servers do have support for plugins while some don’t.
Core Plugins
In the section above I covered different types of Minecraft servers (ie: Vanilla, Bukkit, Spigot, and Modded Minecraft servers) In this section I will explain some of the main/core plugins most Bukkit and Spigot servers have. I will also give a brief tutorial about what they do and how to use it. To install any of these plugins drag and drop them into your plugins folder. This process is more confusing for people renting Minecraft servers. What you need to do is download an FTP client. (I recommend: https://filezilla-project.org) Install this program and enter the login information given to you by your server host. This will bring you to a file directory with all of your server files. This is also the easiest way to upload and download files to and from your computer.
Note: After installing every plugin to your server, always restart your server or else the plugin will not work right away. (Don’t /reload your server. Its bad for it.)
Essentials
Essentials is literally essential (best pun ever). Essentials is pretty much the basis to any Minecraft server with plugins. It brings over a hundred new commands and loads of cool things. It is constantly updated. When downloading Essentials there will be four different jar files, the only needed one will be essentials.jar. The unused three jars are different plugins that you don’t need or there are better versions of.
Essentials: https://hub.spigotmc.org/jenkins/job/Spigot-Essentials/ (Download the first one)
There are so many commands for essentials I will not list them here. But here is a website with all the different commands: http://wiki.ess3.net/wiki/Command_Reference
Once you have installed Essentials, in your plugins folder there will now be an essentials folder. In that folder there will be man different config files. In config.txt there are many different options to play around with. (If you don’t know what one thing does. Don’t touch it.)
World Edit
World edit is the basis to creating anything big on a server. With world edit you can save tons of building time on your server. World edit brings many different building commands to the game! There are no important configurations with World Edit.
World Edit: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/worldedit/
Tutorial:
World Guard
World guard is a plugin that goes along with World Edit. World guard is used to protect areas to prevent other people from building in places. It can also be used to edit rule regions like certain people being able to enter it…etc. It is also a very in-depth plugin with lots of commands.
World Guard: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/worldguard/
Note: You must have World Edit for this plugin to work.
Permissions
After world edit and Essentials. Permissions are the key thing that prevents the server from being destroyed. Sure you have /op which gives you all permission. But what if you have someone you don’t totally trust but they still deserve staff? This is where permissions come in. Permissions let’s you decide what a player can and can’t do. Permissions are by far the trickiest plugin to learn and grasp but it holds many powerful possibilities!
Now there are really only two main contenders for permission plugins:
PEX (Which is the one I use Religiously (Not really XD)):
http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/permissionsex/
Note: With PEX you can go really in-depth and it can be very confusing at times, whether you’re good at it or not.
Bpermissions (Easier to use): http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/bpermissions/
Tutorial: http://www.minecraftforum.net/forums/support/server-support/tutorials-and-faqs/1940459-guide-how-to-use-the-permissions-plugins-pex
Note: I left Group Manager out because as of the time I wrote this the plugin was outdated.
Final Notes
These four plugins are the basis for practically every Minecraft server. I urge everyone that is just learning these plugins to sit around and just play with these plugins. That is how I learned. It is also the most enjoyable way to learn them.
More plugins!
Now it is time to go more in-depth with what types of Minecraft servers YOU want. There are four different types of minecraft servers I will cover for now. As I update this post I will add more types. For now, I shall list the recommended plugins for the type of server. Pvp servers/factions, and Survival/Semi-vanilla, are the types of servers I sha cover for now.
Pvp and faction servers:
These servers are built for fighting against each other with some aspects of survival. There are multiple things to consider when creating a pvp server.
- Pvp servers must have a very low ping and a very fast connection.
- The less plugins there are on a pvp server the less lag there will be and there will be more free ram available. So if you think there are not many plugins listed below, it’s because I’m trying to make the server faster while still having some good pvp plugins on the server.
Plugins
All the core plugins listed in the section above.
Mcmmo: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/mcmmo/
No Cheat Plus: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/nocheatplus/
Factions: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/factions/
Kit Master (Not sure if its updated): http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/kitmaster/
If kit master is not updated use: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/kits/
Core Protect: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/coreprotect/
Clear lag: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/clearlagg/
Combat Log: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/combatlog/
Survival/Semi-Vanilla servers:
These servers are based around building and being interactive. You do not need to worry about lag as much and have more freedom with plugins.
- People can get bored of survival so you need to keep it fun and exciting.
- Don’t over do plugins but still can have a good amount of them.
- Preventing raiding is simply a choice. If you choose to allow griefing I would recommend removing; Residence and LWC.
- It is also your choice whether you would like PvP to been enabled. If so I would recommend adding combat log from above.
Plugins:
All the core-plugins in the section above.
No Cheat Plus: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/nocheatplus/
Core Protect: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/coreprotect/
Clear lag: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/clearlagg/
Chest Shop: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/chestshop/
Chest Shop notifier (optional): http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/csn/
Iconomy: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/iconomy/
Auction: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/floauction/
Residence: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/residence/
Dynmap: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/dynmap/
LWC: http://dev.bukkit.org/bukkit-plugins/lwc/
Staff
When I originally first created my server I had many friends who also played minecraft and were very active. So I already had a great basis for staff. With little question my friends joined me and helped me build and create the server. But over the years they all started to disappear, either getting too busy or growing out of Minecraft. Them leaving meant I had to find a new source from my staff. In the section below I will show you a few different techniques for finding decent staff members who actually know something and want to work with you.
Friends
As I just said above IRL friends are great ways to gain trustworthy staff. If you have some friends that play minecraft speak to them and see if they are interested. In most occasions they will take up the opportunity to join. The only problem with this is that if any drama happens it can affect your real life relationship.
MORE TO COME SOON!
ToDo List:
How to setup Spigot/Bukkit/Craftbukkit from your own computer
More on staff
I plan on adding more about plugins when I have some free time.
One thing a lot of people find difficult is how to actually obtain a Spigot.jar file.
Currently, you need to compile them yourself with the buildtools.jar, using Git.
I'd be more than happy to provide a text bit or a video showing how if that's something you'd like to also add to your guide
Otherwise, this needs to be stickied. It's ridiculous how many people come here asking "how do i minecarft server", without taking 0.03 femtoseconds to google one of the 128361273 trillion guides.
Want to host a dedicated server yourself, easily, and for free? Click here!
Need to post a DXDiag log and don't know how? Here you go!
I make YouTube vidoes! Why not go check em out?
My specs:
R7 1700 (8c/16t) @ 3.8ghz
Cryorig H7 cooler
G1 Gaming GTX 1080 8gb @ ~2000mhz core
16gb DDR4 3200mhz ram
250gb 850 EVO SSD
240gb Sandisk SSD Plus
1tb WD Blue 7200rpm HDD
1tb Generic 2.5" 7200rpm HDD
500gb WD 7200rpm HDD
Win 10
3x 24" 1080p Monitors @75hz
Click me, and let all your dreams come true....
Yea thats a great idea, preferably a text. I remember the days when it was much easier. XD
Feel free to pm me.
Any1 know how to setup the /server for a Minecraft server?
The /server command you're probably talking about comes from BungeeCord, a plugin to connect 2 or more MC servers together:
https://www.spigotmc.org/wiki/bungeecord/
You'd need to set up bungeecord on a couple servers (either on the same machine or otherwise), and there's plenty a guide for that.
In fact, there's one here, straight from the spigotmc page: https://www.spigotmc.org/wiki/bungeecord-installation/
Want to host a dedicated server yourself, easily, and for free? Click here!
Need to post a DXDiag log and don't know how? Here you go!
I make YouTube vidoes! Why not go check em out?
My specs:
R7 1700 (8c/16t) @ 3.8ghz
Cryorig H7 cooler
G1 Gaming GTX 1080 8gb @ ~2000mhz core
16gb DDR4 3200mhz ram
250gb 850 EVO SSD
240gb Sandisk SSD Plus
1tb WD Blue 7200rpm HDD
1tb Generic 2.5" 7200rpm HDD
500gb WD 7200rpm HDD
Win 10
3x 24" 1080p Monitors @75hz
Click me, and let all your dreams come true....