Wispdock’s control panel isn’t built yet. Where a step says “in your control panel”, use whatever your host gives you for files, the console and start/stop. The Minecraft side works the same everywhere.
On managed Minecraft Java hosting, keep the assigned port even when copying server.properties from another machine.
How the file works
- Each line is
key=value, with no spaces around the=.trueandfalseare lowercase. Lines starting with#are comments. - Depending on your Minecraft version, a few settings such as
pvpmay live in game rules instead of this file. If one you expect is missing, check/gamerulein game. - Paper, Fabric, Forge and NeoForge keep their own settings in separate files. This page only covers the vanilla ones.
Settings you are likely to change
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
motd | A Minecraft Server | The text under the server name in the multiplayer list. |
max-players | 20 | How many players can be online at once. Ops with bypassesPlayerLimit set in ops.json can still join when it’s full. |
difficulty | easy | peaceful, easy, normal or hard. Can also be changed in game with /difficulty. |
gamemode | survival | The game mode new players start in. |
force-gamemode | false | If true, players are put back into the default game mode every time they join. |
hardcore | false | Hard difficulty, and players become spectators when they die. |
online-mode | true | Checks every player against Microsoft’s account servers. Leave it on. |
white-list | false | Only players on the whitelist can join. /whitelist on sets this for you. |
enforce-whitelist | false | Kicks online players who aren’t on the list when the whitelist is reloaded. |
spawn-protection | 16 | Radius around spawn where only ops can build. 0 turns it off. |
view-distance | 10 | How many chunks are sent to each player. |
simulation-distance | 10 | How many chunks around each player are ticked. Lowering it is the cheapest lag fix. |
level-name | world | The world folder the server loads. Point it at another folder to switch worlds. |
level-seed | (empty) | The seed for a new world. Only used when the world is first generated. |
level-type | minecraft:normal | World type for a new world, such as minecraft:flat or minecraft:large_biomes. Only used on first generation. |
server-port | 25565 | The TCP port Java players connect to. Your host usually sets this. |
server-ip | (empty) | The address the server listens on. Leave it empty unless your host says otherwise. |
op-permission-level | 4 | The permission level /op gives, from 1 to 4. |
allow-flight | false | When false, players who seem to fly in survival get kicked. Set it to true on modded servers with jetpacks or flight items. |
enable-command-block | false | Lets command blocks run. |
max-tick-time | 60000 | If a single tick takes longer than this many milliseconds, the watchdog stops the server. Some modpacks set it to -1 to turn the watchdog off. |
enforce-secure-profile | true | Requires players to have chat signing keys from Mojang. If players behind some proxies can’t join or chat, setting it to false is the usual workaround. |
enable-rcon | false | Remote console access. Only turn it on with a long, unique rcon.password. |
resource-pack | (empty) | A direct download link to a server resource pack. Add resource-pack-sha1 so clients can check the file, and require-resource-pack to make it mandatory. |
Frequently asked questions
Where is server.properties?
In the server’s main folder, next to the server jar. The server creates it the first time it starts, so a brand new server won’t have one yet.
Why didn’t my change to server.properties do anything?
The server only reads the file when it starts. Stop the server, make the edit, then start it again. Edits made while it runs can be ignored or overwritten.
Can I change the seed of an existing world?
No. level-seed is only used when a world is first generated. Back up the old world, then set a new level-name or remove the world folder so the server generates a fresh one.
What is the difference between view-distance and simulation-distance?
view-distance is how many chunks the server sends to each player so they can see them. simulation-distance is how many chunks around each player actually tick, with mobs, crops and redstone running.
Still stuck? Send us the details and your latest.log.