If you are looking to host your very own Minecraft server, you have come to the right place! Making a server is easy, all you need to do is install a server, and we will handle the rest of the setup for you. Now, making a server can be daunting, but not to worry, we have all the answers you need to take your first steps into hosting a server!
For those who don’t know what hosting a server is like, you should check out our Dedicated Server Hosting 101 for all your questions about dedicated servers. Otherwise, read on to learn how to host your very own server for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition.
What is Minecraft: Bedrock Edition?
The classic game, now ported to all kinds of consoles! Whether on the go with the Nintendo Switch, a console player on the Xbox or Playstation, or prefer the lightweight experience on PC, Minecraft: Bedrock Edition is for you.
Unlike Minecraft: Java Edition, Minecraft: Bedrock Edition makes use of a different set of modifications called Addons. These make use of systems made available by the game to allow for custom behaviour and features.
What do I need to start a server?
To get started with a Minecraft: Bedrock Edition server, all you need to do is install a Minecraft Bedrock, then once it has finished installing, you can start it up!
For a vanilla Minecraft: Bedrock Edition server, select the Minecraft Bedrock option. Enter in the details to create a server and the creation process is complete!
How do I join my server?
Once you have a server created, press the Start button and the server will start loading. Minecraft: Bedrock Edition takes just a few seconds to start, though loading times can increase if more Addons are installed. You will know when the server is ready to join when the message “Done!” appears in the Console.
To join the server, you will need the following:
- A copy of Minecraft: Bedrock Edition
- The matching version of Minecraft: Bedrock Edition installed
- For console players, it is recommended that BedrockConnect is used to access your server.
- A stable internet connection to play on the server.
On the top is the friendly address, and on the bottom is the IP address. In both processes, you will need to copy the Port as well as either the friendly or the IP address.
Once you have all of the above installed, you are ready to join! Start the game, then click on the Multiplayer menu and click on Add Server. Copy over the friendly address or the IP address with the port, then click on Add Server again to add it to the menu. Click on the server and press Join Server to connect!
Can I change the settings on my server?
Yes, the server settings can be altered by making use of the server.properties file or with commands such as /gamerule or /gamemode. Do note that, if you would like to use commands to edit server settings, you will need to have Operator permissions. Read onto the next section to see how you can become an Operator.
Adjust number of sleeping players
When a server has lots of players, it can affect how people may want to play on the server. Some people would rather skip the night, and others don’t mind. For players that do want to skip night regardless of whether a player is AFK, caving, or just exploring without a bed nearby, we can use the playerssleepingpercentage game rule. If we set this to 0 in the /gamerule command, we can make it so that only one player has to sleep.
Keep inventory on death
Some people may not want to lose their items on death. This can be switched with a game rule called keepinventory. Using the /gamerule command, we can change this setting to true, and the change will be immediately applied. This game rule is considered a “cheat” and thus will require the server to have cheats enabled. This will affect earning achievements for that server.
Change game mode
By default, all Minecraft servers will be in Survival mode. If you want to change the game mode, an individual player can change game modes using the /gamemode command. You can run the command on yourself if you have permission, or someone else can give permission with /gamemode <mode> <player>.
The default game mode can also be set in server.properties, but this will only apply to new players. Change the gamemode to the desired mode, then restart the server to apply the game mode to all players. If you want everyone to stay in one game mode without changing, set force-gamemode to true, and players will only be able to use that game mode.
How do I enable Hardcore on my server?
In Minecraft: Java Edition, enabling Hardcore is as simple as switching on the hardcore setting in server.properties, then creating a new world. However, Minecraft: Bedrock Edition does not have the hardcore setting in server.properties. Currently, the only way to enable Hardcore is to create a single player world, then upload it to the server.
To upload a world, start by exporting your world. Click on the Edit button on your single player world, then click on the Export World button. Once exported, an .mcworld file will be created. Unpackage this file using 7-Zip or WinRAR, and you should get a folder of your exported world. Upload this to your server, edit the server settings, then you will have a server with Hardcore enabled.
How do I become an admin/operator?
Just like Minecraft: Java Edition, a server admin is referred to as an Operator. There are a couple extra steps required to make a player an Operator on a Minecraft: Bedrock Edition server.
First, the server will need to have cheats enabled. Without this, Operators cannot make use of certain commands. To enable cheats, stop the server, then look for the server.properties file. Open this file by clicking on it, and then look for a setting called allow-cheats. Set this from false to true, then start the server.
Once the server has cheats enabled, it’s time to make a player Operator. This step is quite easy, all you need to do is run op <playername> in the server’s Console. If successful, the player will become an Operator, and they can run any command on the server.
This message will appear when the command is successfully executed. A message will not appear in the server for the target player, so make sure to pay attention to the server console for a message that says “Opped: (player)”
You should always be careful when making players an operator. Only grant operator permissions to those you trust.
Can I install addons to my server?
Yes, you can install Addons to a Minecraft: Bedrock Edition server. While most users may believe that Addons are only available through the Marketplace, there are a variety of websites that host free, community-made Addons.
The first step is to download an Addon. Some places to check out Minecraft: Bedrock Edition Addons are Curseforge, MCPEDL, or Planet Minecraft. Once you download an Addon, you should see either a .mcaddon or .mcpack file. Extract this file using a program such as 7-Zip or WinRAR and you should see one or two folders. One folder will contain resources, while another contains behaviour. We will take these two folders and install them onto the server. Sometimes, a .mcaddon may contain .mcpack files instead of a folder. These will also need to be extracted as these will be the behavior or resource folders.
The first step is to extract our addon, which is a mcaddon in this case. Step 2 is to take a look at the contents of the extracted file, which shows two mcpacks for behaviors and resources. The last step will be to extract these into folders. It may be necessary to rename these folders if more addons are installed.
Next, we will want to install this addon to the server. This is done by uploading the resource pack and the behaviour pack to the server. For an Akliz server, you can access these files by using SFTP. Once we have the server files open, upload the resource folder into the resource_packs and the behaviour folder into the behavior_packs folder.
We’re not done just yet, because we need to tell the server that there are resource packs and behaviour packs on the server. In each resource and behaviour pack folder, there should be a manifest.json file. We will want the UUID and the Version from these. Then, we will want to make two files: world_resource_packs.json and world_behavior_packs.json. We will then want to paste the UUID and Version of each resource and behavior pack into this file.
Our addon in this case contained both behavior and resource. On the top is the file for behavior packs, while on the bottom is for resource packs.
Once everything is added, save these files, then upload them into the server’s world folder. This can be found in worlds/<name>/. If everything is uploaded correctly and the packs are working, you should now have an addon installed!
The biggest limitation to installing Addons on a server is that this only applies to Addons downloaded from websites such as Curseforge or MCPEDL. Any addons that are purchased from the Minecraft Marketplace are currently unable to be installed on a private Dedicated Server.
Can I play with mods?
Minecraft: Bedrock Edition servers can only have Addons installed on the server. Mods that are available on Minecraft: Java Editions cannot be installed on a Minecraft: Bedrock server, and crossplay with a Geyser server cannot have mods installed.
Mods behave very differently from Addons, so make sure to check if what is being installed on a server is an Addon or a Mod.
Can I play with Minecraft: Java Edition players?
Normally, the two editions of Minecraft cannot interact with each other and don’t allow for crossplay. However, if a server with Geyser is set up, Minecraft: Bedrock Edition players can join and play together with Minecraft: Java Edition players.
Once a server has been successfully configured to allow for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition players, you can join by using the same server address and using the port that was created for Geyser.
How can I start my own Minecraft: Bedrock Edition server?
It’s easy to get started, and we can help with that! First, purchase one of our affordable plans. Minecraft: Bedrock Edition is very lightweight, only requiring at least 500MB memory in order to run on a server. Once you have a plan, simply click on Create a Server, then select Minecraft Bedrock, and you will have a server ready to go.