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Creating Your First Server

This guide will walk you through the process of setting up your very first Minecraft server using mcup. We will create a Paper server, one of the most popular and performant server software options available.

Check Availability

Before we begin, it's helpful to see what server options are available. You can view a list of all supported server types and versions by running:

mcup server list

This command outputs a list of server types (like vanilla, paper, neoforge) and their corresponding supported versions (e.g., 1.20.1, 1.19.4).

Create the Server

Let's create the server. We'll specify the server type (paper) and the version (1.20.1). You can also specify a directory where you want the server to be created; if you don't, it will default to the current directory.

Run the following command:

mcup server create paper 1.20.1 ./my-survival-server

This tells mcup to:

  • Create a Paper server.
  • Use version 1.20.1.
  • Place all files in a new folder named my-survival-server.

Configuration

Once the command runs, mcup will check if your installed Java version is compatible and then begin the interactive configuration wizard.

EULA Acceptance

You must accept the Minecraft EULA (End User License Agreement) to run a server. mcup automatically sets this to true in the configuration, but you are responsible for reading and complying with the agreement.

Server Properties

Next, you will configure basic server.properties settings. Press Enter or type Y to accept the default values (shown in the defaults preview) or type N to type your own. These core settings are presented for all server types.

Advanced Configuration

Depending on the server type, mcup may prompt for additional configuration files. For example, Paper 1.20.1 servers require:

  • Bukkit Configuration (bukkit.yml)
  • Spigot Configuration (spigot.yml)
  • Paper Global Configuration (configs/paper-global.yml)
  • Paper World Defaults (configs/paper-world-defaults.yml)

Refer to the specific server documentation for details on these files.

Start Script Configuration

Finally, you will configure the startup script. This script handles starting and auto-restarting your server. You may be asked for:

  • Screen name: The screen session name for the running server.
  • Heap Size (MB): Initial and maximum memory allocation for the JVM.
  • Aikar's Flags: Whether to use Aikar's optimization flags (highly recommended for performance).
  • Restart Settings: Maximum restart attempts and delay between restarts.

Running the Server

After configuration, mcup downloads the necessary files and generates the configuration files and start script.

Navigate to your new server directory:

cd my-survival-server

Note

On Linux or macOS, ensure the start script is executable: 

chmod +x start.sh

To start your server, run the generated script for your operating system:

./start.sh

start.bat

Congratulations! Your server should now be starting up.

You can view its console by running screen -r <screen-name>. You can detach from the screen view by pressing Ctrl+A then D, or stop the server by pressing Ctrl+C inside the screen session.

For next steps, please see the next guide.