Build a multi-server Minecraft network
How a Minecraft network with a lobby works, and how to link two or more of your servers behind one address from the Networks page.
A network puts several of your Minecraft servers behind one address. Players join a lobby first, then hop between your other servers from inside the game, for example a survival world, a creative plot server and a minigames server. The Networks page in your dashboard builds one. Our team sets up the proxy that joins the servers together, so there is nothing to install or configure yourself.
How a network works
A proxy sits in front of your servers. Players connect to the proxy's address, land on the lobby, and move between servers with the /server command. Typing /server on its own shows the server they are on and the others they can move to. We use Velocity, the proxy from the PaperMC project.
Each server in a network is still an ordinary server on your account with its own console, files, plugins and backups. Setting up the network adds the shared address and the lobby, and we configure each server's Velocity forwarding as part of that.
Before you start
You need at least two Minecraft servers on your account. The Networks entry in the dashboard menu only appears once you have two, and with fewer, opening the page directly says You need at least two Minecraft servers. Only your own Minecraft servers can be added.
Create a network
- Open Networks in your dashboard and click New network.
- Type a Network name.
- Under Pick servers & a lobby, tick each server to include.
- Click Set lobby on the server players should land on first. If you skip this, the first server you ticked becomes the lobby.
- Click Create network.
The form needs a name and at least two servers, and says so if either is missing. Under What happens next, the page explains that we provision a Velocity proxy for the network and wire each server's forwarding. Until that is done, the card shows Proxy setup pending - we'll assign it shortly. When the proxy is live, the Network address appears on the card with a copy button. Give that address to your players.
Change or remove a network
- Click Edit on the card to add or remove servers or rename the network, then Save changes. The network keeps its join address, and we rewire the proxy for the servers you added or removed.
- Click the bin button and confirm Delete network? with Delete to remove the network from your account page. Your servers are not deleted.
Look after the servers behind it
Plugins, mods and player lists belong to each server. Install plugins from every server's own Plugins tab, and manage the whitelist and operators from each server's Players tab. See Install plugins on Paper or Purpur and Whitelist players and set operators.
To let players on other Minecraft versions join a network, install ViaVersion on the servers rather than on the proxy, which we run. ViaVersion's own documentation says it is needed on either the proxy or the servers behind it, not both. Set up ViaVersion has the steps.
What we do not offer
The JAR Manager has no proxy option. Its software choices are Vanilla, Paper, Purpur, Fabric, Forge and NeoForge, plus Folia and Quilt where they are switched on. There is no BungeeCord or Waterfall option, and Velocity networks are built only through the Networks page. PaperMC's own Waterfall page recommends moving to Velocity.
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