Turn off PvP on your Minecraft server

PvP is what lets players damage each other. Where you switch it off depends on your Minecraft version, because Mojang moved the setting. In 1.21.9 and newer it is a game rule you change from the Console, and in older versions it is a line in server.properties that the Config Editor edits.

Checked against Minecraft 26.3, October 2026.

Check your Minecraft version

Look at the Version cell in the left rail of your server panel, or open JAR Manager, which shows the Minecraft version your server runs. If it reads 1.21.9 or higher, including the 26.x releases, use the first section. If it reads 1.21.8 or lower, skip to the second.

Turn PvP off on 1.21.9 and newer

Mojang's snapshot 25w35a removed the pvp property from server.properties and added a pvp game rule in its place. A game rule can change while the server is running, so you do not need a restart.

1. Open the Console tab and press Start if the server is offline.
2. Click the Send a command box and type gamerule pvp false, without a leading slash. Press Enter.
3. Type gamerule pvp on its own to read the current value back.

PvP is on by default, so gamerule pvp true turns it back on. A game rule belongs to one world, so check it again after you start a new world.

Turn PvP off on 1.21.8 and older

1. Open the Config Editor tab.
2. In the Gameplay section, switch PvP off.
3. Press Save changes.
4. Go to the Console tab and press Restart. The editor reminds you with "Restart the server to apply it."

If the editor says server.properties does not exist yet, start the server once and it writes the file. Minecraft server.properties explained covers the other settings in that file.

Allow PvP in some places only

A game rule or server.properties switch covers the whole world. If you want PvP off at spawn but on in the wilds, use a plugin on Paper or Purpur. WorldGuard has a pvp region flag that decides whether player versus player combat is permitted in that region, and Set up WorldGuard on your Minecraft server shows how to draw regions. Set up PvPManager on your Minecraft server is the other option: it can switch PvP off for a single player, a world or the whole server.

Check it worked

Ask two players to hit each other in a quiet spot, or confirm the rule yourself on the server. On a newer server, gamerule pvp in the Console prints the value. Every console command you send is recorded in the Audit Logs tab with the name of whoever ran it, which helps when a co-admin changes the rule later. View who did what on your Minecraft server explains that tab.