Pick the fork first
All three run Java Edition worlds. They differ in what they will accept on top.
- Vanilla is Mojang's own server jar. No plugins, no mods, exactly the game as shipped. If nobody has asked for anything extra, stop here.
- Paper keeps vanilla gameplay and adds a plugin system. PaperMC describe it as a drop in replacement for CraftBukkit and Spigot with no changes needed, and say migrating a vanilla world is handled for you.
- Forge runs mods, which is a different world entirely. Mods change the game for everyone, and every player needs the same mods installed on their own machine.
The line between the last two is the one that catches people, and PaperMC state it plainly in their plugin troubleshooting: a file that is "a mod for Forge, Fabric, or similar" will not run on Paper. If the thing you want is on a mod site rather than a plugin site, you want Forge, and you cannot have it on Paper by trying harder.
Java version
Whichever you pick, the Java version has to match. PaperMC publish the pairing, and it is not optional:
| Server version | Java version |
|---|---|
| 1.17 to 1.19 | Java 17 |
| 1.20 to 1.21.11 | Java 21 |
| 26.1 and later | Java 25 |
PaperMC will not support servers on unsupported, early access or internal Java builds, and say those are "often missing features, have known issues or be straight up broken". A server that refuses to start on a fresh install is usually this.
Download and first run
Mojang publish the vanilla server jar on the Minecraft site, and note that downloading it means you agree to the Minecraft End User License Agreement. Paper publishes its own runnable jars on the PaperMC downloads page.
Start it from a terminal in the server's own folder. The command has the same shape either way: java, then the -Xms and -Xmx values that set how much of the machine the server may take, then -jar and your jar name, then nogui or --nogui so you do not get a second interface on top of the console. PaperMC also publish a start script generator if you would rather not hand write it.
The first run will stop almost immediately. That is expected. It creates eula.txt, which PaperMC describe as "a simple config file that allows you to accept the EULA, which is required to run the Minecraft server". Open it, change eula=false to eula=true, and start it again.
server.properties: the settings that matter
The second run creates server.properties. Most of it can be left alone. These are the lines a small friends server actually touches, with the shipped defaults:
| Setting | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|
server-port | 25565 | The port to listen on for connections. |
max-players | 20 | How many can play at the same time. |
level-name | world | The name of the world, and the name of the folder it is saved in. |
level-seed | blank | The seed used to generate the world. Blank means random. |
difficulty | easy | peaceful, easy, normal or hard. |
gamemode | survival | survival, creative, adventure or spectator. |
motd | A Minecraft Server | The line shown under the server in the client's list. |
white-list | false | Only listed players may connect. Works with whitelist.json. |
online-mode | true | Checks connecting players against Minecraft's account database. Leave this on. |
view-distance | 10 | How much world the server sends each client, in chunks. |
simulation-distance | 10 | How far from a player things are still updated by the server. |
Two more are worth knowing because they cause confusing reports. enable-status is true by default, and turning it off makes the server "appear offline but players will still be able to connect", which looks identical to a broken server to anyone who did not change it. And enforce-whitelist is separate from white-list: it is what kicks players who are already on when you remove them from the list.
For a friends server, the honest configuration is short: set white-list=true, add everyone to whitelist.json, leave online-mode=true, and pick a difficulty. That is most of the security you need.
Ports and the world folder
Java Edition uses TCP port 25565 by default, and Mojang's own FAQ says you may need to open it so players can connect from other devices. Change it in server.properties if it is taken, and remember that everyone then has to type the port after the address.
Your world is a folder, named by level-name, sitting beside the jar. That folder plus server.properties, whitelist.json, ops.json and, on Paper, your plugins folder, is the entire server. Copy those and you have moved it.
Adding plugins on Paper
PaperMC's instructions are short and the failure modes are well documented. Drop the .jar into the plugins folder, restart, then type plugins in the console. Green means loaded, red means it failed.
Three specific traps, all from PaperMC's own troubleshooting page. Plugins must sit at the root of plugins, because "Subdirectories of the plugins folder will not be checked". An UnknownDependencyException naming another plugin means you have to install that one first. And an InvalidDescriptionException usually means what you downloaded is not a plugin at all, which brings us back to the Forge and Paper distinction above.
Updating without losing anything
PaperMC recommend updating at least once a week, and their order is worth copying whatever you run. Back up first: world folders, server configuration files, and plugin configuration files and jars. Then update plugins by putting the new jars into a folder called update inside plugins, which lets the server swap them all on the next restart. Then stop the server, replace the jar, and start it again watching the startup log for plugin errors.
Self-hosting or renting
A Minecraft server for four or five friends will run happily on a spare machine at home, and self-hosting costs nothing beyond electricity. You keep the world folder, you can copy it anywhere, and nobody can take it away from you.
The costs are the usual ones and they are real. The machine has to stay on, and it should not be the one you play from. Some home connections cannot accept incoming connections at all, and no router setting fixes that. Opening your home address to a group of friends is a decision worth making on purpose. And backups only exist if somebody keeps taking them.
Renting trades those for a monthly bill. It does not make the game run differently, and it does not remove the choices above.
Where RadarHost fits
RadarHost rents Minecraft servers hosted in Beauharnois, Quebec, Canada, in Paper, Forge or Vanilla flavours, so you pick the fork before you pick a plan. There are three plans, Standard, Premium and Diamond, priced in Canadian dollars, with no setup fee and cancel any time. Mojang's licence agreement still applies exactly as it does at home. After payment, our team reviews the order and emails setup details or next steps within 24 hours. Current plans and prices are on the Minecraft availability page.