Install Minecraft Server on Ubuntu LTS

Introduction

Minecraft is a popular sandbox video game that was created by Markus Persson and developed and published by Mojang Studios. In Minecraft, players explore a blocky, procedurally generated 3D world and can build structures, craft items, and engage in other activities.

A Minecraft server is a dedicated server that allows players to connect to the game over the internet or a local area network. By hosting a Minecraft server, players can enjoy Minecraft together with friends, regardless of their location. Setting up a Minecraft server can be done on various operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux. This guide focuses on setting up a Minecraft server on an Ubuntu-based system 18.04 / 20.04 / 22.04.

Update the system

First, update the system to ensure all packages are up to date:

$ sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

Install Java 17

Minecraft server requires Java to run, so let’s install Java 17:

$ sudo apt install openjdk-17-jdk

Create a user for the Minecraft server

It’s a best practice to run the Minecraft server as a separate user for security reasons:

$ sudo adduser minecraft

Switch to the minecraft user

Now switch to the minecraft user:

$ sudo su - minecraft

Download the Minecraft server software

Download the Minecraft server software version 1.19.3:

$ wget https://piston-data.mojang.com/v1/objects/c9df48efed58511cdd0213c56b9013a7b5c9ac1f/server.jar

Start the Minecraft server

Start the Minecraft server:

$ java -Xmx1024M -Xms1024M -jar server.jar nogui

Accept the EULA

Accept the End User License Agreement (EULA) by editing the eula.txt file:

$ nano eula.txt

Change eula=false to eula=true and save the file.

Restart the server

Stop the server with the command stop in the Minecraft console and then start it again:

$ java -Xmx1024M -Xms1024M -jar server.jar nogui

Edit server.properties

Edit the server.properties file to configure the Minecraft server:

$ nano server.properties

Here are some of the important settings you can configure in this file:

• server-name: The name of the server.
• server-port: The port the server listens on (default is 25565).
• level-name: The name of the world.
• difficulty: The difficulty level of the game (options are Peaceful, Easy, Normal, and Hard).
• gamemode: The default gamemode (options are Survival, Creative, Adventure, and Spectator).

Save the file when you’re done making changes.

Configure firewall rules

If you have a firewall enabled on your Ubuntu server, you need to allow incoming traffic on port 25565:

$ sudo ufw allow 25565/tcp

Test the Minecraft server

Finally, test the Minecraft server by connecting to it from another device on the same network using the IP address of the Ubuntu 18.04/20.04/22.04 server and the default port 25565.

You should now have a fully functioning Minecraft server version 1.19.3 running on Ubuntu with Java 17 and configured server.properties file.