When it's time to change Minecraft hosts
Every host has a bad evening. These are the signs that it's not bad luck but the way things are:
- TPS drops with only a few players online, and spark doesn't point at anything of yours: the machine is overloaded.
- Outages you hear about from your players, with no status page to check.
- Tickets answered days later, or with copy-pasted replies.
- The price went up at renewal for the same hardware.
- Your community is far from the server: distance sets a ping floor no setting can fix.
If two or more sound familiar, it's worth moving. Do it on a quiet day and tell your players a few days in advance.
Before you move: what to write down
| Write down | Where to find it | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Minecraft version | The console at startup, or the server list | The new server must run the same one |
| Server software | Panel or startup line: Paper, Fabric, Forge… | Plugins and mods only work on their own software |
| Plugin or mod list | The plugins command, or the mods folder | To check that everything arrived |
| Databases | Plugin configs that point to MySQL | They're exported separately from the files |
| Your current address | Your current host's panel | To tell players exactly what changes |
How to migrate a Minecraft server yourself, step by step
Stop the server and take a full backup
Stopping it guarantees nothing is half-written. If you really can't, run
save-alland wait for it to finish.Download everything
From the old host's panel (a backup or a zip of the whole folder) or over SFTP with FileZilla or WinSCP. Open the archive on your PC and check the world folders are inside.
Export the databases
If plugins use MySQL (LuckPerms, CoreProtect, economy plugins), export each database from the old host as a
.sqlfile. Copying files won't bring that data.Create the new server with the same version and software
Same Minecraft version, same family (Paper, Fabric or Forge). Start it once so it creates its folders, then stop it.
Upload your files
Over SFTP for anything big; the web file manager is fine for small servers. Replace the world folders and
plugins(ormods) with yours, plusserver.properties,whitelist.json,ops.jsonandbanned-players.json.Import the databases and update the configs
Create the databases in the new panel, import your
.sqlfiles and change host, user and password in each plugin's config.Start, test, then switch your players
Join and check builds, chests, permissions and plugins. Only then give players the new address, or point your own domain at it.
Moving a Minecraft world: the folders that matter
Where the world lives depends on the software. Vanilla keeps every dimension in one folder; Paper and the other Bukkit-based servers split them:
Vanilla Paper / Spigot / Purpur world/ world/ ← Overworld ├─ region/ world_nether/ ← Nether ├─ DIM-1/ ← Nether world_the_end/ ← The End ├─ DIM1/ ← The End ├─ playerdata/ └─ level.dat
Copy all of them. Going from Vanilla to Paper? Paper reorganises the folders on its first start. Bringing a single-player world instead? Here's how. Our guide to which folders are actually your world has the details.
The mistakes that break migrations
| Mistake | What happens | How to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Copying while the server runs | Half-written chunks, missing builds | Stop it first, or save-all |
A different level-name | The server generates a brand-new world | Keep the same name in server.properties |
| Forgetting the databases | Ranks, logs and balances reset | Export and import the .sql files |
| Plugins for another version | They fail to load | Update them as part of the move |
| A Java world on a Bedrock server | It won't load at all | Use a converter such as Chunker, or stay on Java |
Moving from Aternos
Aternos lets you download your world from its worlds page. Grab it, note your version and software, then follow the steps above or send it to us. Plugins from Aternos's list are public plugins you can install again here from the panel. Still deciding whether to leave? Read Aternos vs paid hosting.
Or let us do it, for free
If all of that sounds like an evening you'd rather spend playing, our migration is free on every plan. You open a ticket in our Discord, we agree a time, and we copy the world, plugins, configs, whitelist and operators, start it here and test it. Your old server stays online until the new one works.
If you remember one thing
Change hosts when the problems are structural, move on a quiet day, match the version exactly and test before you share the new address. Or open a ticket and have it done for you, free.
Questions people ask
Stop the server, download the world folders, upload them to a new server running the same version and software, and start it. Keep the same level-name in server.properties.
Not if you copy the whole server while it's stopped and use the same or a newer version. Keep the old server until you've checked the new one.
Yes. Download your world from Aternos and upload it to the new server, or send it to us and we do the move for free.
Yes, the address changes with the host, unless you use your own domain and point it at the new server.
For most SMPs the copy itself takes minutes to an hour, depending on world size and connection speed. Planning and testing take longer than the transfer.
About this article: It comes from what I have learned running EnduranceNodes, and it is published here first. We sell Minecraft hosting, so everything I say about us can be checked on this site, and I point out where we are not the best fit.