Before you start

This guide covers Minecraft Java Edition server installation. You’ll need:

A VPS running Ubuntu 24.04 LTS with at least 2GB RAM (4GB+ recommended for multiple players)
SSH access with root or sudo privileges
Basic command line familiarity

Minecraft servers are memory-hungry:

2GB RAM - 1-5 players, small world
4GB RAM - 5-15 players, moderate exploration
8GB+ RAM - 15+ players, large worlds, plugins/mods

Step 1: Update system

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Step 2: Install Java

Minecraft requires Java. Install OpenJDK 21:

sudo apt install -y openjdk-21-jre-headless

Verify:

java -version

Step 3: Create Minecraft user

For security, run under its own account:

sudo useradd -r -m -d /opt/minecraft minecraft

Step 4: Download server

Switch to minecraft user and download:

sudo -u minecraft -s
cd /opt/minecraft
wget https://piston-data.mojang.com/v1/objects/45810d238246d90e811d896f87b14695b7fb6839/server.jar

Note: Get current download link from Minecraft’s official site.

Step 5: Accept EULA

echo "eula=true" > eula.txt

Step 6: Create startup script

cat << 'EOF' > start.sh
#!/bin/bash
java -Xms1G -Xmx2G \
  -XX:+UseG1GC \
  -XX:+ParallelRefProcEnabled \
  -XX:MaxGCPauseMillis=200 \
  -jar server.jar nogui
EOF

chmod +x start.sh
exit

Adjust -Xmx to about 75% of VPS RAM.

Step 7: Create systemd service

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/minecraft.service

Add:

[Unit]
Description=Minecraft Server
After=network.target

[Service]
User=minecraft
WorkingDirectory=/opt/minecraft
ExecStart=/opt/minecraft/start.sh
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=10

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Enable and start:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable minecraft
sudo systemctl start minecraft

Step 8: Configure firewall

In ColossusCloud control panel, configure firewall:

Port 25565 (TCP) - Open for Minecraft traffic
Port 22 (SSH) - Restrict to your IP or keep closed in Global firewall

DDoS protection included

Minecraft servers are frequent DDoS targets. Good news: all ColossusCloud VPS includes DDoS protection at no extra cost.

Our DDoS mitigation provides:

Massive scrubbing capacity absorbing large attacks
Third-party DDoS scrubbing service with global presence
Always-on protection - no manual enabling needed
Automatic detection of attack traffic

When attacks hit, malicious traffic filters before reaching VPS. Legitimate player connections continue.

No configuration needed. Protection is already active.

Step 9: Test server

Check status:

sudo systemctl status minecraft

Connect to server from Minecraft using VPS IP and port 25565.

Explore VPS plans for the right amount of RAM for Minecraft servers.

Setting up a Minecraft server on Ubuntu 24.04 with DDoS protection