Install a Minecraft Server on Debian 10

Introduction

A Minecraft server allows you to play Minecraft online with other people. This guide explains how to install a Minecraft server on Debian 10 (Buster).

1. Prepare the System

• Launch a fresh Debian 10 VPS.
• Update the server with our best practices guide.
• Create a sudo user named mcuser. Follow our best practices guide. Switch to mcuser for the remainder of this guide.

2. Install Java

Install the headless OpenJDK version.

• For Minecraft versions prior to 1.17:

  $ sudo apt update
  $ sudo apt-get install openjdk-8-jdk-headless
  

• For Minecraft version 1.17 or later:

  $ sudo apt update
  $ sudo apt install openjdk-16-jdk-headless
  

3. Install Screen

Screen is a GNU utility that allows Minecraft to run in the background.

$ sudo apt install screen -y

4. Install Minecraft

Change to the mcuser home directory.

$ cd ~

Create and change to the minecraft folder.

$ mkdir minecraft
$ cd minecraft

Download the Java server. Use the URL on the Minecraft.net download page.

$ wget https://launcher.mojang.com/[NEWEST_VERSION]/server.jar

Create a startup script.

$ nano start.sh

Paste this script into start.sh. Replace 1024M with the RAM installed on your server.

#!/bin/sh

java -Xms512M -Xmx1024M -jar server.jar nogui

Make start.sh executable.

$ chmod +x start.sh

Agree to Minecraft's End User License Agreement.

$ echo "eula=true" > eula.txt

5. Start the Server

Start screen.

$ screen -S "My Minecraft Server"

Run the startup script.

$ cd ~/minecraft
$ ./start.sh

To exit out screen, press CTRL + A, then D. To open the window again, use screen -r.

Conclusion

Congratulations, you now have a Minecraft server installed on Debian 10.