Vanilla, Paper, Fabric or Forge? Choosing your server software

Before anyone joins your server, you have to make one decision that shapes everything after it: which server software to run. It decides whether you can use plugins, whether you can use mods, and how well your server performs under load.

The good news: switching later is possible in most cases, but starting on the right one saves you headaches. Here is what each option actually is.

Vanilla — the official server

Vanilla is the server software Mojang ships. It runs the game exactly as designed: no plugins, no mods, no behaviour changes.

It works fine for a handful of friends playing plain survival, but it is the least optimized option. It also gives you almost no admin tools beyond the basic built-in commands.

• ✦Pick it if: you want a 100% unmodified experience for a few players
• ✦Avoid it if: you want plugins, performance tweaks or more than ~10 players

Paper (and Spigot) — the plugin servers

Spigot extended the original Bukkit project and introduced the plugin ecosystem most server admins know today. Paper is a fork of Spigot that is significantly faster and has become the standard for plugin-based servers.

Plugins are server-side only. Your players join with their normal, unmodified Minecraft client — they don't need to install anything. That makes Paper the safest choice for a public or semi-public server.

If you want even more configuration options, Purpur is a fork of Paper with extra gameplay toggles, but Paper is the sensible default.

• ✦Pick it if: you want plugins (economy, protection, permissions, minigames)
• ✦Pick it if: you just want better performance than Vanilla with zero downsides
• ✦Avoid it if: you specifically need Forge or Fabric mods

Fabric — the lightweight mod loader

Fabric is a modern, lightweight mod loader. It updates to new Minecraft versions very quickly and is popular for performance mods (Lithium, Krypton) and tech-focused communities.

Unlike plugins, most gameplay mods need to be installed on the server and on every player's client. That is the trade-off of any modded server: more power, more setup for your players.

• ✦Pick it if: you want a lightly modded server or maximum performance mods
• ✦Pick it if: you want to play the newest Minecraft version with mods early

Forge & NeoForge — the modpack standard

Forge is the oldest major mod loader and the foundation of most large modpacks. NeoForge is a community-driven continuation of Forge that most modern packs have moved to.

If you want to run a big modpack like the 'All the Mods' series, the pack itself decides the loader for you — you install whatever the pack was built on.

• ✦Pick it if: you want to run an established modpack
• ✦Keep in mind: large modpacks need significantly more RAM — see our RAM guide

Quick decision table

• ✦Plain survival with friends → Paper (yes, even then — it's just faster)
• ✦Public server with plugins → Paper
• ✦Light mods / newest versions → Fabric
• ✦Big modpacks → whatever the pack uses (usually NeoForge/Forge)
• ✦Purist, untouched gameplay → Vanilla