Setting Up a Minecraft Bedrock Server Behind Traefik Proxy

Exposing your Minecraft Bedrock server to the internet can be tricky, especially when you’re aiming for secure and managed access. Traefik, a modern reverse proxy and load balancer, can be a powerful tool for this, similar to how it streamlines access for web-based applications. However, configuring Traefik for UDP-based services like Minecraft Bedrock requires a slightly different approach than standard HTTP/HTTPS routing. This guide will walk you through setting up your Bedrock server behind a Traefik proxy, addressing common challenges and ensuring your server is both accessible and secure.

Understanding the UDP Requirement for Minecraft Bedrock

Unlike web applications that primarily use TCP, Minecraft Bedrock Edition relies heavily on UDP for game traffic. This is because UDP offers faster data transmission, crucial for real-time gaming interactions, even though it doesn’t guarantee packet delivery in the same way TCP does. When setting up Traefik, it’s essential to correctly configure UDP entry points and routing to handle Bedrock’s network needs.

Configuring Traefik for UDP

To accommodate Bedrock’s UDP traffic, you need to define UDP entry points in your traefik.yml configuration file. This involves specifying an address and protocol for Traefik to listen on for UDP connections. Here’s how you can define entry points for both TCP and UDP to manage Bedrock traffic:

entryPoints:
  http:
    address: ":80"
  https:
    address: ":443"
  bedrock:
    address: ":19132/udp"

In this configuration, we’ve defined a bedrock entry point specifically for UDP traffic on port 19132, which is the default port for Minecraft Bedrock servers. It’s important to note the /udp suffix in the address, which explicitly tells Traefik to handle UDP connections on this entry point.

Docker Compose for Traefik and Minecraft Bedrock

When deploying with Docker Compose, you need to ensure that the necessary ports are exposed and correctly mapped between the host and the Docker containers. For Traefik, you typically expose ports 80 and 443 for HTTP and HTTPS. For Minecraft Bedrock, you need to expose the UDP port 19132. Here’s an example of how you might configure the ports section in your docker-compose.yml for Traefik:

ports:
  - "80:80"
  - "443:443"
  - "19132:19132/udp"

This configuration maps the host’s port 19132 UDP to the container’s port 19132 UDP. Make sure that the Minecraft Bedrock container is also configured to use port 19132 internally.

Below is an example docker-compose.yml for the Minecraft Bedrock server itself. We are using toasterlint/minecraft_bedrock image as referenced in the original post.

version: '3'
services:
  minecraft:
    image: toasterlint/minecraft_bedrock
    ports:
      - "19132:19132/udp" # Expose UDP port 19132
    environment:
      EULA: "TRUE" # Accept Minecraft EULA
      SERVER_NAME: "My Bedrock Server"
    volumes:
      - minecraft_data:/data/

volumes:
  minecraft_data:

Traefik Routing for UDP

Unlike HTTP routing rules that use hostnames and paths, UDP routing in Traefik is simpler and generally based on the entry point. For Minecraft Bedrock, you primarily need to ensure that traffic arriving at the bedrock UDP entry point is forwarded to your Minecraft container. Since Bedrock Edition typically uses direct IP and port connections rather than hostnames in the game client, hostname-based routing might not be directly applicable in the same way as web applications.

However, if you intend to use a domain name or subdomain to point to your server’s IP address, this DNS configuration is handled outside of Traefik’s routing. Players will use your domain name which resolves to your server’s public IP, and Traefik will forward the UDP traffic arriving on port 19132 to the Minecraft container.

Here’s a basic example of how you might configure Traefik static configuration (e.g., in traefik.yml) to handle UDP for Minecraft, although for UDP services, the routing is primarily entrypoint based and less about complex rules:

providers:
  docker:
    exposedByDefault: false

entryPoints:
  http:
    address: ":80"
  https:
    address: ":443"
  bedrock:
    address: ":19132/udp"

services:
  minecraft-bedrock-service:
    loadBalancer:
      servers:
        - address: "minecraft:19132" # Assuming 'minecraft' is your service name in docker-compose

routers:
  minecraft-bedrock-router:
    entryPoints:
      - bedrock
    service: minecraft-bedrock-service

Note: This is a simplified example. In many cases, for UDP services like Minecraft Bedrock, you might not need explicit routers and services defined in Traefik if you are simply forwarding all traffic from the UDP entry point to a backend service. The entrypoint itself acts as the primary routing mechanism.

Troubleshooting and Common Issues

Server not showing up in the game: Ensure that UDP port 19132 is correctly exposed in your Docker Compose for both Traefik and the Minecraft Bedrock server. Double-check firewall rules on your server and network.
“Invalid entry point” errors: When configuring routers, especially for UDP, make sure you are referencing the correct entry point name (e.g., bedrock in our example) and that the entry point is correctly defined as UDP.
Certificate errors: For UDP services like Minecraft Bedrock, TLS/SSL certificates (typically used for HTTPS) are not directly applicable to the game traffic itself. Certificates managed by Traefik are primarily for securing web interfaces (like the Traefik dashboard) or if you were to expose a web-based control panel for your Minecraft server (which is separate from the game server itself). You can ignore certificate configurations related to the Bedrock game server connection.
LAN vs. Internet connectivity: If your server is accessible on LAN but not over the internet, the issue likely lies in port forwarding, firewall settings, or DNS configuration. Ensure your domain name (if used) correctly points to your public IP, and port 19132 UDP is forwarded to your Traefik server.

Conclusion

Setting up a Minecraft Bedrock server behind Traefik requires understanding the UDP protocol and configuring Traefik’s entry points and Docker Compose accordingly. By correctly defining UDP entry points, exposing the necessary ports, and ensuring your Minecraft server is properly configured, you can successfully manage access to your Bedrock server through Traefik. Remember to focus on UDP configurations and port mappings when troubleshooting, as these are the key differences compared to setting up Traefik for typical web applications.