Transferring your Minecraft world to a new server might seem daunting, but it’s a straightforward process. Whether you’re upgrading your server, switching providers, or simply want to move your world, this guide will walk you through the steps to successfully transfer your precious Minecraft world data. The core of your Minecraft world lies within the “world” folder, and understanding how to manage this folder is key to a smooth transfer.
Understanding Your Minecraft World Folder
Typically, your Minecraft server stores world data in folders named “world”, and often alongside “world_nether” and “world_end” for the Nether and End dimensions respectively. These folders collectively contain all the essential information about your world, making them the only components you absolutely need for importing your world onto a different server.
If you’re starting with a fresh server and wish to use your existing world, you have several options to integrate your world data. Let’s explore these methods:
Option 1: Direct Replacement of Existing World Folders
This is the most direct method. If you’re setting up a new server and want to immediately use your world, you can simply replace the default world files.
- Access your new server’s files: Use an FTP client or your hosting provider’s file manager to access the server’s file directory.
- Locate the existing world folders: Identify the default “world”, “world_nether”, and “world_end” folders (if present).
- Delete the default world folders: Remove these folders from your server. Be cautious as this is irreversible without a backup.
- Upload your world folders: Upload your existing “world”, “world_nether”, and “world_end” folders from your computer to the server in the same location where you deleted the default folders. Ensure the folder names are exactly “world”, “world_nether”, and “world_end” unless you plan to modify the server configuration file.
- Restart your server: Once the upload is complete, restart your Minecraft server. It should now load your transferred world.
Option 2: Renaming and Swapping World Folders
This method is slightly safer as it keeps the original server world files as a backup.
- Access your new server’s files: As in Option 1, access your server’s files.
- Rename existing world folders: Rename the default “world”, “world_nether”, and “world_end” folders to something like “world_backup”, “world_nether_backup”, and “world_end_backup”. This preserves them in case of issues.
- Upload your world folders: Upload your “world”, “world_nether”, and “world_end” folders to the server, alongside the renamed backup folders.
- Restart your server: Restart your server to load your transferred world.
Option 3: Adjusting the level-name in server.properties
This option allows you to use a world folder with a different name than “world”.
- Access your new server’s files: Access your server files.
- Upload your world folder: Upload your world folder (it can be named anything, for example, “my_old_world”) to the server directory. You only need to upload the main world folder; nether and end dimensions will need to be handled similarly if you have custom names for those.
- Locate
server.properties: Find theserver.propertiesfile in your server’s main directory. - Edit
server.properties: Openserver.propertieswith a text editor. - Find
level-name: Look for the linelevel-name=world. - Change
level-name: Modify the value afterlevel-name=to match the name of your uploaded world folder. For example, if your folder is named “my_old_world”, change the line tolevel-name=my_old_world. - Save
server.properties: Save the changes to the file. - Restart your server: Restart your server. It will now load the world from the folder you specified in
level-name.
Important Note on World Folder Naming:
By default, Minecraft servers look for a world folder named “world”. If your world folder has a different name, the server won’t load it unless you correctly specify the folder name in the server.properties file using the level-name setting. Ensure that the level-name in your server.properties precisely matches the name of your world folder.
Player Data Considerations
Minecraft saves player data within the world folder by default. This includes player inventories, positions, advancements, and statistics. Therefore, transferring just the “world” folder will usually include all player data for standard servers and single-player worlds.
However, certain server plugins, such as Essentials, can alter how player data is stored. Plugins like Essentials often store player data outside of the world folder, typically in the plugin’s own directory under a folder like userdata. If your server uses such plugins and you wish to preserve player data, you may need to transfer these plugin data folders as well, depending on your desired server setup on the new server. If you are moving to a server without these plugins and want to revert to standard Minecraft player data storage, some plugins might offer options to export player data back into the standard world folder structure.
Server vs. World Folder: Clarifying the Difference
It’s crucial to distinguish between a “world folder” and an “entire server”. The “world folder” is just one part of a Minecraft server, containing the world data itself. An “entire server” encompasses all files necessary to run the server, including server software (like Spigot, Paper, Fabric), configuration files (like server.properties, bukkit.yml, spigot.yml), plugins, and potentially more.
If you are transferring an entire server setup, you would typically copy all server files, including the world folder. If you are only interested in moving the world data, then focusing on the “world” folder (and associated dimension folders) is sufficient.
By following these methods, you can successfully transfer your Minecraft world data to a new server and continue your adventures seamlessly. Remember to always back up your world data before making any major changes to prevent data loss.
