Choosing your server software
Spawnly's Minecraft servers support a wide range of server software, available from the Software tab on your server's dashboard. Pick the one that matches what you want to run:
- Vanilla — the official Mojang server, no plugin or mod support.
- Paper, Purpur, Folia, Spigot — high-performance, plugin-compatible builds. Folia adds multithreaded region-based world processing for very large servers.
- Forge, NeoForge, Fabric, Quilt — mod loaders, for servers built around client-side mods.
- Arclight — a hybrid loader that supports Forge, NeoForge, or Fabric mods alongside Bukkit plugins on the same server.
- Velocity, Waterfall, BungeeCord — proxy software for linking multiple servers into one network.
Each option lists whether it supports plugins, mods, or acts as a proxy, so you can match it to the content you plan to install.
Picking a version
Once you select a software type, the version list is pulled live from the official source for that project (Mojang's version manifest, PaperMC, Fabric, Forge, NeoForge, and so on), so you're always seeing real, currently available builds. By default only stable releases are shown — toggle Show All if you need a snapshot, beta, or release candidate.
Changing software or version later
You can switch software or version at any time from the same tab. Spawnly checks the impact before applying the change:
- Switching to a different software type is treated as a clean install — your existing world and config files will be removed.
- Changing version within the same software (e.g. Paper 1.20.1 → 1.20.4) is a lighter change and does not delete your files.
Back up first. Switching to a different software type deletes your existing world and config files. Take a backup before switching — see Managing Backups & Restoring Your Server.
Configuring server.properties
Use the Properties tab to edit your server.properties file directly through the dashboard — things like game mode, difficulty, PvP, and world settings — without needing to use the File Manager.
RAM allocation
Your server's memory tier is shown in the Overview/Config panel. To change it, use Scale RAM to move to a different tier — billing (hourly or monthly credits) adjusts automatically to match the new tier.
Your server must be stopped before you can change its RAM tier.
Next steps
Once your server is running, check out the guides on installing mods and plugins, installing modpacks, and Managing Backups & Restoring Your Server.