How to Move Your Minecraft Server from One Host to Another?

There comes a moment in every server owner’s journey when the current walls start closing in. Perhaps your community has outgrown the limited RAM of a budget plan, or maybe you’re tired of the “no-name” hardware causing lag spikes during peak hours. You’ve decided it’s time to upgrade to a higher-tier minecraft server hosting provider.

But then, the anxiety sets in. You have months of player builds, complex Redstone contraptions, and thousands of lines of configuration in your minecraft server plugins. The thought of a corrupted chunk or a wiped inventory is enough to keep any admin up at night.

In this exhaustive 2026 guide, we are teaching you How to Move Your Minecraft World from One Host to Another Without Data Loss. Whether you are running a small private world or a massive public minecraft server, this step-by-step blueprint ensures a “Zero-Downtime” style transition that keeps your player base happy and your data intact.

1. Why Move? The Signs You Need Better Minecraft Server Hosting

Before we dive into the “how,” let’s look at the “why.” Not all minecraft servers are created equal. If you are experiencing any of the following, it is likely time to migrate to a more robust infrastructure:

Low TPS (Ticks Per Second): Your server stays below 18 TPS even with few players online.
Poor Single-Thread Performance: Your current host uses older Xeon CPUs instead of modern Ryzen or high-clock Intel chips.
Lack of Control: You can’t access your startup flags or manage your own backups.
Scaling Issues: You want to follow our [Case Study: How Lifesteal SMP Reached 500 Players in 3 Months] but your current host hits a “player cap” too early.

Moving to a low lag minecraft server environment is the best gift you can give your community.

2. Pre-Migration Checklist: The “Point of No Return”

Successful migration is 90% preparation and 10% execution. Before you touch a single file, you must complete this checklist to ensure you don’t lose progress.

A. Perform a “Cold” Backup

Never try to copy files while the server is running. This leads to “Partial Chunk Saves,” which causes the dreaded “Chunk Reset” bug where a player’s base disappears.

Announce a maintenance window in your Discord (using one of [The Best Discord Bots for Minecraft Server Management in 2026]).
Issue the /stop command.
Trigger the “Backup” function on your old host’s panel.

B. Gather Your Credentials

You will need the SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol) details for both your old and new hosts. This usually includes:

Host/IP Address
Port (usually 2022 or 22)
Username
Password (or SSH Key)

C. Verify Version Consistency

Ensure the new server is set to the exact same Minecraft version (e.g., 1.21.1) and Server Jar (Paper, Fabric, Purpur) as the old one. Mixing a Paper world with a Vanilla jar can lead to inventory loss or broken custom items.

3. Step-by-Step Guide: Moving Files via SFTP

While some hosts offer “Auto-Importers,” the manual SFTP method is the only way to guarantee you have moved every single file. For this, we recommend using FileZilla or WinSCP.

Step 1: Connect to the Old Host

Open your SFTP client and enter the credentials for your old host. You should see a root directory containing folders like world, plugins, and logs.

Step 2: Create a Local Archive (The “Download” Phase)

Instead of downloading 10,000 tiny plugin files one by one (which takes hours), use your host’s “File Manager” to Zip/Archive your entire directory.

Select all files -> Right-click -> Compress/Archive.
Name the file server_backup_full.zip.
Download this single .zip file to your computer.

Expert Tip: If your world folder is massive (over 20GB), consider deleting the logs and backups folders before zipping to save time. These aren’t necessary for the server to run.

Step 3: The Big Upload

Connect to your new host via SFTP.

Upload your server_backup_full.zip to the root directory.
On the new host’s control panel, use the “File Manager” to Unarchive/Extract the file.
Ensure the folders are in the root (e.g., /world, not /server_backup_full/world).

4. Handling Databases: Migrating LuckPerms and MySQL

If you are running a professional public minecraft server, you likely aren’t using flat files for your ranks and permissions. You are likely using MariaDB or MySQL.

How to move a database:

Export: On your old host, go to phpMyAdmin and click Export on your database (e.g., luckperms_db).
Save: This will give you a .sql file.
Import: On your new host, create a new database. Go to its phpMyAdmin, click Import, and upload the .sql file.
Update Configs: Go into your plugins/LuckPerms/config.yml on the new server and update the MySQL address, username, and password to match the new host.

Failure to do this will result in every player losing their ranks and becoming “Guests” upon joining.

5. Domain and DNS: The Final Switch

You’ve moved the files, but your players are still trying to connect to the old IP address. This is where DNS (Domain Name System) comes in.

If you have a custom IP like play.myserver.com, you need to update your “A Record” or “SRV Record.”

A Record: Change the “Content” field from the Old IP to the New IP.
SRV Record: If your new host uses a non-standard port (e.g., 25601), you must update the SRV record to reflect this.

Note: DNS propagation can take anywhere from 5 minutes to 24 hours. During this time, some players will land on the old server and some on the new one. This is why you should keep the old server OFF once the move is complete to avoid “Split Progress.”

6. Pros and Cons of Migration Methods

Method	Pros	Cons
Manual SFTP	Most reliable; you know exactly what moved.	Slower; requires technical knowledge of file structures.
Auto-Importer	Fast; “one-click” solution provided by some hosts.	Can fail on large worlds; might miss hidden configuration files.
Plugin-based (e.g. MyDrive)	Good for specific world folders.	Doesn’t move the actual server JAR or system configs.

7. Common Mistakes When Moving Minecraft Servers

Even the best minecraft servers run into issues during a move. Avoid these common pitfalls:

Level-Name Mismatch: In your server.properties, the level-name= must match the name of your world folder exactly. If your folder is named Survival_2026 but the property says world, the server will generate a brand-new, empty map.
Permission Ownership: On Linux-based minecraft server hosting, sometimes uploaded files are owned by “root” instead of the “container user.” If the server won’t start, use the “Repair Permissions” button on your panel.
Forgetting the usercache.json: This file maps player names to their UUIDs. If you forget this, players might see “Player” instead of their names in certain plugin lists.
The “Online Mode” Toggle: If your old server was in online-mode=false and you switch the new one to true, players will have different UUIDs. They will spawn with empty inventories. Refer to our guide on [How to run a minecraft server: Offline vs Online Mode] for the fix.

8. Expert Tips for a Perfect Transition

Pre-Generate Chunks: Before letting players in, use the Chunky plugin to re-load the world border. This ensures your new CPU is ready for the load.
JVM Optimization: Moving hosts is the perfect time to implement [Deep Dive into Aikar’s Flags]. Most new hosts allow you to paste these flags into the startup settings for a low lag minecraft server experience.
Update GeyserMC: If you allow Bedrock players, remember to update your [Guide to GeyserMC] settings, as Bedrock players are particularly sensitive to IP and Port changes.
Test with “Dummy” Accounts: Before announcing the launch, join the server yourself and break a block, then re-join to see if it saved. Check your /vault and inventories to ensure no data was lost.

FAQ: People Also Ask

Can I move a world from Singleplayer to a Hosted Server?

Yes! The process is almost identical. You find your world in %appdata%/.minecraft/saves, zip it, and upload it to the server. Just remember to rename the folder to match the level-name in your server.properties.

Will my plugins work on the new host?

As long as the Java version is the same (usually Java 17 or 21 in 2026), they will work. However, you must update any “License Keys” in your premium minecraft server plugins, as some developers lock their plugins to a specific IP address.

How long does it take to move a server?

For a standard survival server (1-5GB), the process takes about 30 to 60 minutes. For massive networks with multiple terabytes of data, it can take several hours of upload time.

Conclusion: Ready for the Next Chapter

Learning How to Move Your Minecraft World from One Host to Another Without Data Loss is a rite of passage for every successful server administrator. It marks the transition from “experimenting” to “growing.” By following the SFTP archive method, migrating your databases correctly, and updating your DNS, you ensure that your players’ hard work is protected.

A server move is the perfect time to re-evaluate your community goals. If you want to improve player stay-times on your new hardware, don’t forget to check out our analysis of [The Psychology of Player Retention].