How to Install a Custom Server Jar on Your Minecraft Server

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Want to run a custom version of Minecraft, a modded jar, or your own server build? Serverwave makes it easy to upload and use a custom server jar, giving you full control over your setup. ---

What Is a Custom Server Jar? A server jar is the main file that runs your Minecraft server — examples include: paper.jar for Paper servers forge-1.20.1.jar for Forge modded servers fabric-server-launch.jar for Fabric Or your own custom-compiled jar By uploading a custom jar, you can: Run custom server types or forks (e.g. Purpur, Mohist, Arclight) Use specific mod or plugin versions * Host experimental builds or private versions ---

What You’ll Need: Your custom .jar file ready (from a trusted source). Access to your Serverwave Control Panel. SFTP or File Manager access. Your server is fully stopped before changing jars.

|| Need help connecting via SFTP? See our guide: How to Use SFTP on Serverwave ---

1. Stop Your Server In the panel, click Stop and wait until the server status shows Offline.

2. Upload Your Custom Jar Option 1: Via File Manager: Go to File Manager → Upload, select your .jar, and place it in the root directory (same folder as server.properties). Option 2: SFTP (Alternative): Connect via SFTP → Upload the .jar to the root folder.

||| Don’t put it inside subfolders like /plugins/ or /mods/.

3. Rename The server jar must be called server.jar otherwise the server will not start.

4. Start Your Server - Click Start. If the jar is configured correctly, the console will show your custom server running.

Troubleshooting ❌ “Unable to access jarfile” → The filename you uploaded doesn’t have the name server.jar. Double-check the name (including .jar) and that the file is in the root directory. 🕹 “Server crashes immediately” → Your jar may be missing dependencies or requires more RAM. Check the console logs for details or verify the jar’s compatibility. ⚠️ File won’t upload → If your file is large, try uploading via SFTP instead of the File Manager. 💡 Serverwave Tip: You can keep multiple jars uploaded (like paper.jar, purpur.jar, and forge.jar) — just update the name to server.jar to switch between them anytime. ---