Configuration

Configuration in the Game Server Panel

The Configuration tab bundles the central settings of your game server: name, startup command, startup variables, and — if needed — a full reinstall.

Server Name (Alias)

Every server has a freely chosen name shown in the dashboard, email notifications, and URL breadcrumb.

1. Open Configuration
2. Enter a new name in the Server Name field (e.g. “Community Vanilla”, “Clan MOD Box”)
3. Click Save

If the field is left empty, we use the default game name (e.g. “Minecraft”, “Arma Reforger”).

Startup Command

The Startup Command is the full command line used to boot your server. For most games you don’t need to touch this — the defaults are sensibly tuned.

A Minecraft startup command typically looks like:

java -Xms128M -Xmx{{SERVER_MEMORY}}M -jar server.jar nogui

Advanced users can set their own JVM flags, paths, or parameters here. Variables like {{SERVER_MEMORY}} or {{SERVER_PORT}} are resolved automatically by the panel.

The startup command is editable on Minecraft servers. For all other games we do not show it: there it carries Wine wrappers and chained parameters, and a single typo makes the server unbootable.

If you install a modpack through the modpack installer, we set the startup command to match the loader automatically — there is nothing for you to change. See the FAQ below about run.sh.

Actions:

• Save — applies the new command on the next start
• Reset — restores the template’s default command

A wrong startup command prevents the server from starting. Use Reset if you’ve misconfigured.

Startup Variables

Depending on game and template, the panel shows a list of Startup Variables — configuration fields passed as environment variables to the server. Examples:

The panel shows each field’s display name above it — that is what you look for. The technical key next to it only matters when you use the API.

Field name in the panel	Technical key	Description	Example
Server JAR file name	SERVER_JARFILE	File that starts the server	server.jar
Minecraft Version	MINECRAFT_VERSION	Game version	1.26.1
Build number	BUILD_NUMBER	Paper/Spigot build	latest
Java version	JAVA_VERSION	Java version	21
Download URL	DLURL	URL for a custom JAR download	(optional)

For Arma Reforger, this includes log level, scenario flags, or backend region. For Hytale, world ID and server name depending on template.

Each variable has:

• Label and description (what it does)
• Value (editable if isEditable is set)
• Default value (for comparison)
• Validation rules (e.g. “numbers only”, “required”)

Changes take effect on the next server start.

Reinstall

At the bottom of the Configuration tab you’ll find the Danger Zone with the Reinstall button.

⚠️ Warning: Reinstalling deletes all server files — world, plugins, mods, configuration — and freshly installs the selected template. All data is permanently lost.

When reinstall makes sense:

• The server is broken after a bad mod install
• You want to start completely fresh
• A template upgrade (e.g. Spigot → Paper) should be clean

Steps:

1. First create a backup if you want to keep anything
2. Open Configuration
3. Scroll to Reinstall
4. Click the button, read the warning, confirm
5. Server status switches to installing, the template is freshly installed
6. After 1-3 minutes the server is ready again

The server name, startup variables, and package stay the same — only files are replaced.

Fair-Use CPU and Dedicated Storage

Every RespawnHost game server gets:

• Guaranteed RAM — by package size, dedicated on the machine
• Dedicated NVMe SSD storage — fair use, typically 25-150 GB depending on package
• Fair-use CPU — you share CPU cores with other game servers on the machine but are guaranteed a fair share. Bursts (chunk loading, world saves, startup) are served with significantly more cores than average
• Premium hardware — modern AMD Ryzen CPUs, DDR5/DDR4 RAM, NVMe Gen4 SSD

Fair use means: no fixed CPU slots, no artificial throttling on burst load. Servers that permanently grab 100 % of a core (broken mods, crypto mining) get rate-limited — everyone else benefits from the headroom.

FAQ

Question: My server won’t start after editing the startup command.

Click Reset in the startup command field. The default is restored and the server boots again.

Question: How do I change the Java version?

For Minecraft templates, Java 21 is the default. Use the JAVA_VERSION startup variable to pick from 8, 11, 17, 21.

Question: Does my package stay the same after reinstall?

Yes. Reinstall only touches files — package and location are untouched.

Question: Can I restore a backup after reinstalling?

Yes. After the reinstall, go to the Backups tab and click Restore. Backup data is unaffected by the reinstall.

Question: What about memory in the startup command?

RAM is set via your package, not the startup command. The {{SERVER_MEMORY}} variable is injected automatically. Upgrade via the package upgrade flow in the server dashboard.

Question: Can I upload my own JAR?

Yes. Either via the File Manager, or via the DLURL startup variable (download URL) which the panel fetches on boot.

Question: My modpack ships a run.sh — how do I switch the startup from the JAR to the .sh?

You do not — and that is by design. From Minecraft 1.17 onwards, Forge and NeoForge ship a run.sh that does nothing more than call Java with two argument files (user_jvm_args.txt and unix_args.txt). That is exactly what our startup command does directly.

If you set the modpack up through the modpack installer (CurseForge or Modrinth), the startup command is already correct. It detects what the pack actually shipped:

• Forge / NeoForge 1.17+ — starts via unix_args.txt, and additionally loads user_jvm_args.txt if present
• Fabric, Quilt, Forge before 1.17, Vanilla, Paper — starts via the server JAR the installer recorded
• If neither exists, the Server JAR file name setting applies

So try not to put ./run.sh in the startup command. Memory would then come from the modpack’s user_jvm_args.txt instead of your plan: your server would run on whatever RAM value the pack author had on their own machine, not the one you booked.

If you uploaded the modpack by hand, the default startup command that boots a JAR file is still in place. Two ways forward:

• Recommended: install the pack through the modpack installer. We then set the startup command to match the loader, and your plan’s memory applies.
• If you want to keep your own installation: under Configuration, set Server JAR file name to the file your pack actually starts. For Forge and NeoForge 1.17+ no such file exists any more — there only the modpack installer gets you there, or you adjust the startup command yourself and set the memory in user_jvm_args.txt by hand to match your plan.