How to Run a Minecraft Server Network (BungeeCord/Velocity) on a VPS

A single Minecraft server has limits — one game mode, one world, one experience. A Minecraft server network changes everything: players connect to one address and can switch between Survival, Creative, SkyBlock, PvP, and minigame servers instantly, all running as separate servers behind a single proxy. This is how large Minecraft networks like Hypixel and Mineplex operate — and you can build your own version on a VPS.

This guide covers setting up a Minecraft network using Velocity (the modern, recommended proxy) or BungeeCord (the classic option), running multiple backend servers, and configuring the full network on a VPS.

How a Minecraft Network Works

Players connect to:  play.yournetwork.com:25565
                              │
                        ┌─────▼─────┐
                        │  Velocity  │  ← Proxy server (port 25565)
                        │  (Proxy)   │     Routes player connections
                        └─────┬─────┘
                              │
              ┌───────────────┼───────────────┐
              │               │               │
        ┌─────▼─────┐  ┌──────▼─────┐  ┌─────▼──────┐
        │  Survival  │  │  Creative  │  │  SkyBlock  │
        │ (port 25566)│  │(port 25567)│  │(port 25568)│
        └────────────┘  └────────────┘  └────────────┘

Players see one network address. The proxy routes them to the correct backend server, handles login, and manages cross-server communication.

Velocity vs BungeeCord

Use Velocity for any new network. BungeeCord only makes sense if you need specific legacy plugins that haven’t been updated for Velocity.

VPS Requirements for a Network

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Step 1: System Preparation

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
sudo apt install openjdk-21-jre-headless screen -y

# Create dedicated minecraft user
sudo useradd -m -s /bin/bash minecraft
sudo su - minecraft

Step 2: Create Directory Structure

mkdir -p ~/network/{proxy,survival,creative,skyblock}
# Each directory will hold one server instance

Step 3: Set Up the Velocity Proxy

cd ~/network/proxy

# Download Velocity (check papermc.io for latest version)
wget https://api.papermc.io/v2/projects/velocity/versions/3.3.0-SNAPSHOT/builds/latest/downloads/velocity-3.3.0-SNAPSHOT-latest.jar \
  -O velocity.jar

Start Velocity once to generate config files

screen -S proxy
java -Xms512M -Xmx1G -jar velocity.jar
# Press Ctrl+C after it generates configs
# Detach: Ctrl+A then D

Configure velocity.toml

nano ~/network/proxy/velocity.toml

# The port players connect to
bind = "0.0.0.0:25565"

# Your MOTD (shows in server list)
motd = "&aWelcome to &bMyNetwork&a!"

# Maximum players shown in server list
show-max-players = 500

# Online mode — set to true for premium/authenticated players
online-mode = true

# Security — MUST use "modern" forwarding with Paper backends
player-info-forwarding-mode = "modern"

# Backend servers
[servers]
survival  = "127.0.0.1:25566"
creative  = "127.0.0.1:25567"
skyblock  = "127.0.0.1:25568"

# Where players go when they first join
try = ["survival"]

[forced-hosts]
# Force players from specific domains to a server
# "survival.yournetwork.com" = ["survival"]

[advanced]
compression-threshold = 256
compression-level = -1
login-ratelimit = 2000

Get the forwarding secret

cat ~/network/proxy/forwarding.secret
# Copy this value — you'll need it for each backend server

Step 4: Set Up Backend Servers (Paper)

Each game mode runs as a separate Paper server. Paper is strongly recommended over vanilla Spigot for network setups.

cd ~/network/survival

# Download Paper (check papermc.io for latest)
wget https://api.papermc.io/v2/projects/paper/versions/1.21.1/builds/latest/downloads/paper-1.21.1-latest.jar \
  -O paper.jar

# Accept EULA
java -Xmx2G -jar paper.jar nogui
echo "eula=true" > eula.txt

Configure server.properties for Velocity

nano server.properties

# Bind to localhost only — never expose backend servers publicly
server-ip=127.0.0.1
server-port=25566

# CRITICAL: Set to false — authentication is handled by the proxy
online-mode=false

# Prevent players from connecting directly to backend (bypassing proxy)
prevent-proxy-connections=true

Configure Paper for Velocity forwarding

nano config/paper-global.yml

proxies:
  velocity:
    enabled: true
    online-mode: true
    secret: "PASTE_YOUR_FORWARDING_SECRET_HERE"

Repeat for each backend server

# Creative server
cd ~/network/creative
# Same setup, port 25567

# SkyBlock server  
cd ~/network/skyblock
# Same setup, port 25568

Step 5: Create Start Scripts

nano ~/network/proxy/start.sh

#!/bin/bash
cd ~/network/proxy
screen -S proxy java -Xms512M -Xmx1G \
  -XX:+UseG1GC \
  -XX:G1HeapRegionSize=4M \
  -XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions \
  -XX:+ParallelRefProcEnabled \
  -XX:+AlwaysPreTouch \
  -jar velocity.jar

nano ~/network/survival/start.sh

#!/bin/bash
cd ~/network/survival
screen -S survival java -Xms1G -Xmx2G \
  -XX:+UseG1GC \
  -XX:+ParallelRefProcEnabled \
  -XX:MaxGCPauseMillis=200 \
  -XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions \
  -XX:+DisableExplicitGC \
  -XX:+AlwaysPreTouch \
  -XX:G1NewSizePercent=30 \
  -XX:G1MaxNewSizePercent=40 \
  -XX:G1HeapRegionSize=8M \
  -XX:G1ReservePercent=20 \
  -XX:G1HeapWastePercent=5 \
  -XX:G1MixedGCCountTarget=4 \
  -XX:InitiatingHeapOccupancyPercent=15 \
  -XX:G1MixedGCLiveThresholdPercent=90 \
  -XX:G1RSetUpdatingPauseTimePercent=5 \
  -XX:SurvivorRatio=32 \
  -XX:+PerfDisableSharedMem \
  -XX:MaxTenuringThreshold=1 \
  -jar paper.jar nogui

chmod +x ~/network/*/start.sh

Step 6: Create a Master Network Start Script

nano ~/network/start-network.sh

#!/bin/bash
echo "Starting Minecraft Network..."

# Start backend servers first
bash ~/network/survival/start.sh
sleep 5
bash ~/network/creative/start.sh
sleep 5
bash ~/network/skyblock/start.sh
sleep 10

# Start proxy last (after backends are ready)
bash ~/network/proxy/start.sh

echo "Network started! Use 'screen -ls' to see all sessions"

chmod +x ~/network/start-network.sh

Step 7: Configure Firewall

# Exit minecraft user
exit

# Only expose the proxy port publicly
sudo ufw allow 25565/tcp   # Velocity proxy — players connect here

# Backend server ports stay on localhost — NEVER expose them publicly
# They're only accessible via 127.0.0.1 from the proxy
sudo ufw reload

Step 8: Essential Network Plugins

For Velocity (Proxy plugins)

For Paper backend servers

Step 9: Auto-Start on Reboot with Systemd

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/minecraft-network.service

[Unit]
Description=Minecraft Network
After=network.target

[Service]
User=minecraft
WorkingDirectory=/home/minecraft/network
ExecStart=/bin/bash /home/minecraft/network/start-network.sh
ExecStop=/home/minecraft/network/stop-network.sh
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=30

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

sudo systemctl enable minecraft-network
sudo systemctl start minecraft-network

Step 10: Monitoring the Network

# View all running screen sessions
screen -ls

# Attach to a specific server console
screen -r proxy    # Velocity proxy console
screen -r survival # Survival server console

# Detach without stopping: Ctrl+A then D

# Check resource usage
htop
# Look for java processes — each server is a separate java process

Scaling Beyond One VPS

When your network grows beyond what one VPS can handle, distribute the load:

• VPS 1 — Velocity proxy + lobby server
• VPS 2 — Survival + SkyBlock (CPU/RAM intensive)
• VPS 3 — Minigames + PvP (high player count)

Velocity supports backend servers on different IPs. Update velocity.toml:

[servers]
survival = "192.168.1.2:25566"   # Different VPS
skyblock  = "192.168.1.3:25566"   # Another VPS

Use a private network between VPS instances (or VPN) to keep backend server traffic off the public internet.

Final Thoughts

A Minecraft network on a VPS is one of the most rewarding server projects you can build. Velocity’s modern architecture, Paper’s performance optimizations, and a well-structured directory layout give you a professional-grade network that can grow from 10 players to hundreds.

VPS.DO’s KVM VPS plans — with dedicated RAM, 1 Gbps ports, and full root access — provide the ideal foundation. Start with the 4 GB RAM plan for testing, and upgrade to 8 GB or the 30IPs plan as your player count grows.