The More RAM You Give It The Better

There are three ways to play multiplayer Minecraft: Java Edition, which is free. - You have three options: join a public Minecraft server, create your own or buy a Minecraft Realm. - If your friends are on the same network, you can set up a LAN Minecraft server for local multiplayer.

Minecraft is a simple but endless game that has millions of players. It's easy to find new friends. It can be confusing to know how to play multiplayer together with your friends.

You can play multiplayer Minecraft with different editions of Minecraft, depending on whether you have the console-friendly Bedrock edition or the more classic Java edition. Whichever edition you have, you can only play with friends who have the same version.

Java has many different ways you can play with your friends.

Hosting a multiplayer Minecraft Server should take only a few minutes.

Here's everything you need to know.

Quick tip: To play with others, you must all have the same version Minecraft.

How to play Minecraft with friends

Servers are the basic building block of Minecraft's multiplayer mode. Each player must be on the same server.

There are thousands of Minecraft servers already out there, which you and your friends can join to play together in moments - see the section below on how to join a friend's or a public server for more details. You'll have to share these servers with many other people you don’t know.

If you and your friends want to have a private game, you can create a Minecraft server for free. It's not easy and requires a lot of work. Also, the person who creates the server will need a reliable computer and an internet connection. If this doesn't suit your needs, you can check out the other options.

Here are the steps you need to follow in order to join an existing Minecraft Java Edition server or create your own multiplayer servers.

Join a server

1. Launch Minecraft and select Multiplayer.

2. Click Add Server.

3. Enter the address of the host server in the Server Address box and click Done. This could be an address on the Internet or a URL.

4. Wait for the server connection to complete. Once it appears in the list select it and then click Join Server.

Register and join your server

The steps below will guide you through setting up a Windows 10 server. The steps are similar for both Mac and Linux computers, but not necessarily the same.

1. Launch a web browser of your choice and navigate to minecraft.net/download. Scroll down to click Java Edition Server.

2. Next, find and download Minecraft server software. Put it somewhere you'll find it. The file will contain a.jar extension.

3. Create a new folder on the computer. Give it a name and place the.jar file. This is where you'll keep all your server files. Gaming

4. Next, create a plain text file. Right-click the folder and select New, followed by Text Document. Gaming Name the text document "start.txt."

Quick tip: You can create a.txt file on a Mac using the TextEdit app. You can use "cat" to access Linux's terminal.

5. Navigate back to the Minecraft server download webpage. Copy the command text as follows:

java -Xmx1024M -Xms1024M -jar minecraft_server.1.18.2.jar nogui

Note that the numbers near the end will differ based on the most current version of Minecraft.

6. Paste the string of command text into your start.txt document.

7. Within the string of command text, you'll see the words "minecraft_server.1.18.2.jar." You'll need to rename that portion of the text "server.jar." The new line of code will now read as follows:

8. This line of code allows you to change the RAM allocation on your server. The more RAM your server has, the faster it can run, and the more stress it puts on your computer.

9. The RAM is determined using the first two numbers in the code line. These numbers are the RAM amounts in megabytes (MB). It defaults to 1024MB RAM or one gigabyte, (GB).

Quick tip: RAM is much more expensive than storage space. One gigabyte is equal to 1,024 megabytes. Set the RAM amount in multiples (1,024 megabytes).

1. Launch Minecraft while your server remains open. Select Multiplayer.

2. Select Add Server in bottom-right corner.

3. Simply type the number "0", or the word, "localhost" into the Server Address field. Gaming

Use a LAN server

1. One player should launch a game world solo and then enter the pause option. From there, they'll select Open to LAN.

2. In the menu that appears, choose the game mode and whether cheats are allowed. Then click Start LAN World.

4. The other player or players in the same network should launch Minecraft. However, rather than jumping into a world, click on the Multiplayer option from main menu.

5. Minecraft will automatically start scanning for games on the shared local network. Click Join Server to see the correct world.

6. If the server is not found, players can click Direct Connection. Under Server Address, enter your IP address followed by a colon and five-digit port number.