How to Set Up a Hytale Dedicated Server

Set up a Hytale dedicated server: Java 25, UDP port 5520, the two account sign-ins, every Startup option, config.json and how players connect.

Updated September 28, 2026

Hytale

A Hytale dedicated server is the standalone HytaleServer.jar that Hypixel Studios ships alongside the game. It keeps a world online whether or not anyone is playing. By Hypixel's own figures it needs Java 25, at least 4 GB of memory, and UDP port 5520, because Hytale talks QUIC over UDP rather than TCP. What trips people up is not the hardware. It is authentication: the server has to be signed in to a Hytale account before it can download its files or accept a single player.

This guide covers what a Hytale dedicated server needs, what happens on the first boot of a GameServerKings Hytale server, every option on the Startup tab, the files it writes, and how players connect. It reflects release 0.6.8 (Update 6) and was checked on 28 September 2026.

What a Hytale Dedicated Server Needs

Requirement	What Hypixel specifies	On a GameServerKings server
Runtime	Java 25, x64 or arm64	The container ships Java 25
Memory	"at least 4GB of memory"	Your plan's RAM becomes the Java heap limit (`-Xmx`)
Network	UDP 5520 by default. "TCP forwarding is not required"	Your allocated port, shown as the Address on the Console
Account	The server authenticates with a Hytale account, and there is "a limit of 500 servers per Hytale game license"	You sign it in once from the Console (see below)
Version	"Client and server must be on the exact same protocol version"	The server checks for a new build every time it starts

The version row is the one that causes most "can't connect" reports. When Hypixel ships an update, players' launchers update straight away. A server that hasn't restarted since then is still running the old build, and those players get turned away until it does.

What Happens on the First Boot

The install step on our Hytale servers is deliberately small: it downloads Hypixel's Hytale Downloader and nothing else. The game itself arrives on the first start. That means the first start asks you to sign in twice, once for each of two tools.

Sign-in 1: the Downloader. On first start the Downloader prints a sign-in link and an authorization code in the Console, then waits. Open the link in your browser, log in with the Hytale account that owns the game, and approve. The Downloader notices the approval by itself and the download carries on. Hypixel's Downloader guide says the login is saved (in a file called .hytale-downloader-credentials.json), so later starts shouldn't ask again.

Sign-in 2: the server itself. When the Console shows the server has booted, type this in the Console:

/auth login device

text

The server prints a code and a link to accounts.hytale.com/device. Open the link, enter the code and approve. The code expires after 900 seconds, so don't leave it for later. Then check the result:

/auth status
/auth persistence

text

/auth persistence shows where the login is stored. If it says Memory, the login disappears on the next restart, and the server prints a warning to that effect. Switch it to encrypted storage so it survives restarts:

/auth persistence Encrypted

text

After that, Hypixel's authentication guide says the server "stays authenticated indefinitely as long as it remains online". You only sign in again if the server is offline for more than 30 days.

Why two sign-ins?

The Downloader needs your account to fetch the game files. The running server needs its own session to talk to Hypixel's services and let players in. They are separate tools with separate logins.

The Startup Tab, Option by Option

Every Hytale option we expose is on the Startup tab. Changes apply on the next start.

Panel setting	Default	What it does	Our advice
Patchline	`release`	Which build the Downloader installs: `release` or `pre-release`	Match what your players run. See the pre-release warning below
Auth Mode	`authenticated`	`authenticated` or `offline`	Leave on `authenticated`. Hypixel says authentication exists "to enable communication with our service APIs and to counter abuse"
Allow operators	Off	Adds `--allow-op`, which lets a player use `/op self`	Leave off. See Hytale server commands for the safer way to become an operator
Accept Early Plugins	Off	Adds `--accept-early-plugins`	Only for plugins that say they need it. Hypixel calls early plugins "unsupported"
Use Ahead-of-Time Cache	On	Starts Java with Hytale's shipped AOT cache (`Server/HytaleServer.aot`)	Leave on. It shortens boot times
Disable Sentry	Off	Stops crash reports going to Hypixel	Hypixel's advice is to turn it on only while you are developing plugins
Install Source Query plugin	On	Downloads a Source Query (A2S) plugin into `mods/` on every start, so server lists and status bots can read the name and player count	Leave on unless you use a different query plugin
Source Query Port	Empty (game port + 1)	The port that plugin answers on	Only change it if a tool tells you to

Files in Your Server Root

Our Hytale servers run from the server root, so this is where the server writes its data. Open them in File Manager or over SFTP.

Path	What it is
`config.json`	Server settings: name, MOTD, password, max players, view radius, backups
`permissions.json`	Operator and permission groups
`whitelist.json`, `bans.json`	Access lists (manage them with commands)
`universe/`	Every world and all player data. This is what you back up
`mods/`	Plugins (`.jar`) and asset packs (`.zip`)
`logs/`	Server logs
`Server/`, `Assets.zip`, `version`	The game build. The `version` file is how the server tells whether an update is needed. Don't edit these

Stop the server before editing config.json

Hypixel's manual says config files are read on startup and written back during play, and "manual changes while the server is running are likely to be overwritten." Stop the server, edit, then start.

The settings most people change first, all in config.json:

ServerName and MOTD: what players see.
Password: leave it empty for no password.
MaxPlayers: the build we checked defaults to 100.
MaxViewRadius: Hypixel calls view distance "the main driver for RAM usage" and recommends a maximum of 12 chunks (384 blocks). If your server runs short of memory, lower this before anything else. You can also change it live with /maxviewradius <radius>.

How Players Connect

Players need two things: your server's Address (IP and port) from the top of the Console, which they enter in Hytale to join, and a game on the same version as the server.

Hytale doesn't read DNS SRV records yet. Hypixel's manual lists SRV support as "Unsupported. Under evaluation." A domain still works if you point an A record at the server's IP. Players type the name plus the port, for example play.example.com:5520. How to Give Your Server a Custom Address explains the setup.

For letting friends in, keeping strangers out and the whitelist, see How to play Hytale with friends.

Updates, Pre-Release and Chapter 1

The server checks for a new build on every start and downloads it when the version has changed. So after a Hytale update, restart the server and it catches up. Hytale's built-in /update commands expect Hypixel's own launcher folder layout, which a hosted server doesn't use, so use a restart instead.

Setting Patchline to pre-release puts the server on Hypixel's test builds. As of 28 September 2026 that is Update 7, which carries the upcoming Chapter 1 content. Hypixel has announced Chapter 1 for 12 October 2026, in a post on the official Hytale account on X on 24 September. hytale.com itself didn't show a date when we checked on 28 September, so treat 12 October as the planned date, not a promise. Players can only join a pre-release server if their launcher is on pre-release too, via Launcher → Settings → Pre-Release.

A world opened on a newer build may not go back

The Update 7 pre-release notes (10 September 2026) say that for cubic worlds, "a world loaded on this version cannot be opened on an older one." Take a panel backup before you switch Patchline or restart into a big update. Hytale worlds, saves and backups covers this in full.

If Players Can't Join

"Version mismatch" or an instant disconnect. The server is behind the players' game. Restart it.
The server never finishes signing in. Run /auth status. If it isn't authenticated, run /auth login device again.
The Downloader asks for a sign-in on every start, or reports an authentication error. Hypixel's fix is to delete .hytale-downloader-credentials.json and run it again. Stop the server, delete that file in File Manager, then start and sign in again. If you can't find the file, contact support.
A world won't load after you removed a mod. Hytale refuses to load a world whose required plugin is missing. Put the mod back, or see the mods guide.
Anything else: Players Can't Connect to My Server.

Hytale server commands: operators, whitelist, bans and world commands
How to install Hytale mods on a server: plugins, asset packs and the mods/ folder
Hytale worlds, saves and backups: where the world lives and how not to lose it
How to use your server panel: Console, File Manager, Startup and Backups

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