Paper and Purpur server hosting for plugin servers
Paper is what most plugin servers run today. Here is what it is, how it compares to Spigot and Purpur, how much RAM a plugin server needs, and how to get one running on EclipsiumX in about a minute.
What Paper is, and why plugin servers use it
Paper is a Minecraft server built on Spigot. It runs the same Bukkit and Spigot plugins, so the plugin you found for a Spigot server will almost always work on Paper too.
What Paper adds is speed and control. It loads and generates chunks off the main thread, patches many slow parts of the game and fixes well-known exploits such as TNT duplication (you can turn those fixes off if your players rely on them). It also gives you two extra config files, paper-global.yml and paper-world-defaults.yml, with settings for entities, redstone, chunk loading and more.
Purpur is built on Paper. It keeps everything Paper does and adds purpur.yml, a long list of optional gameplay changes: rideable mobs, configurable mob behaviour, tweaks to mechanics. If you want vanilla gameplay that runs fast, choose Paper. If you want to bend the rules, choose Purpur.
Spigot vs Paper vs Purpur
| Spigot | Paper | Purpur | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built on | CraftBukkit | Spigot | Paper |
| Runs Bukkit/Spigot plugins | Yes | Yes, plus Paper-only plugins | Yes, same as Paper |
| Performance work | Basic | Large: async chunks, many patches | Paper's work plus its own |
| Extra settings | spigot.yml | paper-global.yml, paper-world-defaults.yml | Adds purpur.yml |
| Gameplay changes | Close to vanilla | Close to vanilla, exploit fixes | Many optional changes |
| On EclipsiumX | Not a one-click loader | One click | One click |
How much RAM a plugin server needs
Players are only part of the answer. Each loaded chunk, entity and plugin uses memory. A small survival server with ten light plugins fits in 2–4 GB. A community server with an economy, land claims, a web map and 20+ players is happier with 6–8 GB.
More RAM is not always faster. Minecraft does most of its work on one main thread, so a server that lags with free memory usually has a CPU or plugin problem, not a memory problem. A profiler plugin like spark shows you what is using each tick.
- 1–5 friends, few plugins: Starter, 2 GB
- Up to about 15 players: Survival, 4 GB
- Communities with many plugins: Community or Network, 6–8 GB
Plans
| Plan | What you get | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | 2 GB RAM · 1–5 players | €4.49/mo |
| Survival | 4 GB RAM · ≤ 15 players | €7.49/mo |
| Community | 6 GB RAM · ≤ 25 players | €10.99/mo |
| Network | 8 GB RAM · ≤ 40 players | €13.99/mo |
| Modpack | 12 GB RAM · 60+ players | €19.99/mo |
Prices per month. Billed monthly, no long contract.
See all plansSet up a Paper server on EclipsiumX
- Send your requestPick a plan on the Minecraft page and send the order form. We reply by email; once your server is created it is ready in about a minute.
- Choose Paper or PurpurSelect the loader and the Minecraft version. Java and the server are installed for you.
- Add pluginsOpen the Add-ons page. It searches Modrinth for plugins that match your server version and installs them with their required dependencies. You can also upload your own .jar files.
- Share the addressSet your free address, like your-name.eclipsiumx.com, from the panel. Players join with just that name, no port.
Tuning tips for Paper
- Lower simulation-distance before view-distance. Simulation distance decides how far mobs and crops tick, and it costs far more than drawing distant chunks.
- Pre-generate your world with a plugin like Chunky before you open. Generating new terrain while players explore is one of the heaviest jobs a server does.
- Cap entities and hoppers in paper-world-defaults.yml if large farms slow the server down.
- Update plugins one at a time and take a backup first. If something breaks, you know which change caused it.
- Changing Minecraft version later? Update or switch software from the panel; your world, plugins and settings stay.