Minecraft: Java EditionHow to Move a Minecraft Single Player World to a Server
Copy your world from .minecraft/saves to the server, set level-name, keep your own inventory and handle Paper's Nether and End folders. Java Edition.
Updated Oct 3, 2026 · 5 min read
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To move a Java single player world to a server, copy the world's folder from your saves folder (%APPDATA%\.minecraft\saves\<world> on Windows), upload it next to server.properties, and set level-name=<world> to the folder's exact name, or rename the folder to world. Run the server on the same Minecraft version or newer, keep online-mode=true, and open the world once in single player on that version first so your own character is saved by UUID and comes with you.
What you can and cannot move
| World | Can it move to a Java server? |
|---|---|
| Java single player world, same or older version than the server | Yes, this guide |
| World opened to LAN with friends | Yes, same steps. Friends keep their data too |
| Modded single player world | Yes, on a server with the same loader, mods and versions |
| A world from a newer version than the server | No. Minecraft does not downgrade worlds |
| Bedrock world (phone, console, Windows Bedrock) | No, different format. See uploading a Bedrock world |
| A Realm | Yes, after downloading it. See moving a Realms world |
Before you start
- Close Minecraft so the world is fully saved.
- Back up the world by copying the folder somewhere safe.
- Match the version. Check the version you last played it on and set the server to that version or newer.
- Match the mods. A Fabric or Forge world needs the same loader and the same mods on the server.
Step 1: Find the world folder
In Minecraft, open Singleplayer, select the world, click Edit, then Open World Folder. Or browse to it:
| System | Saves folder |
|---|---|
| Windows | %APPDATA%\.minecraft\saves\ |
| macOS | ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft/saves/ |
| Linux | ~/.minecraft/saves/ |
The folder name can differ from the name shown in game if you renamed the world. The server only cares about the folder name.
Step 2: Know what is inside
From Java Edition 26.1, Mojang reorganised the world folder, as listed in the 26.1 changelog:
| What | 26.1 and newer | Before 26.1 |
|---|---|---|
| Overworld | dimensions/minecraft/overworld/ |
region/ at the top |
| Nether | dimensions/minecraft/the_nether/ |
DIM-1/ |
| The End | dimensions/minecraft/the_end/ |
DIM1/ |
| Player inventories | players/data/<uuid>.dat |
playerdata/<uuid>.dat |
| Your own character in single player | players/data/<uuid>.dat, linked by singleplayer_uuid in level.dat |
The Player tag inside level.dat |
| Seed, game rules, spawn | level.dat |
level.dat |
| Data packs | datapacks/ |
datapacks/ |
Upload the whole folder. Do not pick files out of it.
Step 3: Upload and set level-name
- Stop the server, and back up its current
worldif it has one. - Zip your world folder and upload it to the server's main folder, next to
server.properties. Extract it there. - Check that
level.datsits directly inside the folder, not inside a second folder. - Open
server.propertiesand setlevel-nameto the folder's exact name, spaces and capitals included. Or delete the oldworldand rename yours toworld. - Start the server and join.
The gotcha: your own character
In a single player world the host's character is stored differently from everyone else's. On worlds from before 26.1 it lives in the Player tag of level.dat. A dedicated server never reads that tag. It looks for playerdata/<your uuid>.dat instead, finds nothing, and you spawn at world spawn with an empty inventory, while the world itself is fine.
From 26.1 the Player tag is gone and your character is a normal file in players/data/ named after your UUID. So the fix is simple: open the world in single player on the same version as your server, then quit, before you upload. That saves it in the current format with your character in its own file. If you cannot do that, an NBT editor can copy the old Player tag into a <uuid>.dat file, but opening the world first is far easier.
Your UUID only matches if the server runs online-mode=true. With online mode off, Minecraft makes up a different offline UUID, and you start fresh even with the right file in place.
Paper's world_nether and world_the_end
Paper and Spigot servers before 26.1 kept each dimension as its own world: world_nether/DIM-1 and world_the_end/DIM1. Upload a vanilla world and Paper moves the Nether and End out on first start, so do not create those folders yourself. From Paper 26.1 it uses the vanilla layout, with every dimension under dimensions/minecraft/ inside one world folder, as the Paper migration docs explain.
Going the other way (back to single player from an older Paper server) means copying world_nether/DIM-1 and world_the_end/DIM1 back into the main world folder.
Common problems
- Server makes a brand new world:
level-namedoes not match the folder name, orlevel.datis one folder too deep. - You spawn at spawn with nothing: the world was not opened on 26.1 or newer before upload, so your character is still in
level.dat, oronline-modeis off. - Nether or End is empty on Paper: you created empty
world_netherorworld_the_endfolders by hand. Delete them and restart with a backup. - Crash on start with a modded world: a mod or loader version differs from the one you played with.
- "Outdated server": the server runs an older version than your game. Raise it to match.
On GamezServers
On a Minecraft server from GamezServers, the file manager uploads zips, extracts them and can download a file from a link straight to the server, and Settings has an SFTP login for big worlds. Click Backup before replacing the old world, set the Minecraft version, and your world stays online for friends without your PC running. More detail on the files themselves in how to upload a world to a Minecraft server.
FAQ
Where are Minecraft single player worlds saved?
In .minecraft/saves/, which is %APPDATA%\.minecraft\saves\ on Windows and ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft/saves/ on macOS. Each world is its own folder.
Why did I lose my inventory after uploading my world?
Your single player character was stored in level.dat or under an offline UUID. Open the world once in single player on the server's version, upload again and keep online-mode=true.
Do I need to move the Nether and End separately?
No. Upload the one world folder. Paper splits or keeps the dimensions itself depending on its version.
Can I upload a 1.21 world to a 26.x server?
Yes. The server upgrades older worlds when it loads them. Back up first, because an upgraded world cannot go back to the old version.
Skip the setup. Your own Minecraft server.
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