Server Performance Tuning

A well-tuned server runs smoother, handles more players, and wastes fewer resources. Most performance issues come from default settings — not from needing a bigger plan.

Understanding Your Resources

Check Current Usage

Your server control panel shows real-time resource graphs:

• CPU usage — how hard your server is working. Sustained use above 80% means you're under-provisioned.
• RAM usage — total memory consumed. Hitting the limit triggers the Out of Memory killer, crashing your server.
• Disk I/O — how fast data is being read or written. High I/O means lots of world activity or heavy mod load.

When to Upgrade

Minecraft Optimisation

Server Properties Tuning

Edit server.properties through your panel's file manager. These settings have the biggest performance impact:

# View distance: single largest performance factor
# Reduce from default 10 to 8 or 6 for large player counts
view-distance=8
simulation-distance=6
 
# Entity activation range
# Lower values = fewer mobs processed per tick
entity-broadcast-range-percentage=50
 
# Network compression
network-compression-threshold=256
 
# Disable unused features
allow-flight=false
spawn-protection=0
max-tick-time=60000

Java Garbage Collection

Add these flags to your server's startup parameters in the panel:

-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:G1MixedGCCountTarget=4
-XX:InitiatingHeapOccupancyPercent=15
-XX:G1MixedGCLiveThresholdPercent=90
-XX:G1RSetUpdatingPauseTimePercent=5
-XX:SurvivorRatio=32
-XX:+PerfDisableSharedMem
-XX:MaxTenuringThreshold=1

Plugin Optimisation

Not all plugins are created equal. Audit your plugin list:

1. Remove unused plugins — every plugin adds tick overhead
2. Check for known performance issues — search your plugins on the SpigotMC forums
3. Use performance analyzers — install Spark to see which plugins are consuming the most tick time
4. Limit chunk loaders — plugins that force-load chunks (like some land claim systems) multiply CPU usage

# Install Spark from console
/spark profiler start
# Let it run for 5-10 minutes during normal gameplay
/spark profiler stop
# Review the report URL it generates

Pre-generating Your World

Generating chunks on-the-fly as players explore creates lag spikes. Pre-generate your world:

1. Install the Chunky plugin
2. Set a radius (e.g. 5000 blocks)
3. Run generation during off-hours:

/chunky radius 5000
/chunky start
/chunky confirm

Pre-generation may take several hours for large radii. Run it overnight or during scheduled maintenance.

Scheduled Restarts

Restarting your server daily clears memory leaks and resets tick rate:

1. Navigate to Scheduled Tasks in your control panel
2. Create a new task:
   • Action: Restart Server
   • Frequency: Daily
   • Time: 4:00 AM (your local timezone)
   • Warning Broadcast: Enable and set to 5 minutes

General Tips (All Games)