How to Install Plugins on a Minecraft Server: Paper, Spigot and Purpur

Plugins and mods are not the same thing

A plugin is a file with the .jar extension that runs only on the server. It works on servers of the Bukkit family: Paper, Spigot and Purpur. Players join with an ordinary Minecraft client, and for almost all plugins they install nothing.

A mod is a different kind of add-on. It needs a server with a mod loader (Fabric, Quilt, Forge or NeoForge) and usually has to be installed on every player’s computer as well.

They are not interchangeable. A plugin won’t load on a Fabric or Forge server, and a mod won’t load on Paper. The official (vanilla) server takes neither. On a download page the supported loaders are listed next to the file: “Paper”, “Spigot” or “Bukkit” means a plugin; “Fabric”, “Quilt”, “Forge” or “NeoForge” means a mod. How to choose the type of a server is covered in a separate article.

First, make sure your server can run plugins

You need a Paper, Purpur or Spigot server. Paper is the usual choice: it is faster than the official server, runs plugins written for Spigot and Bukkit, and plays almost exactly like ordinary Minecraft. Purpur is Paper with extra settings. Spigot is the older base that Paper grew from.

New servers on zuboku start as Vanilla, so switch it to Paper first:

1. 1Stop the server and make a backup on the Backups tab. The type can only be changed while the server is off.
2. 2Open the Software tab and choose Paper in the list of server types.
3. 3Leave the version as it is, or pick the one your friends play on (an older one only if the world has not been opened on a newer version yet). If you already have particular plugins in mind, check which versions they support first: plugins catch up with a new version of Minecraft a little later.
4. 4Apply the change and confirm it. The world is kept.
5. 5Start the server. The first launch takes a little longer: it downloads the new files.

Where to download plugins, and where not to

A plugin is a program that runs on your server with full access to it. A bad one can delete the world, steal data or hand operator rights to strangers. So the source matters more than the name of the plugin.

The most trusted places are Hangar (the plugin repository of the Paper project), Modrinth and the author’s own page or GitHub. Even there, look at who made the plugin, how many people downloaded it and when it was last updated. On zuboku the catalog in the Plugins tab takes plugins from Modrinth.

Stay away from:

• sites that offer “free premium plugins” or “cracked” paid ones: that is the classic way to get malware inside a .jar;
• files sent to you in private messages, even by a friend: friends’ accounts get hacked too, so take the plugin from its own page;
• anything that is not a .jar file or a .zip with a .jar inside. A plugin is never an installer (.exe, .msi, .bat).

More about the risks of files from other people is in the security checklist.

Check the version before you download

Plugins are made for particular versions of Minecraft. The plugin’s page lists the versions it supports, for example 1.21.11 or 26.3 (since 2026, Minecraft versions are numbered by year). Download the file that matches your server: a plugin built for another version may refuse to load or break something.

Right after a new version of Minecraft comes out, many plugins don’t support it yet. If the plugin you want isn’t ready, either wait or choose an older version for your server on the Software tab, but only if the world has never been opened on a version newer than the one you pick: an older server can’t open such a world. Make a backup first.

Some plugins need other plugins to work. These are called dependencies and are listed on the plugin’s page. For example, WorldGuard needs WorldEdit, and many plugins need Vault or PlaceholderAPI, or simply work better with them. If a plugin requires another one and it is missing, the plugin won’t start.

Method 1. In one click on zuboku

The Plugins tab appears in the server menu as soon as the server type is Paper, Purpur or Spigot.

1. 1Open the Plugins tab. The Catalog shows popular plugins that fit your server’s version.
2. 2Search by name or pick a category: Management, Utility, Economy, Social, Game mechanics, Minigames or Optimization.
3. 3Press Install next to a plugin. It is downloaded from Modrinth together with the plugins it needs, and the tab tells you which ones were added.
4. 4Restart the server to load the changes. The tab offers Restart now; if the server is off, the plugin loads on the next start.
5. 5Check the result on the Installed tab. If a plugin can’t work without another one, the tab says so, and the Find it button takes you to the missing plugin.

To remove a plugin, press Remove on the Installed tab. The confirmation window has a checkbox that also deletes its settings and data, but deleted data can’t be restored, so leave it unchecked if you only want to reinstall or update the plugin. A running server stops using the plugin after the next restart.

The catalog shows only plugins that fit your server and are published on Modrinth. If the plugin you need is not there, it either doesn’t support your version of Minecraft or lives somewhere else. In the second case, use method 2.

Method 2. By hand (on any host or on your own computer)

1. 1Download the plugin as a .jar file from a trusted place. If it comes in a .zip, unpack it and take the .jar.
2. 2Stop the server.
3. 3Put the file into the plugins folder in the root of the server. On zuboku, open the Files tab, go into the plugins folder and upload the file there.
4. 4Start the server. Most plugins create their own folder inside plugins on the first start, with a settings file (usually config.yml).
5. 5Check that it loaded: type plugins in the console. The output appears in the Log tab, and your plugin should be on the list.
6. 6If you change the settings, restart the server so that the plugin reads them again.

The /reload command looks handy, but it is not supported and can break plugins, so restart the server instead.

Which plugins people install first

A server doesn’t need many. These are the ones that are almost always at the top, and all of them exist for Paper:

• EssentialsX: the everyday commands for homes, teleport requests between players, warps and kits.
• LuckPerms: ranks and permissions, that is, who may use which command. It helps you avoid giving operator rights to everyone.
• WorldEdit: a builder’s tool for copying, filling and replacing large areas of blocks.
• WorldGuard: protects regions of the map from building, explosions and fire. It needs WorldEdit.
• CoreProtect: records who broke or placed what, and can undo the changes. The main defense against griefers.
• Chunky: generates the world in advance, so the server doesn’t stutter when someone flies into unexplored land. Use a small radius: a big area takes a lot of time and disk space. Stay on the server while it runs: on zuboku an empty server stops itself.
• ViaVersion: lets players with a newer version of the game join your server.

Add plugins one at a time and look at the log after each: when something goes wrong, it is much easier to find the culprit.

If a plugin needs its own network port (web maps and voice chat do), you can’t connect to it on zuboku: only the Minecraft connection gets through to your server.

If a plugin doesn’t load

First look at the log (logs/latest.log; on zuboku it is the Log tab). The first error line near the plugin’s name usually says what is wrong. The typical cases:

• “Unsupported API version”: the plugin was made for a newer version of Minecraft than your server runs. Download an older version of the plugin or update the server.
• “Unknown/missing dependency plugins” (on Spigot: “Unknown dependency”): another plugin that it needs is not installed. Install it and start the server again.
• “does not contain a paper-plugin.yml or plugin.yml” (on Spigot: “Jar does not contain plugin.yml”): the file is not a plugin. It may be a mod or an archive with source code. A broken or half-downloaded file usually gives a zip error instead: download it again.
• “Unsupported class file major version” or “has been compiled by a more recent version of the Java Runtime”: the plugin was built for a newer Java than your server uses. Take an older version of the plugin, or move the server to a newer version of Minecraft.
• The server stops while starting right after you added a plugin: read the log first to see why, then delete the new plugin’s file and start the server again.
• Two copies of the same plugin in the folder, an old one and a new one: delete the old one.

Updating and removing

To update a plugin, stop the server, replace its file with the new version (never keep both in the folder) and start the server again. The settings in the plugin’s folder stay, but read the author’s notes: a big update sometimes changes the settings file. On zuboku, open the plugin’s Versions list in the Plugins tab and install the one you need: the old file is replaced.

To remove a plugin, stop the server, delete its file from the plugins folder and start the server again (or press Remove in the Plugins tab). Its folder with settings and data stays unless you delete it too. Delete that folder only if you don’t plan to come back to the plugin: its data can’t be restored.

Tips so the server stays fast and safe

• Install only what you will really use. Every plugin takes memory and processor time, and a handful of small ones can cost more than one big one.
• Keep plugins up to date: updates fix bugs and security holes.
• Make a backup before you install, update or remove a plugin, and before big jobs with WorldEdit. The Backups tab does it in a click.
• Don’t give out operator rights just because a plugin asks for them. Give players only the permissions they need: LuckPerms exists for exactly this.

Frequently asked questions

Do my friends need to install the plugins too?

Almost never. Most plugins work on the server only, and players join with the normal game. A few also need a small mod on each player’s computer: the plugin’s page says so. Mods are different: they usually have to be installed by everyone.

Can I use plugins and mods together?

Not in a clean way. Paper, Spigot and Purpur don’t load mods, and Fabric and Forge servers don’t load plugins. There are hybrid servers that try to do both, but they are rarely stable, and we don’t recommend them. Choose one path.

Will my world survive if I switch from Vanilla to Paper?

Normally yes: the panel keeps the world, and Paper converts a Vanilla world by itself. A backup takes one click, so make one anyway. Going back to Vanilla or on to a mod type such as Fabric later takes some manual work with the world files. A world that was played on a newer version of Minecraft can’t be opened on an older one.

Are plugins free?

Most popular ones are free. Some authors sell premium plugins on their own page or on well-known marketplaces such as SpigotMC, Polymart or BuiltByBit: pay only there, never on sites that sell “cracked” copies.

Why can’t I find the plugin in the catalog?

The catalog shows only plugins that fit the type and the version of your server and are published on Modrinth. For anything else, download the file yourself (method 2) or choose another version on the Software tab (an older one only if the world has not been opened on a newer version).

What next

A server with plugins is easier to look after if it is protected from the start: go through the security checklist. If you are still choosing which server to start from, read which server type to choose.