Current software#
The Software Management tab shows what your server runs right now in the Current Software box, alongside its icon and a maturity label. From here you can switch to a different game, or to a different server software within the same game. If nothing has been chosen yet, the box reads "No software selected" instead of a software name.
Changing software reinstalls the server, so it is a destructive action. Read the rest of this page before you start, and make a backup first. See Backups.
To get started, select "Change Software". A guided wizard opens and walks you through the rest of the process.
The change wizard#
The wizard runs in four steps, and a progress bar at the top tracks where you are, counting "Step 1 of 4" through "Step 4 of 4". The steps are:
- Select Category, where you pick the broad type of game or software. A search box lets you filter the list, and a "Show more" button reveals the rest when there are many categories. Each card shows how many options it holds.
- Select Software, where you choose the specific server software within that category. This step is titled "Select Software" followed by the category name. Each option shows a short description and a maturity label so you can tell similar ones apart, and a search box filters them.
- Configure, where you set the startup command, the Docker image, the variables, and the safety options for the new software.
- Review Changes, where you check everything before anything happens to your server.
Each step has its own back button: "Back to Overview" on the category step, "Back to Games" on the software step, "Back to Software" on the configure step, and "Back to Configure" on the review step. The software step also has a "Cancel" button that drops you back to the Current Software box. Nothing is applied to your server until you confirm on the final step.
Configuring the new software#
The Configure step is where you tune how the new software runs, and its heading reads "Configure" followed by the software name. Under Software Configuration you have the Startup Command and the Docker Image. The startup command is filled in with the default for the software you picked, and you can edit it freely. The same value drives the settings covered in Startup, and the field reminds you which variables you can reference, written as {{VARIABLE}}.
The Docker Image is the container image your server runs in. When the software offers more than one image, it appears as a dropdown so you can choose; when only one is available, it is shown as a fixed value with nothing to select.
Below that, the Environment Variables group lists the settings the software exposes. Each variable shows its name, its underlying variable key (for example SERVER_JARFILE), and the validation rules it is checked against, shown as a small Rules: line, plus a tag that tells you how you can treat it:
- Required means you have to provide a value before you can continue.
- Optional means you can leave it blank, and the software falls back to its default.
- Read-only means the value is fixed by the software and you cannot change it.
Values are checked as you type, and a field with a problem turns red and shows the reason underneath, so you will know about a missing required variable before you reach the end of the wizard. The "Review Changes" button stays disabled while any field has an error.
For modpack software, the variable grid is replaced by a picker that lets you choose the pack directly instead of typing project and version IDs by hand. The picker fills in the PROJECT_ID and VERSION_ID values for you, and if it cannot load it falls back to plain Project ID and Version ID text fields.
Safety options#
Still on the Configure step, a Safety Options group gives you two switches that decide how much of your current server survives the change.
The first is Create Backup, which takes a backup of the server before the new software is installed so you can roll back if it is not what you wanted. When your plan still has room for backups, this switch is turned on by default. If backups are disabled for the server, or you have hit your backup limit, the switch is disabled and explains why.
The second is Wipe Files, which deletes all of the current server files before installing the new software. Leaving it off keeps your existing files in place. If you turn Wipe Files on without also creating a backup, selecting Apply Changes opens a separate "Wipe All Files Without Backup?" dialog. That dialog has a five-second countdown, and its confirm button, labelled "Yes, Wipe Files" with the remaining seconds, stays disabled until the countdown ends. You can skip the wait by holding Shift while you click it.
You can manage backups you already have from the Files and Backups tabs.
Reviewing and applying the change#
The Review Changes step lays out everything in one place before you commit. The Change Summary shows what you are moving from and to, the category, and the Docker image. Below it, a Startup Configuration block reads back the full startup command and image, a Variable Configuration block lists the variable values, and a Safety Options block shows whether Create Backup and Wipe Files are set to Yes or No. A "This will:" panel reminds you the change stops and reinstalls the server, takes several minutes, and modifies and removes some files.
If the move would break something, a warning appears here too. The most common one is when the new software cannot keep an assigned subdomain, shown as "Subdomain Will Be Deleted". You also see this as a notification the moment you pick incompatible software, so check the Networking tab afterward if you rely on a subdomain.
When you select "Apply Changes", the server stops and reinstalls with the new software. This takes several minutes and will modify and remove some files, so wait for the reinstall to finish before you start the server again. A progress modal tracks the operation, and you get a confirmation once the new configuration is applied.