Setting Up a Minecraft Fabric Server at Home: A Step-by-Step Guide

You have a Minecraft server running at home — everything works, pure Vanilla, maybe a few Paper plugins. But now you want more: new biomes, cooking mods, decorative elements, real modding. The problem: PaperMC and Fabric mods are not compatible. Paper does not understand server-side mods with new items, blocks, or mechanics.

The solution is a parallel Fabric server — completely separate from your Paper installation, with its own mod loader and its own modded world. In this article I will show you how I set up my Fabric server “Sumpfland” on Linux, which mods I installed, and what you need to pay attention to during operation.

Why a Second Server?

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In my setup, a PaperMC server is already running for Vanilla plugins. Fabric mods require the Fabric loader — which is incompatible with Paper. So I went with a second, parallel server:

Both servers run on the same host — a ThinkCentre M715q Gen. 2 — but in completely separate directories. No risk of one affecting the other.

Mods vs. Add-ons: Mods are available only for the Java Edition. The Bedrock Edition uses add-ons, which are significantly more limited (JSON/script-based). This article focuses exclusively on the Java Edition with Fabric.

Prerequisites

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Before you get started, you need:

• Java 21 (for Minecraft 1.21.x) or Java 25 (for Minecraft 26.x)
• A Linux host (mine is a ThinkCentre, but any server works)
• At least 4 GB RAM for the server (for a mod list like this one with over 20 mods, plan for 6–8 GB)
• tmux for background operation (optional, but recommended)
• curl and jq (for mod downloads and my update script)

Check and install Java if needed:

java -version

# If not installed:
sudo apt install openjdk-25-jre-headless

Step 1: Create the Directory

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Create a dedicated folder for the Fabric server — completely separate from any existing Paper server:

cd ~/minecraft
mkdir fabric-server
cd fabric-server

Step 2: Download the Fabric Server JAR

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Fabric provides a Meta API that lets you download the server JAR directly — no separate installer needed. The URL follows this pattern:

https://meta.fabricmc.net/v2/versions/loader/{minecraft_version}/{loader_version}/{installer_version}/server/jar

For Minecraft 26.2 with Fabric Loader 0.19.3:

curl -OJ https://meta.fabricmc.net/v2/versions/loader/26.2/0.19.3/1.1.1/server/jar

The downloaded file will be named something like fabric-server-mc.26.2-loader.0.19.3-launcher.1.1.1.jar.

Step 3: Accept the EULA

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Before the server can start, you need to accept the End User License Agreement:

echo "eula=true" > eula.txt

Step 4: Install the Fabric API

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The Fabric API is the foundation of almost all Fabric mods. Without it, most addons simply will not work.

mkdir -p mods
cd mods
curl -OJ "https://cdn.modrinth.com/data/P7dR8mSH/versions/Cpy2Px2f/fabric-api-0.154.0%2B26.2.jar?mr_download_reason=standalone&mr_game_version=26.2&mr_loader=fabric"
cd ..

Important: The URL contains & characters — always wrap it in quotes, or the shell will break the command. If the filename contains URL-encoded characters (%2B instead of +), rename it:

mv "fabric-api-0.154.0%2B26.2.jar" "fabric-api-0.154.0+26.2.jar"

Step 5: Create a Start Script

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Create a start.sh for convenient server startup:

#! /bin/bash
java -Xmx4G -Xms2G -jar fabric-server-mc.26.2-loader.0.19.3-launcher.1.1.1.jar nogui

Make it executable:

chmod +x start.sh

Adjust the RAM values (-Xmx, -Xms) to your host. With 4 GB max and 2 GB starting, it ran stable with all mods and four players — for a larger mod list or more simultaneous players, I would plan for 6 GB (-Xmx6G).

Step 6: Start the Server in the Background with tmux

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For long-term operation I recommend tmux — the server keeps running even when you close the terminal:

tmux new -s fabric-server
cd ~/minecraft/fabric-server
./start.sh

Detach the session (Ctrl+B, then D), reattach with tmux attach -t fabric-server, list all sessions with tmux ls. Stop the server cleanly with the /stop command in the console.

Configuration: server.properties

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On first start, Fabric generates a server.properties with default values. The most important tweaks:

difficulty=normal
level-name=your-world
max-players=6
motd=§2Your Server §8| §fMinecraft Fabric §a❤
server-port=25566

If you run a Paper server on the same host, choose a different port (default is 25565). The MOTD supports color codes — §2 is dark green, §a light green, §f white, §l bold, §o italic.

Granting Operator Permissions

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On a fresh Fabric server, nobody has operator rights. In the server console (tmux):

op your-username

Repeat for additional players. Without OP rights, commands like /gamerule or /kick will not work in the in-game chat — however, admin commands via the server console (tmux) always work regardless of OP status.

Server Icon

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A custom server icon is a PNG at exactly 64×64 pixels, saved as server-icon.png in the root directory (same level as eula.txt). Restart the server after copying it for the icon to appear.

Mod Selection: What Makes the Server Tick

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Now for the fun part — the mods. My selection focuses on family-friendly gameplay: farming, cooking, decoration, world generation, and performance. No aggressive PvP or heavy tech mods.

Here are the highlights from my mod list:

World Generation: Terralith

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Terralith fundamentally changes world generation — over 95 new biomes, canyons, floating islands, ocean trenches. The best part: it uses exclusively vanilla blocks. The inventory stays unchanged, only the landscape becomes more diverse.

Important: Terralith must be installed before world generation. Adding it to an existing world risks chunk border errors and terrain seams. In our case, it was there from the start.

Since Terralith does not register new blocks or items, it only needs to be installed on the server — the client technically does not know Terralith is running. The additional dependency Lithostitched (library mod for world generation configuration) is also required.

Farming & Cooking: Farmer’s Delight + Rustic Delight + Ube’s Delight

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Farmer’s Delight is the heart of the farming gameplay: new crops, kitchen appliances, dishes, and a dedicated cooking system. Building on that:

• Rustic Delight — pancakes (6 flavors), coffee, peppers, cotton, calamari
• Ube’s Delight — Philippine-inspired: ube (purple yam), garlic, ginger, ube milk tea, halo halo, and more

All three mods are additive — they add new content without changing the base game. Vanilla items keep their original function and gain additional recipe possibilities.

Decoration: Beautify + Storage Delight + Too Many Paintings

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For visually appealing builds:

• Beautify Refabricated — hanging pots, blinds, picture frames, new light sources (bamboo lanterns, candelabras), trellises, and more
• Storage Delight — drawers, bookshelves with doors, glass cabinets, single-door wardrobes
• Too Many Paintings — significantly more paintings with a searchable selection GUI

Comfort: Comforts + Sit Anywhere + JourneyMap

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• Comforts — sleeping bags and hammocks to skip day/night cycles
• Sit Anywhere! — sit on almost any block (stairs, fences) with right-click
• JourneyMap — minimap in-game plus web map in the browser (port 8080)

Performance: Lithium + Spark + Better Fabric Console

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• Lithium — optimizes internal server logic (mob AI, redstone, world ticking) for better performance
• Spark — profiling tool to diagnose lag spikes and TPS drops
• Better Fabric Console — colorized log output and tab completion in the server console

Warning: Better Fabric Console additionally requires adventure-platform-fabric as a dependency. Without it, the mod loads without color output.

Technical: Carpet + The Möbius Automata

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For redstone and technical enthusiasts:

• Carpet — additional server rules, debug tools, redstone analysis helpers
• The Möbius Automata — a bot mod built on Carpet that automates player hunting, building, and mining

Recipe Browser: JEI

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JEI (Just Enough Items) shows all recipes and item uses directly in the inventory — especially helpful with Farmer’s Delight. Since Minecraft 1.21.2, recipes are synchronized server-side, so JEI must be installed on both server and client.

Server Analytics: Plan

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Plan | Player Analytics provides a web dashboard with playtime stats, login history, and server performance trends. Accessible on your local network at port 8804.

Installing Mods on the Client

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Unlike resource packs, Fabric mods are not automatically distributed to clients. Every mod that adds new blocks or items must be manually installed on each client in the exact same version.

Using the Prism Launcher makes this easy: Mod management → search for mod → add matching version. The rule of thumb:

• New blocks/items (e.g., Farmer’s Delight) → server and client
• World generation or balance (e.g., Terralith, Lithium) → server only
• Server console / analytics (e.g., Better Fabric Console, Plan) → server only

If a mod is missing or the version does not match, the client shows an error message listing the missing mods when trying to connect.

Automatically Updating Mods

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With over 20 mods, manually checking for updates becomes tedious. I wrote a bash script check-updates.sh that compares all .jar files in the mods folder against the Modrinth API using SHA1 hashes:

./check-updates.sh

The script shows an overview (checked / up to date / updates available) and asks whether found updates should be installed directly. Old files are backed up via mv, and the backup is deleted only on successful download.

#!/bin/bash
cd "$(dirname "$0")/mods" || { echo "❌ mods folder not found!"; exit 1; }

# Collect SHA1 hashes of all jars
hashes=$(sha1sum *.jar | awk '{print "\""$1"\""}' | paste -sd, -)

response=$(curl -s -X POST "https://api.modrinth.com/v2/version_files/update" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"loaders\":[\"fabric\"],\"game_versions\":[\"26.2\"],\"algorithm\":\"sha1\",\"hashes\":[$hashes]}")

total=0
outdated=0
up_to_date=0
not_found=0
outdated_files=()
outdated_targets=()
outdated_urls=()

for jarfile in *.jar; do
  total=$((total + 1))
  hash=$(sha1sum "$jarfile" | cut -d' ' -f1)

  latest_hashes=$(echo "$response" | jq -r --arg h "$hash" '.[$h].files[]?.hashes.sha1 // empty')

  if [ -z "$latest_hashes" ]; then
    not_found=$((not_found + 1))
    continue
  fi

  if grep -qx "$hash" <<< "$latest_hashes"; then
    up_to_date=$((up_to_date + 1))
  else
    outdated=$((outdated + 1))
    latest_file=$(echo "$response" | jq -r --arg h "$hash" '.[$h].files[0].filename // empty')
    latest_url=$(echo "$response" | jq -r --arg h "$hash" '.[$h].files[0].url // empty')
    echo "🔄 Update available: $jarfile -> $latest_file"
    outdated_files+=("$jarfile")
    outdated_targets+=("$latest_file")
    outdated_urls+=("$latest_url")
  fi
done

echo ""
echo "----------------------------------------"
echo "📦 Total files checked: $total"
echo "✅ Up to date:          $up_to_date"
echo "🔄 Updates available:   $outdated"
echo "❓ Not found on Modrinth: $not_found"
echo "----------------------------------------"

if [ "$outdated" -eq 0 ]; then
  exit 0
fi

echo ""
read -p "Do you want to update these $outdated mod(s) now? [y/N] " confirm

if [[ ! "$confirm" =~ ^[Yy]$ ]]; then
  echo "Aborted, no changes made."
  exit 0
fi

echo ""
for i in "${!outdated_files[@]}"; do
  old="${outdated_files[$i]}"
  new="${outdated_targets[$i]}"
  url="${outdated_urls[$i]}"
  backup="${old}.bak"

  echo "➡  Updating $old -> $new"
  mv "$old" "$backup"

  if curl -sfL -o "$new" "$url"; then
    rm "$backup"
    echo "   ✅ Success, backup removed."
  else
    mv "$backup" "$old"
    echo "   ❌ Download failed, restored original file."
  fi
done

echo ""
echo "Done."

Important: Stop the server before running the script — never replace a .jar file while it is loaded. The script requires jq (apt install jq).

Conclusion

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Running a Fabric server alongside a PaperMC server is straightforward: separate directory, Fabric loader via Meta API, Fabric API as the foundation, and then add mods to your heart’s content. The initial setup takes less than 30 minutes — everything after that is mod selection and configuration.

For me, the biggest win was the combination of Terralith (visually diverse world) and the Delight mods (relaxed farming and cooking). This gives us a server the whole family can play on — without aggressive gameplay changes. As for the PaperMC server, I will keep it as a backup for now and eventually remove it.

If you have questions or run your own Fabric server: let me know. I welcome comments and tips for mod configuration.

Best regards,
Sebastian