How to Make a Minecraft Bedrock Server (2026)
Oct 4, 2026
Bedrock or Java?
Minecraft comes in two editions, and without extra tools they cannot join each other's servers. Java Edition is the PC original. Bedrock Edition is what phones, tablets, consoles, and the Windows 10/11 version of Minecraft run. A Bedrock server only accepts Bedrock players, so pick the edition your friends actually play.
Coalstack runs both from the same app. A Bedrock server uses Mojang's own Bedrock Dedicated Server, a native program that needs no Java, and it sits in the same server list as any Java servers you have, with the same Start and Stop buttons, console, and backups.
What you need
A PC that stays on while people play (Windows, or 64-bit x86 Linux), a stable internet connection, and Coalstack from the download page. Bedrock servers are lighter than Java ones, so a modest PC is enough for a small group of friends. You do not need to download the server software yourself.
Creating the server
- Open Coalstack, click New Server, and choose Bedrock.
- Pick a version. Latest stable is what most players are on. Latest preview is for early builds that only players on the Minecraft Preview app can join.
- Set a name, a location, the game mode and difficulty, the maximum number of players, and an optional seed. Leave the port at 19132 unless you have a reason to change it.
- Choose whether players must be signed in to Xbox Live and whether to use the allow-list (more on that below).
- Accept the Minecraft EULA and create the server. Coalstack downloads the current server from Mojang, unpacks it, and shows a progress bar while it works.
Starting it
Press Start and watch the console. When it shows Server started. the server is ready. The Players page lists who is online, and Stop asks the server to save and exit cleanly.
A Bedrock server has no remote console, so Coalstack controls it through its own console. That means the server needs to be started from Coalstack, in the current session, to receive commands from the console box.
Letting players join
On your own network
In Minecraft, open Play, then Servers, then Add Server. Enter your PC's local IP address (the server card shows a copyable connect address) and port 19132. A server on the default port also advertises itself on your local network.
To join from the same Windows PC, Minecraft has to be allowed to connect to localhost. Run CheckNetIsolation LoopbackExempt -a -n="Microsoft.MinecraftUWP_8wekyb3d8bbwe" once in an administrator terminal.
From outside your network
A Bedrock server needs a TCP port and a block of 32 UDP ports starting at the same number. Open the server's Port Forwarding tab and Coalstack forwards and opens the firewall for both in one click, if your router supports uPnP. Otherwise forward them by hand; the port forwarding guide shows how, and the dynamic DNS guide gives your friends an address that keeps working.
Phones and Windows players can add a server by address. Most consoles do not let you type a server address at all, which is a limit of Minecraft on consoles rather than of the server.
Choosing who can join
The Players page has an Allow-list tab. Add players by Xbox gamertag and the server fills in their ID the first time they join. The Permissions tab sets each player's role: operator, member, or visitor. Changes apply right away on a running server.
Bedrock has no ban command. To remove someone, take them off the allow-list.
Backups
Coalstack backs up a running Bedrock server without stopping it. It asks the server to hold its world still, copies exactly the files the server lists, and lets it carry on. Restoring replaces the world in the backup and points the server at it. See Backups & Snapshots for schedules and destinations.
What is different from Java
Bedrock has no mods or plugins in the Java sense, so the mod marketplace, LuckPerms, the live map, Docker mode, and the Playit tunnel are hidden on Bedrock servers. Mojang's server also contacts Mojang's services for sign-in checks, and Mojang receives its crash reports. Coalstack adds no telemetry of its own. The full details are in the Bedrock section of the docs.