How do I enable hardcore mode on my Minecraft server?

Hardcore is a built-in Minecraft game mode: everyone has one life, the difficulty is locked to hard and whoever dies automatically becomes a spectator. You don't need a plugin or mod for it. On a server you enable it with one line in server.properties.

Step 1: stop the server

Hardcore only works properly on a world that was created as hardcore. So stop the server before you change the setting, and preferably do this on a fresh world.

Step 2: edit server.properties

Open server.properties in your panel's file manager and set:

hardcore=true
difficulty=hard

The difficulty line is ignored on a hardcore server and always set to hard, but it's tidy to keep it matching. Save the file.

Step 3: start with a new world

If you already have a world, delete or rename the world, world_nether and world_the_end folders, or set a new seed via changing your world seed. Start the server. You can recognise hardcore by the hearts with the dark outline in the game.

What happens on a death

• The player sees the "You died" screen without a respawn button and enters spectator mode: flying around and watching is possible, touching anything isn't.
• An operator can put the player back with /gamemode survival Name. See reviving a dead player.
• If you want fixed rules for coming back, such as a deathban of a few days, use a plugin from your panel's plugin library.

Whitelist on

On a hardcore server you don't want strangers. Set white-list=true and enforce-whitelist=true and add your friends with /whitelist add Name. Guide: using a whitelist.

Back to normal

Set hardcore=false in server.properties and restart. Existing players who are in spectator, you put back with /gamemode survival Name. The hardcore hearts disappear; the world itself stays usable. The other way round, turning an existing world into hardcore after the fact, only gives you the locked difficulty and the spectator rule, not the full hardcore behaviour.

Common mistakes

• Setting changed while the server was running: the change is overwritten on shutdown. Always stop first.
• Spawn protection: leave spawn-protection=0 in place, otherwise nobody but ops can build around spawn.
• Backups: turn on daily backups before your friends come in. A creeper gone wrong can't be undone in hardcore without a backup or CoreProtect. See creating a backup.