Setup · 6 min read

How to install plugins on a Minecraft server

Install a plugin on a Paper Minecraft server: download the .jar, put it in the plugins folder, restart, then check it with the plugins command.

Last checked 12 November 2026

Short answer

Download the plugin's .jar file, put it in the plugins folder of a Paper server, and restart the server. Then type plugins in the console: the new plugin shows in green once it has loaded. Plugins need Paper or another plugin server. Fabric and Forge mods are a different kind of file and will not run on Paper.

What you need

A Paper server. Mojang's plain server.jar has no plugins folder. Paper is free, and its docs call it a drop-in replacement for CraftBukkit and Spigot, the two older plugin servers. Paper for Minecraft 26.1 and later needs Java 25.
A way to reach the server's files. On your own PC that is the server folder. On a rented server it is usually SFTP or the host's file manager.
A plugin built for your Minecraft version. A plugin's download page lists the versions each file supports. Pick the file that names yours.

Where to get plugins

Paper's docs say the best place is Hangar, Paper's own plugin repository. They also name Modrinth and BukkitDev, and note that many plugins publish their files on GitHub.

Only install plugins from a source you trust. Paper's docs are blunt about why: a plugin gets full access to the server and to the machine it runs on.

Install a plugin, step by step

Download the plugin and check the file ends in .jar. Some downloads are a .zip with the .jar inside, labelled bukkit or paper: unpack it and use that file.
Put the .jar in the plugins folder, which sits beside server.properties in the server's main folder. Paper makes the folder the first time the server starts. The file goes straight into plugins: Paper does not look inside folders within it.
Restart the server. Paper loads plugins when it starts.
Type plugins in the server console, or /plugins in the game. Your plugin should be in the list in green. Red means it is there but did not switch on, which usually means it failed to load.

A plugin with settings keeps them in a folder of its own inside plugins, named after the plugin. A fresh Paper server already has one for spark, the performance tool Paper includes.

To remove a plugin, stop the server, delete its .jar from plugins and start again.

On a Galeforce server

We rent Minecraft Java servers that run Paper. The plugins folder is one SFTP upload away:

In the panel, open your server's Files & SFTP tab and press Create an SFTP password. The panel shows a host, a port, a username and the password. The password is shown once, so save it in your SFTP app straight away.
Connect with any SFTP app. FileZilla works on Windows, Mac and Linux, Cyberduck on Windows and Mac, and WinSCP on Windows.
Open the plugins folder and upload the .jar into it.
Back in the panel, press Restart.
On the Overview tab, type plugins in the console's command box and check your plugin is listed in green.

Players join exactly as before, with the address the panel shows.

When a plugin doesn't load

Paper writes what went wrong to logs/latest.log. Plugins load early, so look near the start of the file. These are the lines Paper's docs list:

Paper plugin loading errors, what they mean and the fix
The log says	What it means	The fix
`Unknown/missing dependency plugins: [Vault]. Please download and install these plugins`	What it meansThe plugin needs another plugin first. The name in brackets is the one it wants	The fixInstall the named plugin the same way, then restart
`InvalidDescriptionException: Invalid plugin.yml`	What it meansThe file isn't a plugin. It may be a Fabric or Forge mod, or a download that didn't finish	The fixCheck you picked the plugin file, and download it again. Paper's docs note that a broken link can save an error page in place of the plugin
`Ambiguous plugin name`	What it meansTwo files in the folder are the same plugin, often an old version beside a new one	The fixKeep one and delete the other
Nothing about the plugin at all	What it meansPaper never saw the file	The fixCheck it is directly inside `plugins` and its name ends in `.jar`

For any other error, read its first line or two: it normally names the plugin and the reason. A plugin made for an older Minecraft version is a common one, and its download page says which versions each file supports.

Questions people ask

Do I have to restart the server?

Yes. Paper's instructions are to add the file and restart, and the plugin loads on the way up. Warn players first with say; server commands for owners has that and the other commands you'll want.

Can I put mods on a Paper server?

No. Paper's docs say Forge and Fabric mods “will not run on Paper”. Mods need a Fabric, Forge or NeoForge server, and we rent those too: Fabric on the Minecraft Java page, Forge and NeoForge on the modded Minecraft page.

Is a plugin from an older version safe to try?

Make a copy of the world first. Then try it and read the log: Paper says plainly when a plugin fails to load. The safer choice is the file its page lists for your version.

Checked on 12 November 2026 against Paper's documentation.