Add datapacks to your Minecraft server

A datapack lives in the datapacks folder of your world, and the server loads it after a restart. In the ArthOS panel, Add-ons, then Data packs, finds and installs one for you. Datapacks work on Java Edition servers only, on vanilla and on Paper alike.

A datapack changes one world, not the whole server. It can add recipes, loot, advancements and functions without a mod loader.

In the ArthOS panel

1. Open Add-ons and choose Data packs (1).
2. In the Find data packs list, search by name and choose Install on the one you want.
3. Pick a version. The panel only offers builds made for your server’s Minecraft version, and checks the file against the source’s checksum before it uses it.
4. The panel installs it into <World folder>/datapacks, where World folder is the level-name setting (world unless you changed it). When it says “Restart the server to load it”, choose Restart now.

1

To switch one off, choose Manage all under Installed Data packs, then Turn off. The panel renames the file to end in .disabled, which the server skips. Turn on reverses it. A datapack that is a folder cannot be turned off this way: use Remove. Both need a restart to take effect.

Datapacks you put there by hand show up in the same list, marked as not installed through the panel.

By hand

1. Download the datapack. It is a .zip file or a folder, and pack.mcmeta must sit at its top level, not inside another folder.
2. In Files, open your world folder (world by default), then datapacks. Choose Upload and add the .zip.
3. Restart the server. On vanilla you can instead type reload in the server console, without the slash. In game, the same command needs operator rights.
4. Type datapack list enabled in the console. Your pack is listed as file/<name of the zip or folder>.

If it is on the list of available packs but not enabled, type datapack enable "file/<name>". Put the name in quotes if it has spaces. You can add first or last after it to set the load order. When two packs define the same file, the one loaded last wins.

When a restart is needed

reload picks up recipes, loot tables, advancements, predicates, functions and similar data. Anything the game treats as experimental, such as custom dimensions, biomes and new mob variants, is not reloaded. Those need a server restart. If you are unsure, restart.

If a datapack contains invalid data, the reload does not apply and the game keeps the previous data. Read the console for the error.

If it does not work

• It is not on the datapack list at all. The pack is in the wrong place. It must be in <level-name>/datapacks, not the server’s main folder and not plugins. Check the World folder setting in Config Editor. A pack inside a second folder (a zip that unpacks to mypack/pack.mcmeta) is also not found.
• It is listed but does nothing. It is available but not enabled. Run datapack enable "file/<name>", or restart.
• The panel says it cannot read the Minecraft version. Start the server once. Until it has, nothing can be installed.
• The panel says the world’s folder name is not one the installer can use. The level-name has a character the installer refuses. It takes letters, digits, spaces, _, - and ., up to 64 characters. Rename the world folder, or install by hand.
• The pack is made for another version. Look for a build for your version, or change your server’s version.

Back up your world before you install, because a datapack can change recipes, loot and game rules in a way that is hard to undo. See back up a Minecraft server.

More about the game: Minecraft servers.

Sources: minecraft.wiki: Data pack, minecraft.wiki: Importing a data pack, minecraft.wiki: Datapack, minecraft.wiki: Reload, docs.papermc.io: Commands

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