Can't Connect to Minecraft Server? 12 Fixes That Work

Can't connect to Minecraft server? The message on your screen already tells you where the problem is: the network (timed out, refused), the version (incompatible client), the server's own rules (whitelist, full, banned) or the edition (Bedrock). Find your message below and apply the fixes in order.

These fixes work for any server. If you host with us, every setting mentioned lives in the panel of your Minecraft Java server, and if you are still setting one up, start with our free Minecraft server guide.

• Timed out or "Can't connect to server": the server is off, the address is wrong, or a router or firewall drops the connection.
• "Incompatible client! Please use…": you and the server run different versions. Pick the server's version in the launcher.
• "Connection refused": nothing is listening on that address and port. The server is stopped, crashed or on another port.
• "You are not white-listed on this server!": an operator has to add you.
• Bedrock: Bedrock players need the server's version, the right port, and either a Bedrock server or a Java server with Geyser.

Timed out

A timeout means your game sent a request and nobody answered in time. Microsoft's socket error reference defines it exactly like that: the other side "did not properly respond after a period of time". In the server list it shows as Can't connect to server.

1. Check that the server is actually running

A Java server is ready when its console prints a line that starts with Done (. On 1up, the overview says Online and the console shows that line. If it crashed, the console flags the cause, such as an out-of-memory stop or a plugin that does not fit your version.

2. Use the right address and port

On 1up, copy the Domain from the Network tab. It has an SRV record, so Java players type the name alone, without a port. If someone gets Can't resolve hostname, check the spelling, or give them the Direct IP with the port. After you change the subdomain, wait about a minute before trying it.

If you host at home, give friends your public IP address, never a 192.168.x.x one. The Minecraft Wiki adds that a server on any port other than 25565 needs the port in the address, like 203.0.113.10:25570.

3. Forward the port and allow it in the firewall

On your own PC, the server.properties reference says the default port, TCP 25565, must be forwarded on a home router. With no forwarding rule the router drops the attempt, which is why you see a timeout, as the wiki's setup tutorial explains. The usual traps:

• On Windows, allow "OpenJDK Platform binary" when the firewall asks on the first start.
• If your ISP gave you a modem that is also a router, forward the port on that device too.
• Most home IPs are dynamic and change every few days or weeks, so check yours again when friends suddenly cannot connect.
• Test on the server PC first with localhost. If that works and outside players time out, the problem is the router.

Outdated client

In 26.3, the latest release, Mojang uses one message for both directions: Incompatible client! Please use 1.21.1, where the number is the version you need. The server list shows Incompatible version! before you even click.

4. Match the game version

In the launcher, open Installations, create a New installation and pick the server's version, as the wiki's version tutorial shows. On 1up, the new server wizard defaults to the latest release, and older versions run back to 1.16.5, so check the version on the overview first. To move the server instead, the Worlds page has a version change assistant that stores a backup first; it is blocked on the Free plan, which has no backup slots.

5. Match the loader and the mods

A Fabric or Forge server expects players to run the same loader and the same mods. The wiki's troubleshooting section explains that an error while joining a modded server usually means the server sent something the client does not recognise, and that you should check both sides match. Ask the owner for the exact mod list.

Refused

6. "Connection refused": nothing is listening

Microsoft's reference describes a refused connection as one aimed at a service that is not running on the other machine. In Minecraft terms: the address is right, but no server answers on that port. The server is stopped, still starting, crashed, or you typed the wrong port. On your own PC, the wiki warns about one more cause: a value in server-ip that does not match the machine stops the server from opening its port. Leave it empty.

7. "Failed to verify username!" or "Invalid session"

With online-mode on, the server checks every player against Mojang's account database. Invalid session (Try restarting your game and the launcher) means exactly what it says: restart both. If the message mentions an expired profile public key, the game asks you to check that your system time is synchronised. Do not turn online-mode off to work around it: the server.properties reference warns that anyone with a fake account can then join. On 1up it stays on by default under Settings → Online mode.

8. "Multiplayer is disabled. Please check your Microsoft account settings."

This is an account setting. Mojang's parental controls page explains that a parent signs in at account.xbox.com/settings, opens Online Safety and sets You can join multiplayer games to Allow for the child's account.

Whitelist

9. "You are not white-listed on this server!"

The whitelist only lets in the players listed in whitelist.json. An operator adds you with whitelist add <name> in the console; after editing the file by hand, whitelist reload applies it, as the wiki's server page explains. On Java, operators can always join.

Two details catch people out:

• Since Java Edition 26.3, white-list is true by default, so a brand new self-hosted server refuses everyone until you add them or turn it off.
• On a server with online-mode off, the whitelist checks offline IDs, and the wiki's setup tutorial says it then protects very little.

On 1up the whitelist is off by default. Turn it on in the Players page, then add names with + Add, typed exactly as in the game. We also turn on enforce-whitelist, which the wiki says kicks online players who are no longer on the list.

10. "The server is full!" or "You are banned from this server"

A full server has reached max-players. On 1up, raise Max players in Settings, within your plan's slots: Free allows 4, Casual 6, Starter 10 and Pro 20 (see pricing). A ban is lifted with pardon <name>, or from the players tab.

Bedrock

11. Bedrock Dedicated Server: version, port and allowlist

• Version. Players need the server's version, and the Bedrock setup tutorial notes that Bedrock cannot join older versions. Could not connect: Outdated client! means update the app; The host is using an older version of Minecraft means the server is behind. To see the server's version, read the first console lines after a start, where BDS prints Version: followed by the build. Our Bedrock servers run 1.26.51.1 today, while Mojang's download already offers 1.26.52.3, so a new app update can reach players before it reaches our servers.
• Port. The wiki lists UDP 19132. Since 26.50 the default transport=nethernet starts with a TCP handshake on that port and then negotiates UDP, according to the bedrock_server_how_to.html inside the official download. Behind a home router, either set transport=raknet to get back the classic single UDP port 19132, or keep NetherNet and forward TCP 19132 plus the UDP range you set in server-udp-ports, as that file explains. On 1up, our servers run transport=raknet on one UDP port: type the port the panel shows next to the address, not 19132.
• Allowlist. A fresh server.properties ships with allow-list=true, so everyone not listed sees You're not invited to play on this server. On 1up it is off until you turn it on in the Players page.
• Consoles. Mojang's Bedrock server page lists Xbox, PlayStation and Switch among the platforms that join with the same address and port. If a console player still cannot get in, have them try from a phone or PC to tell a console problem from a server problem.

12. Bedrock players on a Java server

A Bedrock client cannot join a Java server on its own. Geyser translates between the two, and Floodgate lets Bedrock players in without a Java account. On 1up, a server on the Paper or Fabric template has Allow Bedrock players in the Network tab; it applies on the next start. Bedrock players then type the server address and the Bedrock port shown in the invite card of the Players tab, not 19132.

The version matters most. Geyser's supported versions page says it supports Java 26.2 and Bedrock 26.30 to 26.52 right now, and that other Java versions need ViaVersion, which our toggle does not install. In our test on 5 October 2026, Geyser loaded on Paper 26.2 but not on Paper 26.3, and a Fabric 26.3 server with the bridge on did not start because Geyser has no Fabric build for 26.3. So for crossplay, run the server on 26.2 until Geyser lists a newer version.

NOT AN OFFICIAL MINECRAFT SERVICE. NOT APPROVED BY OR ASSOCIATED WITH MOJANG OR MICROSOFT.

Tested on Minecraft: Java Edition 26.3 Vanilla, 26.2 and 26.3 Paper with Geyser and 26.3 Fabric with Geyser (1up image itzg/minecraft-server java25, sha256:afce674a) and Bedrock Dedicated Server 1.26.51.1 (1up image sha256:ba5bc55d), run locally with the production settings, 2026-10-05.

Change log

• 2026-10-04: first version.
• 2026-10-05: 1up Bedrock servers now use one UDP port; self-hosting options for NetherNet and RakNet; how to check the Bedrock version; crossplay needs Java 26.2; Casual has 6 slots; console advice rewritten.