How to Install Minecraft Plugins

What Plugins Are

Plugins are server-side modifications for Paper, Spigot, and Bukkit servers. They don't require players to install anything - players connect with a vanilla client and the plugin handles everything on the server.

Plugins can't add new blocks, items, or entities. They modify existing behavior: add commands, manage permissions, run mini-games, handle economy, etc. If you need new content, use mods instead (see the Fabric and Forge articles).

Plugins only work on Paper, of the five Minecraft server types GameGrid offers. They will not load on Vanilla, Fabric, Forge or NeoForge, and there is no error to tell you - the .jar simply sits there. If you need plugins, create a Paper server; see Choosing a Minecraft Server Type.

Installing via the Mods Tab

Go to the Mods tab in your server panel and click "Browse Marketplace." Search for the plugin you want.

The in-panel marketplace installs Paper and Bukkit plugins from CurseForge. Plugins hosted only on SpigotMC, Modrinth, or Hangar are not in the marketplace - download those from the developer site and install them with a manual upload (see below).

Click "Install" on the plugin. It downloads and places the .jar in the plugins/ folder automatically.

Restart your server for the plugin to load - the Restart button is in the status bar at the top of the page. Then verify with "plugins" in the Console tab; it lists everything loaded. Console commands are typed without the leading slash.

Installing Manually

If a plugin isn't in the marketplace, you can install it manually:

1. Stop the server.

2. Download the plugin .jar file from the developer's site (SpigotMC, Modrinth, GitHub, etc.).

3. Open the Files tab and navigate to the plugins/ folder. Create it if it doesn't exist.

4. Upload the .jar file to the plugins/ folder.

5. Restart the server. The plugin loads on startup.

6. Verify by running plugins in the Console tab.

Plugin Dependencies

Many plugins require other plugins to function. Common dependencies: Vault (economy API), ProtocolLib (packet manipulation), PlaceholderAPI (placeholders).

If a plugin has dependencies, install them first. Check the plugin's documentation for required dependencies.

If a plugin fails to load, check the Console tab for errors. Missing dependency errors usually say "Could not find dependency: Vault" or similar.

Configuring, Updating, and Removing

After a plugin loads for the first time, it creates a config folder in plugins/PluginName/. Edit config files via the Files tab, then run reload in the Console tab or restart the server.

To update a plugin: stop the server, replace the old .jar with the new one in the plugins/ folder, restart. Always back up your world before updating plugins - a bad update can corrupt data.

To remove a plugin: stop the server, delete the .jar from the plugins/ folder. You can also delete the plugin's data folder if you don't want to keep its data. Restart the server.

Common issues: wrong Minecraft version (plugins must match the server's MC version), missing dependencies, plugin not loading (check Console tab for stack traces).