Prerequisites

What you actually need

None of this requires prior Linux or Docker experience — Anvil handles that part. This page is here so you know what to have ready before you start, and why each thing matters.

Hardware

Minecraft's own CPU/RAM needs matter more than what you run Anvil on top of them. Rough guide for a Java Edition server:

A few friends, vanilla or lightly modded: 2 CPU cores, 4GB RAM, ~20GB disk
A busier server or a large modpack: 4 CPU cores, 8GB+ RAM, ~50GB disk
Several servers at once: add roughly 1–2GB RAM per additional server

An old desktop PC, a mini-PC, or a spare laptop is plenty for most home setups — this doesn't need to be new hardware.

Operating system

Ubuntu Server, either version:

22.04 LTS (Jammy) or 24.04 LTS (Noble)
A fresh install is easiest — Anvil expects to manage Docker/Cockpit itself, not fight with an existing setup
Desktop Ubuntu works too, but Server edition uses less RAM for the OS itself

Not installed yet? The official Ubuntu Server install guide covers it — just note the machine's IP address once it's running.

Network

Anvil's dashboards are built to stay on your local network:

Your Ubuntu Server and the device you're browsing from need to be on the same local network (same Wi-Fi/router)
No port forwarding is required to use Anvil itself
You'll only forward ports later if you want players outside your house to join the Minecraft server — that's a separate, optional step in your router's settings

Never port-forward the Anvil dashboards themselves (ports 8090, 6161, 9090) to the internet — they can run privileged commands on your server. Keep those LAN-only.

Access

You'll need:

SSH access to the Ubuntu Server (a terminal app — Terminal on Mac/Linux, or PowerShell/PuTTY on Windows)
A user account with sudo privileges (or you're logged in as root, which also works)
An internet connection on the server, to download Docker/Crafty/mods

That's genuinely it — the bootstrap script asks for your sudo password once and takes it from there.

Skills

What you don't need to know

This is the part people worry about most, so to be direct about it:

Docker

You never run a docker command yourself. The Installer runs them for you, and Server Manager handles updates the same way.

Linux administration

Beyond pasting the one install command over SSH, everything else happens in a browser. Cockpit is there if you ever want a file manager instead of the command line.

Minecraft server config

Crafty's own wizard handles server.properties, and Mod Manager matches mods to your exact version automatically. You mostly just pick things from dropdowns.

The one thing worth having: basic comfort copy-pasting a command into a terminal and reading what it prints back. If you can do that, you can do this.

Reference

Ports Anvil uses

Handy if you're configuring a firewall by hand, or just curious what's running where.

Never port-forward ports 8090, 9090, 5151, or 6161. Those run the Anvil/Cockpit dashboards themselves — forwarding them exposes a way to run commands on your server. Only 25565–25570 (and 19132 for Bedrock) are meant to ever be forwarded, and only if you want players outside your home network.

Port	Used by	Notes	Forwarding
`22`	SSH	Re-checked first so setup can't lock you out	Don't forward
`8090`	Anvil Server Installer	LAN-only, token-protected	Never forward
`9090`	Cockpit	System admin panel + Navigator file manager	Never forward
`8443`	Crafty Controller	HTTPS, self-signed certificate (expected warning)	Don't forward
`8123`	Crafty Dynmap	Only used if a server has Dynmap enabled	Don't forward
`25565–25570`	Minecraft (Java)	Forward only if you want outside players to join	OK to forward
`19132`	Minecraft (Bedrock)	Same idea, UDP — only if you're running a Bedrock server	OK to forward
`5151`	Anvil Mod Manager	No login token by design — LAN-only for that reason	Never forward
`6161`	Anvil Server Manager	LAN-only, token-protected	Never forward