How to add a server icon and MOTD in Minecraft

To add a server icon, place a 64 by 64 pixel PNG named server-icon.png in the server's main folder and restart. To change the MOTD, edit the motd line in server.properties.

Server icon

1. Create or resize an image to 64x64 pixels and save as PNG.
2. Name it server-icon.png.
3. Upload it to the root server folder using the Files tab.
4. Restart the server.
5. Refresh the server list in your game.

MOTD

1. Open server.properties.
2. Find motd= and type your text.
3. Save and restart.

Colors and formatting

Minecraft supports formatting codes that start with the section symbol. In server.properties these are often written as unicode escapes, so check an up-to-date reference for the right format. Some plugins and Paper let you use other formats; read their documentation.

Two lines

The MOTD shows two lines. A newline can usually be written as \n in the file.

Common mistakes

• Wrong image size or file name.
• Using JPG renamed to PNG.
• Putting the icon in a subfolder.
• Not refreshing the multiplayer list.
• Editing the file while the server is running and then stopping it, which overwrites your edits.