Panels
If you’re running a Minecraft server the chances are you’ll want an easier method of management, this is where panels come into play. Every shared hosting provider will come with a control panel, this is how you’ll interface with your server normally at a URL similar to https://panel.mydomain.com. Depending on how long the provider has been in business they’ll either be using Multicraft or Pterodactyl (newer hosts using the latter).
While Multicraft and Pterodactyl became the widely adopted platforms for Minecraft hosting this doesn’t mean they’re the only players in the game and with a VPS / Bare Metal you can install any one of a number of different solutions. We could write this article for the next six months documenting every single different panel and why it should be used but we’re going to focus on a couple.
The top 4 shortlisted panels this article will be covering are.
- AMP
- Moonlight
- Pterodactyl
- PufferPanel
AMP Windows & Linux only
AMP is a licensed panel produced by CubeCoders which supports both Windows and Linux including Ubuntu, Debian, Arch, Cent OS and more. CubeCrafters are by no means new to the hosting game, their previous product McMyAdmin launched all the way back in 2013.
At this time there is NO Apple builds so for legacy McMyAdmin2 users this product may not be suitable for you unless you’re running boot camp or run your servers on a different machine.
Pros
- Community backed game contributions
- Migration path for McMyAdmin2 users
- One click/line installers
- Proactive support
- Support for many popular titles
Cons
- Licensed
- Multiple security requirements before installable (principle isn’t a con but it’s a pain)
- Not open-source
Moonlight Linux only
Moonlight is an up and coming panel solution that is aimed towards those looking to replace Pterodactyl. The project is still in it’s early phase and we’ve been pleased with the outcome so far in small scale testing and has therefore made our list as a one to watch.
Pros
- Automatic plugin installer
- Automatic SRV record creator
- One click/line installers
- Migration guide for Pterodactyl installs
- Support for pterodactyl eggs (kind of)
- Many more features constantly being added
Cons
- No billing support at this time
- Lack of third party modifications
Pterodactyl Linux only
Multicraft had to die for Pterodactyl to breathe, an open source panel in active development and great support behind it. For those who like the sound of pterodactyl but not the self-hosting setup process you can look at the SaaS version WISP which will cost you around $5 a month for the community plan.
Pterodactyl boasts a two part setup, a web-server and a docker agent (wings) that only has official support for Linux. WSL has no official support same with Mac OS, you may find better luck utilising their ‘panel-in-docker’ and ‘wings-in-docker’ if you wish to attempt an install on either of these platforms.
Pros
- ARM instruction set support
- Billing integration for WHMCS / Blesta
- Industry standard tool
- Marketplaces for third party panel enhancements
Cons
- Complex multi-stage setup process
- Setup support can be hit or miss (you’re normally told to RTFM)
PufferPanel Linux only
PufferPanel could have been the Pterodactyl industry standard tool today, a panel formerly developed by a Pterodactyl team member prior to a clashing of heads and a splitting of the product, however PufferPanel remains open source and in active development by the original founder and an long-time dev.
The situation is the same for PufferPanel as it is for Pterodactyl, only has official support for Linux, however Windows builds are available (if unsupported).
Pros
- One click/line installers via APT/YUM
- ARM instruction set support
Cons
- Lack of industry adoption / third party support
- No billing modules