How to safely reset your Minecraft world (start a fresh map with backups) Print

This article explains how to safely reset your Minecraft world on PlayNHost so you can start fresh, while keeping a backup of your old world in case you want it later.

1. Make sure you really want a reset

• Resetting the world creates a brand new map. Players will lose their builds, inventories and explored terrain on the old world.
• You should always keep a backup before resetting, so you can restore the old world later if needed.

2. Stop the server

1. Go to https://panel.playnhost.com and log in.
2. Select your Minecraft server.
3. Click Stop and wait until the status shows the server is fully offline.

3. Identify your current world folder

4. Open the File Manager for your server.
5. Find your main world folder. By default this is usually called world, but it may have a custom name.
6. If you are not sure, open server.properties and look for:

   level-name=world

   The value after level-name= is the folder name of your world.

4. Create a backup of the old world

Option A – Using File Manager (zip)

• In File Manager, select your world folder.
• Use the Compress or Archive option to create a .zip file (for example, world-backup-2025-01-01.zip).
• Wait until the archive is created.
• Download this .zip to your PC so you have an off-site backup.

Option B – Download via SFTP (advanced)

• Use your SFTP details from the Client Area at https://playnhost.com/billing.
• Connect with an SFTP client (for example, FileZilla).
• Download the entire world folder to your PC.

Once you have a safe backup, you can proceed with the reset.

5. Reset the world

You have two main ways to reset the world:

Method 1 – Delete or rename the world folder (most common)

• In File Manager, rename your world folder (for example, from world to world_old), or delete it if you already have a backup.
• Make sure the level-name in server.properties still matches the new world folder name you want to use. For a completely fresh world with the default name:

  level-name=world

• Click Save if you changed server.properties.

Method 2 – Change the world name in server.properties

• Open server.properties in the File Manager.
• Find the level-name line and change the value to a brand new name you have never used before, for example:

  level-name=NewSeasonSMP

• Save the file.
• When the server starts, Minecraft will generate a new world folder with this name.

Both methods create a fresh world. Using a new level-name is often cleaner, as your old world folder stays untouched.

6. Start the server and generate the new world

8. Return to the server page in the Game Panel.
9. Click Start.
10. Watch the console – you should see messages about generating a new spawn area and new chunks.

Once the server is online, join from your Minecraft client. You should see a completely new world.

7. Optional – change seed or world type before resetting

If you also want a specific seed or world type (for example, amplified, large biomes, etc.):

• Before starting the server in step 6, edit server.properties.
• Use the level-seed setting if you have a custom seed:

  level-seed=YOURSEEDHERE

• Change level-type or other world-related settings if your server type supports it.
• Save the file, then start the server to generate the new world using those settings.

8. Restoring your old world later

If you ever want to go back to your old world:

11. Stop the server.
12. Upload your backed-up world folder or .zip to the server (see “How to upload an existing Minecraft world to your server”).
13. Set level-name in server.properties to match that world folder name.
14. Start the server again and join to confirm you are back in the old world.

9. Need help?

If you are unsure which folder is your world, or your server will not start after a reset, please open a ticket from Support → Submit a Ticket in the Client Area at https://playnhost.com/billing and include your server IP and a short description of what you tried.