View distance is how many chunks players can see, and Simulation distance is how many chunks around each player keep running. Both are in Settings, Server Properties (Java). On plans the panel has sizes for, the Performance for your plan card at the top of that page sets both to those sizes in one click, and Undo puts back what you had.
What they do
- View distance: how far players see, in chunks. Minecraft's default is 10. High values are one of the most expensive settings on a server.
- Simulation distance: how many chunks stay active around a player, where mobs move and crops grow. Default 10. Lower values reduce lag on a busy server.
Both cost memory and processor time, and the cost grows quickly as the numbers go up.
Use the Performance for your plan card
- Open your server in the panel and click the Settings tab.
- Under Config files, click Server Properties (Java).
- At the top, the Performance for your plan card shows a small table: each Setting, its value Now and its value After.
- Click Apply. The card says
Sized for your plan. Undo puts back what was there before. - It takes effect the next time the server starts, so restart when it suits your players.
The card only appears on plans the panel has sizes for. The panel's sizes are view 8 and simulation 6 on plans up to 2 GB, and view 10 and simulation 8 up to 4 GB. Modded servers get the smaller row on plans up to 4 GB, and view 10 and simulation 8 up to 8 GB. Above that, Minecraft's defaults are kept.
A new server set up with Tune for my plan (recommended) on already has these numbers. To go back to your own values, click Undo on the card. If you changed one of the two since, the card says so, and Undo leaves your own value alone.
Set your own numbers
- In the same list, change View distance and Simulation distance. The panel accepts 2 to 32 for each. Minecraft's own range is 3 to 32, so use 3 or more.
- Click Save & restart.
Good to know
- On Paper, Purpur and Spigot, the plugin server's own files have more ways to cut lag. See How to reduce lag on your Minecraft server.
- Entity view range in the same list is how far away other players and mobs are sent, as a percentage. Lowering it also cuts lag on a busy server.
- To see how the server copes, use How to check your Minecraft server health with TPS and the spark profile.
