Change the Java server difficulty

Choose peaceful, easy, normal, or hard. Use server.properties when the setting must persist after a restart.

Change difficulty temporarily

Start the server and enter the command without /.

difficulty normal

Join as an operator and include /.

/difficulty normal

Replace normal with peaceful, easy, or hard. A command-based change can revert when the server restarts.

Stop the server

Stop the server before editing its configuration.

Open server.properties

Open the file manager and select server.properties.

Set the difficulty

Enter one supported value.

difficulty=normal

Save and start

Save the file and start the server. Run difficulty in the console to confirm the active value.

Review other persistent Java server settings.