How to Troubleshoot default-server.properties Not Applying

Check the File Location and Name

The most common cause is a misplaced or misnamed file. It must be called default-server.properties and sit in the main game/instance folder — the same place as options.txt. If it is inside config, saves, or a subfolder, the mod will not find it. On case-sensitive filesystems, Default-Server.properties will not work.

Confirm You Are Testing a New World

This mod only overrides settings when a world is first created. If you edit the file and then load an existing world, nothing changes — that world already has its own server.properties. Create a fresh world to test.

Validate the Syntax

Each line must be key=value with no spaces around the = unless they are part of the value. Do not wrap values in quotes unless the vanilla property expects it. Lines starting with # are treated as comments. A single malformed line can cause that property (or the whole file) to be ignored, so remove suspicious lines and retest.

Compare Against the Generated File

After creating a new world, open that world's server.properties and compare it to your defaults. Missing keys point to typos in the key names. If nothing at all applied, double-check the filename and folder again, and make sure no other mod is overwriting the same properties.