Run Packs Server

Once Packs Server is set up, it looks after itself. This page covers the few things you might do now and then. Run every command here as root, on the machine that runs Packs Server.

Check on it

To check on Packs Server, run packs status. It shows how busy it is, which Minecraft servers are connected, and the last problem it ran into. Add a store’s name, like packs status survival, to see only that store. The packs command explains each line.

For the full log, run journalctl -u packs-server. Add -f to follow it as it grows.

Start, stop and restart

Packs Server runs as the packs-server service, under a user of its own called packs. Manage it with systemctl:

systemctl restart packs-server
systemctl stop packs-server
systemctl start packs-server

If Packs Server crashes, the service starts it again after 5 seconds. While it’s down, your Minecraft server keeps logging, and Oasis sends the edits over once it’s back. See If Packs Server goes down.

Change its settings

Packs Server’s settings live in /etc/packs/packs-server.properties. packs-server.properties explains each one. Run systemctl restart packs-server after you edit the file.

Give Packs Server more memory

Packs Server gets 2 GB of memory by default. It always runs on Java 25 with the ZGC garbage collector, so you don’t set any Java flags yourself. To give it more memory, run systemctl edit packs-server, add these two lines, and then run systemctl restart packs-server:

[Service]
Environment=PACKS_HEAP=4g

PACKS_HEAP takes the same sizes as Java’s -Xmx, like 3g or 3072m.

Update it

To update Packs Server and nothing else on the machine, run:

System

apt update
apt install --only-upgrade packs

If apt update brings no new Packs Server, look at /etc/apt/sources.list.d/packs.list. It must name packs-server-deb or packs-server-deb-dev. If it names packs-server or packs-server-dev, run the block in Install Packs Server again.

The update restarts Packs Server by itself. Update Oasis at the same time. Updating says what happens when the two don’t match.

Where things are

With the default settings, Packs Server keeps its files here:

Path	What it holds
`/etc/packs/packs-server.properties`	The settings
`/var/lib/packs`	Your history and the keys
`/run/packs/packs-server.sock`	The socket that the `packs` command talks to
`/opt/packs/packs.jar`	Packs Server itself

Uninstall it

System

apt remove packs uninstalls Packs Server but keeps your history in /var/lib/packs. Even apt purge packs only deletes the settings in /etc/packs and leaves your history alone.