If your Minecraft Bedrock server runs without a single console error but players get an error mentioning NetherNet when they try to join, the server is listening on the wrong transport. Set transport=raknet in server.properties, restart, and the server is reachable by IP and port again.
What the problem looks like
The confusing part is that nothing looks broken. The server boots, the console prints lines like Opening level, Accepting clients on [::]:19132, Signed in to signaling service successfully and Server started., and there is no warning or stack trace anywhere. On the player side the server is added under Servers > Add Server with the right IP and port, but joining fails and the message mentions NetherNet.
From outside the machine, the game port answers nothing at all. That is the tell: a working Bedrock server replies to a RakNet ping on its UDP port within milliseconds, and this one is silent even though the process is up and the level is loaded. The server is running, it just is not accepting connections the way a rented server needs to.
Why it happens: the new transport property
Bedrock Dedicated Server 1.26 introduced a transport property in server.properties with two possible values.
transport=raknet is the classic UDP transport Bedrock has always used. The server binds the port set in server-port, and anyone who types that address and port under Add Server reaches it directly. This is what a rented or self-hosted dedicated server needs.
transport=nethernet is Mojang's newer WebRTC based transport. With it the server opens no reachable public game port at all. Instead it signs in to Microsoft's signalling service and connections are brokered through Xbox identity, the same plumbing that lets you drop into a friend's world. There is no address for a player to type, so the server is simply invisible to the Add Server screen no matter how correct the IP and port are.
Why some servers break and others do not
A server.properties file generated fresh by 1.26 defaults to transport=nethernet. A properties file that was written before 1.26 has no transport line at all, and a missing line defaults to raknet. That single difference explains the pattern: a long running server that simply updated its binaries keeps working, while a newly created server, or one whose properties file was regenerated, stops accepting direct connections on the same update.
So this is not a DNS problem, a firewall problem or a port allocation problem, and reinstalling usually makes it worse, because a reinstall is exactly the event that writes a fresh 1.26 properties file.
How to fix it in the DoomHosting panel
Work in this order. The server must be stopped before you edit the file, because Bedrock rewrites server.properties on shutdown and would overwrite your change.
- Open your server in the control panel and stop it from the Console tab. Wait until the status chip reads Offline, not Stopping.
- Go to the Files tab.
server.propertiessits in the root directory of the server, next tobedrock_serverand theworldsfolder. - Click the file to open the editor and find the transport line:
transport=nethernet
- Change it to:
transport=raknet
Deleting the line entirely has the same effect, since a missing transport falls back to raknet. Setting it explicitly is better, because the next time the file is regenerated you can see at a glance which transport the server is on.
- Save the file, then start the server from the Console tab.
While you have the file open, check that server-port matches the port shown on the connect card in the panel. A server that is on raknet but listening on a different port than the one you hand out fails in exactly the same way from the player's point of view.
Check that the fix worked
Start the server and watch the console. You want the normal boot sequence ending in Server started. with no errors after it. Then add the server in game under Servers > Add Server using the IPv4 address and port from the panel connect card, and join. On a server that was stuck on NetherNet, the port starts answering immediately after the restart and the entry in the server list goes from unreachable to showing the player count.
If you want a check that does not depend on the game client, the panel connect card and the player count chip both read the live game port. A server that answers there is joinable.
Common Issues
The change disappeared after a restart. You edited the file while the server was running. Bedrock keeps its properties in memory and writes them back out on shutdown, so a live edit is discarded. Stop the server, confirm the status is Offline, edit, save, then start.
Still cannot join and there is no transport line. That server was already on raknet, so NetherNet is not your problem. Check the port on the connect card against server-port, confirm the server actually reached Server started., and work through the error the client shows. If it is a numbered code, see Minecraft Bedrock Error Code U-000: What It Means and How to Fix It.
One device still fails while others join fine. Close the game fully, remove the saved server entry and add it again. The Bedrock client caches connection details per entry, and an entry created while the server was on NetherNet can keep failing after the server itself is fixed.
The console says it signed in to the signalling service. That line is harmless on its own and can appear even on a raknet server. Judge the fix by whether players can join on the IP and port, not by that message.
You are on a version older than 1.26. Then your properties file has no transport key and adding one does nothing useful. Update the server first, then set the value.
RakNet is marked deprecated
Worth knowing while you are in here: the Bedrock 1.26.3 changelog notes that RakNet is deprecated, and the client side warning about trying NetherNet became an error. Mojang has marked the classic transport as on its way out. What that means for direct IP joins in future versions has not been stated, so treat transport=raknet as the correct setting for a dedicated server today, and expect this page to be updated if the behaviour changes.
If you are setting up a new server and want the rest of the basics, our Minecraft Bedrock server hosting page lists what each plan includes, and our support team can check the transport value for you from a ticket.
