From Minecraft Bedrock 26.60 (released October 27, 2026), NetherNet is the only way players can join a server. A server still running the old RakNet connection can't be joined at all, even though it boots and looks fine. On DoomHosting every Bedrock server is already set up for NetherNet: restart it once and it switches over.
What NetherNet changes
Bedrock used to connect players over RakNet: one UDP port, the game port, and that was it. NetherNet works in two steps instead:
- Handshake on the game port. The game first contacts your server on its normal game port, the same address and port as before, to ask who it is and to agree on a connection.
- Gameplay on its own ports. The game traffic then runs over separate UDP ports. Each player online at the same time uses one of them.
That second part is why a NetherNet server needs more than one port. On DoomHosting every Bedrock server gets one block of extra ports, one for every player slot up to 50, and the server is told about them automatically, also when you change max-players. You don't have to set anything up by hand, and your address and game port stay the same.
Check whether your server is on NetherNet
Open your server in the control panel and go to the Console tab. A server still on RakNet prints a block like this right after Server started.:
================ TRANSPORT TYPE ERROR ===================
Your current connection type is not set to NetherNet. In this release, NetherNet is the only supported transport type.
Players will not be able to connect to your game without NetherNet.
A server on NetherNet starts without that block. You can also open server.properties in the Files tab and look for the line transport=nethernet.
How to fix it on DoomHosting
- Restart the server. Every start sets
transport=nethernet, and the player ports are already in place, so one restart is usually all it takes. Use Restart in the Console tab and check that the transport error is gone. If the Overview tab asks you to restart, that's the same thing: the ports were just updated. - Update an old server build. NetherNet needs Bedrock Dedicated Server 1.26.50 or newer. Your version is in the Version tab. If it's older, pick the latest Release build there and apply it. Your worlds and
server.propertiesare kept.
Don't set transport=raknet to get players in. That was the workaround before 26.60, and it no longer works: players on the current version can't join a RakNet server, and NetherNet is set again on the next start anyway.
Joining the server
Use the address and port from the Connection address card on the Overview tab, in their own fields under Servers > Add Server. The card shows your server's IP address, and that's the one to use.
If you saved the server before October 27, delete that entry and add it again. An old entry can keep trying the old connection and fail with "Unable to connect", even though the server is fine.
If you saved the server earlier with a name like node21.doomhosting.com, the entry may sit on "Locating server" forever and never show the player count. Joining from that entry still works, but the server list can't read its status. Delete the entry and add it again with the IP address from the panel, and the status shows normally.
Players need Minecraft Bedrock 26.50 or newer. Consoles and phones update on their own; on PC, update through the Microsoft Store or the Minecraft Launcher.
Common issues
The transport error is still there after a restart. Check the version in the Version tab. A build older than 1.26.50 can't run NetherNet, whatever server.properties says. Update it, then restart.
Some players get in, the rest can't. Every player online at once needs a port of their own. If you raised max-players by editing server.properties in the Files tab, open the Overview tab once: the panel adds the ports for the new slots by itself. Then restart. A server gets at most 50 player ports.
One player gets in, nobody else does. Make sure everyone deleted their old saved entry and added the server again (see Joining the server). If it still happens after a restart, contact us and we'll check the server.
The server shows "Locating server" in the server list. You're using a saved entry with a hostname instead of the IP. See Joining the server above.
"You're not invited to play on this server." That isn't NetherNet: the allowlist is on and the player isn't on it. See Minecraft Bedrock Allowlist: Fix "You're Not Invited".
A numbered error code. See Minecraft Bedrock Error Code U-000: What It Means and How to Fix It.
Console players can't add a server. Xbox, PlayStation and Switch have no Add Server button, so they join through a workaround. See How to Join a Minecraft Bedrock Server on Switch, Xbox and PS.
Java servers with crossplay
A Minecraft Java server with GeyserMC needs NetherNet too, or Bedrock players stop getting in. If the Overview tab shows "Bedrock players can't join from October 27", click Turn on NetherNet and restart the server. If the panel says your GeyserMC plugin is too old, update it in the Plugins tab first. Crossplay itself is covered in How to Enable Minecraft Crossplay with GeyserMC.
Setting up a new server? Our Minecraft Bedrock server hosting plans come with NetherNet ready from the first start.
