How to allocate more RAM to a Minecraft server on Hostd

On Hostd, RAM is hard-locked at the plan level. The way to give the server more RAM is to upgrade the plan from the dashboard; -Xmx does not apply.

The short version

On Hostd you cannot allocate more RAM with -Xmx, because RAM is hard-reserved at the plan level rather than shared out of a pool. To give a server more memory, upgrade the plan from the dashboard. The change applies on the next restart and the world, mods and address are untouched.

On Hostd, you do not allocate RAM to your Minecraft server. The plan you bought has a fixed amount of RAM and the JVM gets all of it, hard-locked at the kernel level. There is no flag to tune and no advantage to leaving headroom; we have already done that calculation for you. The way to "give the server more RAM" is to move to a bigger plan.

#How to upgrade

Open Dashboard → your server → Settings → Plan and pick a higher tier. The upgrade is in-place: your world, your mods, your config, your address all stay. The container restarts on the new plan size and the JVM picks up the new heap automatically. Pro-rated billing covers the day-of difference.

#What the Java tier ladder looks like

  • The 3 GB plan. Unmodded survival with a few friends, no plugins beyond essentials. Bedrock equivalents are on their own ladder.
  • The 6 GB plan. Light Modrinth and Forge packs; Create on its own, Cobblemon, smaller adventure packs.
  • The 10 GB plan. The floor for ATM, FTB Skies, RLCraft, Better MC, Vault Hunters, and anything kitchen-sink. Below this and you will see TPS collapse on chunk loads.
  • The 14 GB plan. Heavy packs with 10+ active players, or the rare pack that genuinely needs more (Gregtech: New Horizons, big modded networks).

Picking a tier for your first server has the per-game breakdown.

#Why -Xmx is not the answer

If you have self-hosted before, you may have grown used to bumping -Xmx in user_jvm_args.txt when a pack needs more memory. On a kernel-locked plan that does the opposite of what you want: the JVM tries to reserve more than the plan has, fails, and the server refuses to boot with Could not reserve enough space for object heap. The Files page blocks edits to those launcher files for that reason. The plan size is the real lever.

#Where to go next

#Frequently asked questions

Why can't I change -Xmx on my Minecraft server?

Because the container has exactly the RAM your plan reserves, and nothing more to hand out. Setting -Xmx above that does not create memory; it makes the JVM ask for space the machine will not give it, and the server fails to boot with a heap reservation error instead.

Does upgrading my plan wipe my server?

No. An upgrade changes the resources allocated to the same server. The world, mods, configs and address stay exactly where they are, and it applies on the next restart.

How much RAM does my modpack actually need?

Most modpacks are comfortable at 6 GB. All The Mods, FTB Skies, RLCraft and similar kitchen-sink packs want 10 GB as a floor. If you are seeing OutOfMemoryError repeatedly on boot rather than after hours of uptime, you are under-allocated.

Written and maintained by the Hostd engineering team. Last updated 2026-05-23. Notice a mistake? Tell us.

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