Share the address
Send your friends the address from your dashboard, like friday.kiphost.top. The copy button next to it puts it on your clipboard. It's the only thing they need, along with Minecraft: Java Edition on the same version as the server.
Send them How to join a Minecraft server too if they haven't joined a server before.
Turn on the whitelist
Run these commands in the Console tab of your dashboard. The console doesn't need a slash in front of commands. In the game's chat, you do, and you have to be an operator.
whitelist add YourName
whitelist add FriendName
whitelist onNames are Minecraft usernames, not Discord names, and they aren't case sensitive. The server looks each name up with Mojang, so a typo gives you an error rather than a silent miss.
Set enforce-whitelist=true in server.properties if you also want people kicked the moment they're removed from the list, instead of the next time they join.
Manage the list
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| whitelist add Name | Let someone in |
| whitelist remove Name | Take someone off |
| whitelist list | See everyone on it |
| whitelist off | Let anyone join again |
| whitelist reload | Re-read whitelist.json after editing it by hand |
Operators
Operators, or ops, can run admin commands from the game's chat: changing the time, teleporting, banning and so on. Make yourself one from the console:
op YourNameOnly op people you trust. An operator can op others, ban you from your own server, and change the world. deop Name takes it away. On Paper, a permissions plugin like LuckPerms lets you hand out single commands instead of everything at once.
Kicks and bans
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| kick Name reason | Disconnects them. They can rejoin. |
| ban Name reason | Blocks their account from joining. |
| ban-ip Name | Blocks the internet address they're on. |
| pardon Name | Lifts a ban. |
| banlist | Shows who's banned. |
With the whitelist on, you'll rarely need bans. Removing someone from the whitelist and kicking them has the same effect.