How to Convert a Minecraft Bedrock World to Java and Put It on a Server

Why it has to be converted

Minecraft Bedrock (phone, tablet, Windows, Xbox, PlayStation, Switch) and Minecraft Java (PC) are two different games with the same name. A Bedrock world is a .mcworld file with a database inside; a Java world is a folder with a level.dat and region files. A Java server can't open the first one.

Servers with plugins (Paper) are Java. In exchange, with Geyser and Floodgate, Bedrock players join that same server: you convert the world once and nobody has to switch devices.

1. Get the world out of Bedrock

Before anything else, put what you don't want to lose from your inventory into chests: on a server each player has their own data, and what you carry in your single-player game doesn't move to the server.

1. Open the world list

   In Minecraft Bedrock, «Play» and find your world in the «Worlds» tab.

2. Open its settings

   Tap the pencil next to the world.

3. Export the world

   Scroll to the bottom of the settings and tap «Export World». Save the .mcworld file somewhere you'll find it (on a phone, in Files or your cloud storage).

If you play on console

On Xbox, PlayStation and Switch the game won't export the world to a file. You first have to move it to Windows, a phone or a tablet with the same Microsoft account. If you have Realms, one way is to upload the world to the Realm from the console and download it on the other device; then you export it as above.

2. Convert it to Java with Chunker

Chunker is a free, open-source converter by Hive Games, the team behind the Bedrock server The Hive. It works in the browser (chunker.app) and also has a desktop version for big worlds.

1. Upload the .mcworld

   On chunker.app, upload the file you exported.

2. Pick Java and your server's version

   As the target, Java Edition and the same version as your server (or the closest one below it). On startup the server upgrades the world to its version, but not the other way round: a world from a newer version than the server's won't open.

3. Download the result

   Chunker gives you a .zip with the world folder already in Java format, with its level.dat. The download link doesn't last long: save the file as soon as it finishes.

What doesn't carry over (and is worth checking)

According to Chunker itself, entities aren't converted, except paintings and item frames: animals, villagers, horses or whatever is on an armor stand won't show up in the Java world. Before exporting, take screenshots of what you want to rebuild.

Structure data doesn't come over either: villages, strongholds and temples that were already generated are still there as blocks, but the game doesn't recognize them as structures (for example, for /locate to find them).

Redstone doesn't work the same in both editions: complex machines may behave differently. Test your farms before calling the world done. And always keep the original .mcworld.

3. Upload it to your server

From here it's the same as any Java world. At NapNodes, in «Mods & plugins», «Bring my server» tab: upload Chunker's .zip to Dropbox or Google Drive and paste the share link. The server downloads it, finds the folder with level.dat and makes it its world. What was there before is set aside in an «antes-de-importar-<date>» folder, not deleted, and a backup is made first if there's room.

If you'd rather do it by hand: with the server stopped, upload the .zip in «Files», unzip it and put the folder's exact name in «Settings» → «World folder» (level-name). Before converting, check which version your server runs in «Mods & plugins» → «Server type» («Right now it's Paper…») and use that one in Chunker.

4. Keep your Bedrock friends joining

With the world now on Java, use «Turn on Bedrock» in «Mods & plugins» (it shows up on Paper servers, the plugin ones): it installs Geyser and Floodgate. Phone and Windows players join with the address and port; consoles need one more step, explained in the Java and Bedrock together guide.

If you use the whitelist, Bedrock players are added with fwhitelist add Name, not with whitelist add.

Frequently asked questions