NapNodes
Free tool · Minecraft

Which region file is it in?

Type some coordinates from your Minecraft Java world, or the two corners of an area, and get the r.X.Z.mca file it's stored in and the folders to look in. It's for removing a chunk that crashes the server, a farm with too many entities or regenerating old terrain after updating, without touching the rest of the world. It also works the other way round: from the file name to the blocks it holds.

What have you got?

X and Z (or paste from F3)

The “Block” or “XYZ” line from F3, a /tp or two numbers (X and Z) all work.

Where?

Server version

With another world name (level-name), change “world” to yours. In the Nether, use Nether coordinates.

It's in

r.1.-5.mca

Chunk
62, -150
Inside the file
30, 10 from 0 to 31

That file holds X 512 to 1,023 and Z -2,560 to -2,049: 32×32 chunks, 512×512 blocks.

In the Overworld
world/dimensions/minecraft/overworld/region/r.1.-5.mca
world/dimensions/minecraft/overworld/entities/r.1.-5.mca
world/dimensions/minecraft/overworld/poi/r.1.-5.mca

Before deleting anything: stop the server and make a backup. A missing file is generated again from the seed when someone goes there.

Try it on your free server

A Minecraft server for you and your friends, 3 GB and no card.

How to remove or regenerate a piece of the world

  1. Find the file here (or the list, if it's an area) and pick the server version.
  2. Make a backup of the world before touching anything. At NapNodes, in “Backups”.
  3. Stop the server: while it's running, the game writes the files it has open again.
  4. In “Files”, go into the folders shown above and move those files aside (to another folder) or delete them.
  5. Start the server and go to the area: it's generated again from the seed, with the terrain of the version you're on. You may see a seam at the edge with what stays.

If you need to pick lots of loose chunks by eye, MCA Selector (a free program for your computer) shows the whole map and lets you mark chunks; for that you have to download the world first.

Frequently asked questions

What is a region file?

Minecraft Java stores the world in pieces of 32×32 chunks, that is 512×512 blocks, each one in an r.X.Z.mca file. r.0.0.mca goes from X 0 to 511 and from Z 0 to 511; r.-1.-1.mca is just on the other side of 0 0. Bedrock stores the world differently and this doesn't apply to it.

What happens if I delete a region file?

That piece is generated again from the seed the next time someone goes near it, as if nobody had ever been there: everything built inside is lost. That's why you stop the server first (while it's running, the game writes the file again) and make a backup.

What are region, entities and poi for?

region holds the blocks, entities holds animals, villagers, dropped items and armor stands (since 1.17) and poi holds the points villagers use, such as beds and workstations. All three use the same file name: to reset a piece completely you delete all three; to remove just a farm that crashes the server with too many entities, the entities one is enough.

My server crashes when it loads an area, does this help?

Yes, it's the most common use. Look in the console or the logs for the coordinates of the chunk or entity in the error, put them in here and move that file aside (move it to another folder instead of deleting it, just in case). If the server starts without it, that's where the problem was.

Where are the folders in Paper 26.1?

Since 26.1, the Overworld, the Nether and the End live inside the world folder, in world/dimensions/minecraft/overworld, the_nether and the_end, and each has its own region, entities and poi. In earlier Paper versions, the Overworld was in world/region, the Nether in world_nether/DIM-1/region and the End in world_the_end/DIM1/region.

To start the whole world from scratch instead of a piece: how to reset your server's world. If the server won't start at all: Minecraft server not starting.

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