do servers keep running when noone is on?

[vikingen_alex]

new server owner here, im asking this in regards to whether or not i should tweak the food spoil rate, tree growth, seasons, etc, etc. this wont be a dedicated server but more so a place for me and some friends to hang out.

[tinyoverflow]

By default, the game on a multiplayer server is paused when no player is online. You can also see this mentioned in the server log/console when the last player logs out.

Though I'm not sure how items in unloaded chunks behave.

Edited December 27, 2025 by tinyoverflow

[vikingen_alex]

good to know, thanks for the answer. : )