docs.papermc.io

Waterfall is a discontinued BungeeCord proxy fork that aimed to improve performance and stability. According to PaperMC Docs, it is no longer maintained, so new deployments should use Velocity instead. The documentation remains available for reference, but it should not be treated as a supported option for new servers.

What Waterfall Was

Waterfall was built on BungeeCord, the long-standing Minecraft server proxy, with changes intended to improve performance and stability. A proxy sits in front of backend servers and routes player connections, which is useful for networks with multiple servers.

PaperMC Docs lists Waterfall alongside its other projects but explicitly labels it as discontinued. That label is the key fact for anyone deciding whether to use it.

Is Waterfall Still Maintained?

No. PaperMC Docs describes Waterfall as a discontinued BungeeCord proxy fork. The documentation is still hosted on the site, but hosting documentation is not the same as active maintenance. The project should be treated as legacy software.

Why the Distinction Matters

Using a discontinued proxy means you are relying on software that is not receiving ongoing fixes or updates. For a public Minecraft network, that is a meaningful operational risk. The documentation page is useful for understanding existing setups, but it is not a signal that Waterfall is a current choice.

What to Use Instead

PaperMC Docs presents Velocity as the modern, next-generation Minecraft server proxy. For a new proxy deployment, Velocity is the project the documentation positions as current. If you are migrating from Waterfall or BungeeCord, review the Velocity documentation on the same site before changing your setup, since proxy configuration and plugin compatibility are the usual sticking points.

Quick Checklist

• Confirm whether your current setup already uses Waterfall; if so, plan a migration path.
• Read the Velocity documentation on PaperMC Docs before starting a new proxy build.
• Treat the Waterfall pages as historical reference, not as a setup guide for new servers.
• Check plugin compatibility against Velocity rather than assuming BungeeCord-era plugins will carry over unchanged.

Paper, Velocity, and Folia are three separate projects documented on docs.papermc.io, and they serve different roles in a Minecraft server setup. Paper is the server itself, Velocity is a proxy that sits in front of servers, and Folia is a Paper fork that changes how the server handles threading. If you are deciding which documentation to read, start with the role you need: running a server (Paper), routing players across multiple servers (Velocity), or running a Paper-based server with regionized multithreading (Folia).

The three projects at a glance

The PaperMC Docs homepage describes each project in its own section, and each links to its own documentation area on the site.

The key distinction is between a server and a proxy. Paper and Folia are both server implementations; Velocity is not a server and does not replace one. A typical network uses Velocity as the entry point and Paper (or another server) behind it.

Paper: the server implementation

Paper is described as a high-performance Minecraft server focused on fixing gameplay and mechanics inconsistencies. In practice, this is the project you look at when you want to run a single server that players join directly, or when you need the server-side documentation for configuration, plugin behavior, and server administration.

Choose the Paper docs when your task is about the server itself: setting up a server, tuning it, or understanding how the server handles gameplay mechanics.

Velocity: the proxy, not a server

Velocity is a proxy. It accepts player connections and forwards them to backend servers, which is what makes it useful for networks with more than one server. Because it is a proxy, reading the Velocity docs is the right move when your question is about routing players, running multiple backend servers behind one address, or proxy-side configuration.

A common point of confusion is treating Velocity as a Paper alternative. It is not: you still need a server such as Paper behind it. If your goal is a single standalone server, the Velocity docs are not the section you need.

Folia: a Paper fork with regionized multithreading

Folia is a fork of Paper that adds regionized multithreading to the dedicated server. That means it is still a Paper-based server, but its threading model differs from Paper's. The Folia docs are the place to look when you specifically want that regionized multithreading behavior and need to understand how it affects the server.

Because Folia is a fork rather than the mainline project, treat Paper and Folia documentation as separate: a question about standard Paper server behavior belongs in the Paper docs, while questions about Folia's threading model belong in the Folia section.

Other sections on the same site

The docs site also covers projects beyond these three, and knowing they exist helps you avoid reading the wrong section:

• Adventure — a Java library for server-controllable user interface elements in Minecraft: Java Edition.
• Waterfall — a discontinued BungeeCord proxy fork that aimed to improve performance and stability. Since it is discontinued, it is not the proxy to pick for a new setup.
• Miscellaneous — various other documentation and tools.

How to pick the right section

Use the role you are working on as the deciding factor:

1. Running or configuring the server players join → Paper docs.
2. Routing players across multiple servers → Velocity docs (and remember you still need backend servers).
3. Running a Paper-based server with regionized multithreading → Folia docs.
4. Building UI elements into a Minecraft: Java Edition plugin or server → Adventure docs.
5. Looking at an older BungeeCord-based proxy → Waterfall docs, keeping in mind it is discontinued.

If you are unsure, check the project description on the docs homepage first; each entry states the project's role in one sentence, which is usually enough to confirm whether you are in the right section before you start reading detailed pages.

docs.papermc.io is the official documentation hub for all projects under the PaperMC umbrella. It is a reference site for server administrators, plugin developers, and contributors who work with PaperMC software — not a download page, and not an official Minecraft site. Use it when you need setup guidance, configuration references, or project-specific technical documentation for Paper, Velocity, Folia, Adventure, Waterfall, or related tools.

What the site covers

The homepage organizes documentation by project. Each entry points to a distinct product with its own purpose:

Two details are worth noting before you rely on the site. First, Waterfall is explicitly marked as discontinued, so its pages are best treated as historical reference rather than guidance for new deployments. Second, Folia is described as a fork of Paper with regionized multithreading — a meaningfully different server model from Paper, so don't assume Paper instructions transfer unchanged.

Who each section is for

• Server administrators running Paper or Velocity will find the operational documentation here: configuration, setup, and behavior of the server and proxy.
• Developers building on Paper or using Adventure for UI elements in Minecraft: Java Edition should start with those project sections.
• Anyone evaluating Folia should read its section specifically, since its multithreading model sets it apart from Paper.
• Contributors have a dedicated path: the site includes a "Contribute" section thanking everyone who has written code, submitted feedback, fixed typos, or shared expertise, and framing the docs as a team effort.

What it is not

The site's own footer states that it is not an official Minecraft website and is not associated with Mojang Studios or Microsoft. Product and company names are trademarks of their respective holders, and their use does not imply affiliation or endorsement. In practice, this means you should treat docs.papermc.io as PaperMC's project documentation only — not as an authoritative source for Minecraft itself.

The documentation is built with Starlight, and the site carries a copyright notice for PaperMC and contributors (© 2026).

How to use it

1. Identify your project first. If you run a Paper server, go to the Paper section; if you operate a proxy, go to Velocity. Mixing guidance across projects is the most likely source of confusion, especially with Folia's different threading model.
2. Check the project status. Waterfall's discontinued status should shape how much you invest in reading its pages.
3. Use the Contribute section if you want to improve the docs — the site explicitly welcomes code, feedback, typo fixes, and shared expertise.

If your goal is simply to confirm what the site is: it's the central documentation resource for PaperMC's family of Minecraft server, proxy, and library projects, maintained by PaperMC and its contributors.

PaperMC Docs accepts contributions beyond writing documentation: the site's Contribute section thanks people for code, feedback, typo fixes, and shared expertise. If you want to help, the practical path is to find the relevant page or repository, make a focused change or report, and submit it through the project's normal contribution workflow. The docs site itself does not publish a separate contributor form on its welcome page, so treat the Contribute section as an invitation and use the linked project resources to find the exact process.

What Counts as a Contribution

According to the PaperMC Docs welcome page, contributions include:

• Writing or editing code
• Submitting feedback
• Fixing typos
• Sharing expertise

The page frames this as a team effort and thanks contributors directly. That means small fixes are explicitly in scope — you do not need to be a project maintainer to help.

Where to Start

PaperMC Docs covers several projects under the PaperMC umbrella:

Pick the project whose docs you actually use. A typo fix or unclear sentence on a page you rely on is the easiest first contribution because you already know what confused you.

A Practical Workflow

1. Identify the page and the problem. Note the exact URL and the sentence or section that is wrong, outdated, or unclear.
2. Check whether it is a docs issue or a code issue. A wrong command example belongs in the docs; a broken behavior belongs in the relevant project's issue tracker.
3. Make the smallest useful change. For a typo or wording fix, edit only that line. For a missing explanation, add a short paragraph with a concrete example.
4. Submit through the project's contribution channel. The welcome page does not list a single submission form; use the repository or community links associated with the project you are editing.
5. Verify the result. After a change is accepted, reload the published page and confirm the rendered text and any code blocks display correctly.

Common Stumbling Points

• Editing the wrong project. Paper, Velocity, and Folia have separate documentation areas. A fix for a Paper server setting should not be filed against Velocity.
• Assuming Waterfall is active. The docs describe Waterfall as discontinued, so new feature documentation for it is unlikely to be accepted; corrections to existing pages are more plausible.
• Skipping the example. Feedback like "this section is confusing" is harder to act on than "this command fails because the path assumes Linux." Include the specific case.
• Expecting a formal application. The Contribute section is a thank-you and an open invitation, not a registration process. Start with a concrete fix rather than asking for permission.

What to Expect

The site credits contributors for code, feedback, typo fixes, and expertise, so credit is part of the culture. The welcome page does not describe review timelines, contributor tiers, or a formal onboarding program, so do not plan around those. The reliable expectation is that a focused, well-explained change is the kind of contribution the project says it values.

If your goal is simply to report a problem rather than edit text, gather the page URL, the exact wording, and what you expected instead, then send it through the project's community or issue channel. That is feedback in the sense the Contribute section describes.

PaperMC Docs is the central documentation hub for every project under the PaperMC umbrella. According to the site's homepage, it covers Paper, Velocity, Folia, Adventure, Waterfall, and a "Miscellaneous" section for other documentation and tools. The table below summarizes what each project is, based on the descriptions published on the docs site.

How to use this list

• Running a Minecraft server and want performance plus gameplay fixes: start with the Paper documentation.
• Operating multiple backend servers behind one entry point: the Velocity proxy docs are the relevant section.
• Exploring regionized multithreading for a dedicated server: Folia's docs describe the fork, but note it is a distinct Paper fork rather than a drop-in replacement for every setup.
• Developing plugins with server-controllable UI elements: Adventure is a Java library, so its docs are aimed at developers rather than server administrators.
• Following older BungeeCord-based proxy guides: Waterfall is marked discontinued on the site, so treat its documentation as historical reference rather than a current recommendation.

Practical notes

The homepage does not publish pricing, download links, or version-support details for these projects; those specifics live in each project's own documentation section. The site also states it is not an official Minecraft website and is not associated with Mojang Studios or Microsoft, and that product and company names remain trademarks of their respective holders.

If you are new to the ecosystem, the fastest path is to open the section for the project you intend to run (Paper for a server, Velocity for a proxy) and read its getting-started material before installing anything.