# Your first server

> From signup to the first join in a few minutes: create the server, start it, copy the address, invite friends.

Source: https://fadehost.com/docs/first-server/

Signing up takes a minute and the first server is created in the same flow. This is the whole path, so you know what to expect.

## Create the server

1. [Start the free trial](https://laplace.fadehost.com/register?intent=trial). No card; the trial comes with enough RAM to run a modpack.
2. Verify your email. The panel opens on your servers.
3. **Create server**: pick the game, then the software and version (Paper for a plugin server, Fabric, Forge or NeoForge for mods, or a modpack from the catalogue), then a preset such as **Friends survival** or **Public community**. Presets set slots, difficulty, sleep-when-empty and spawn protection in one click; every value can be changed later.
4. Pick the region closest to your players and the RAM. The server installs itself.

## Start it and join

1. Press **Start**. The console shows the boot; the first start of a modded server takes a few minutes while the mods register.
2. The address is at the top of the server page. Copy it.
3. In Minecraft: **Multiplayer**, **Add Server**, paste the address. Friends use the same address.

## Invite people

The join page (the server's **Share** settings) is a link you can send: it shows the address, whether the server is up, and wakes a sleeping server when someone opens it.

## Good to know

- **Sleep when empty** is on for the friend presets: the server stops after 15 minutes without players and wakes on the next join. See [Server hibernation](/docs/hibernation/).
- Everything else lives in the tabs: **Console**, **Files**, **Backups**, **Resources** (mods, plugins, modpacks), **Scheduler**, **Settings**.
- If a friend cannot connect, read [Players cannot join](/docs/players-cannot-join/) before anything else.