So you wanna host an All The Mods 9 server. Smart choice. ATM9 is one of the most popular modpacks right now with over 400 mods. But it's also HEAVY and most cheap hosts can't handle it properly.
Let me show you exactly what you need to run ATM9 smoothly without lag or crashes.
What is All The Mods 9?
ATM9 is a kitchen sink modpack: basically has every popular mod crammed into one pack:
- Tech mods (Mekanism, Industrial Foregoing, etc)
- Magic mods (Ars Nouveau, Occultism)
- Exploration (Alex's Mobs, Biomes O' Plenty)
- Building (Chisel, FramedBlocks)
- Performance mods (thankfully)
It's massive. Over 400 mods. Runs on Minecraft 1.20.1. And it NEEDS proper hosting to work right.
RAM Requirements (The Real Numbers)
Everyone asks "how much RAM do I need?"
Here's what we recommend:
For 1-5 players: 10GB minimum
- 12GB recommended
- You'll use about 8-9GB consistently
- Spikes to 10GB+ during chunk generation
For 6-10 players: 12-14GB minimum
- 16GB recommended if people explore a lot
- Chunk loading and automation adds up fast
For 11-20 players: 16-20GB minimum
- 20GB+ if you run multiple dimensions actively
- More players = more loaded chunks = more RAM
Don't believe hosts that say "4GB is enough for ATM9". It's not. You'll crash constantly.
CPU Requirements
Minecraft is single-threaded so you need FAST cores not many cores.
What works well:
- AMD Ryzen 9 (3.8GHz+)
- Intel i9 or high-end Xeon
- Anything with 4.0GHz+ single core boost
What doesn't work:
- Old Xeons with like 2.4GHz (even if 16 cores)
- Budget CPUs
- Anything that doesn't list clock speeds (red flag)
ATM9 has hundreds of mods doing calculations every tick. Slow CPU = lag.
Storage: SSD is Mandatory
NVMe SSD: Perfect, use this
- Fast server starts
- Chunk loading is instant
- No lag spikes
SATA SSD: Okay, but slower
- Slower server starts
- Some chunk loading delays
HDD: Don't even try
- Very slow server starts
- Constant lag when generating chunks
- Absolutely terrible experience
ATM9 loads hundreds of mods and thousands of files. HDD will make you want to quit.
Best Hosting for ATM9
Here's what actually works:
Space-Node: Best Performance
Recommended plan: MC Special 1 (12GB) for €10.80/month, or €21.99/month on Premium
Specs:
- AMD Ryzen 9 CPU (perfect for ATM9)
- 12GB RAM
- 70GB NVMe SSD (100GB on Premium)
- Pterodactyl panel with SFTP and custom JVM arguments
Why it works:
- Fast CPU handles mod calculations
- NVMe makes loading super fast
- Support helps with JVM optimization
Cost breakdown:
- 1-10 players: MC Special 1 (€10.80/month for 12GB)
- 10+ players: MC Special 3 (€14.40/month for 16GB)
What About Cheaper Options?
Look, you CAN find cheaper hosting. But here's what happens:
€5/month "budget" hosting:
- Constant TPS drops to 15-17
- Crashes when chunk generating
- Players complain about lag
- You waste time troubleshooting
€10.80/month Space-Node:
- Players have fun
- You actually enjoy hosting
The €5.80 difference isn't worth the frustration.
Server Setup Guide
Here's how to actually set up ATM9 on your host:
Step 1: Download ATM9 Server Files
Go to CurseForge and download the ATM9 server files (not client):
- Get the latest version
- Download the .zip file
- Extract it on your computer first to see what's inside
Step 2: Upload to Your Server
Use an FTP client (FileZilla is free):
- Connect to your server
- Upload ALL the ATM9 files
- Upload the mods, config, and defaultconfigs folders
This takes like 10-15 minutes depending on your internet.
Step 3: Allocate RAM Properly
Edit your startup script or panel settings:
On a 12GB plan like MC Special 1, use:
-Xms10G -Xmx10G
Don't do -Xms2G -Xmx10G or other weird splits. Keep them the same.
Step 4: Use Optimized JVM Arguments
These are Aikar's flags. Paste them into the JVM arguments in your panel's Startup tab:
-Xms10G -Xmx10G -XX:+UseG1GC -XX:+ParallelRefProcEnabled -XX:MaxGCPauseMillis=200 -XX:+UnlockExperimentalVMOptions -XX:+DisableExplicitGC -XX:+AlwaysPreTouch -XX:G1NewSizePercent=30 -XX:G1MaxNewSizePercent=40 -XX:G1HeapRegionSize=8M -XX:G1ReservePercent=20 -XX:G1HeapWastePercent=5 -XX:G1MixedGCCountTarget=4 -XX:InitiatingHeapOccupancyPercent=15 -XX:G1MixedGCLiveThresholdPercent=90 -XX:G1RSetUpdatingPauseTimePercent=5 -XX:SurvivorRatio=32 -XX:+PerfDisableSharedMem -XX:MaxTenuringThreshold=1 -Dusing.aikars.flags=https://mcflags.emc.gs -Daikars.new.flags=true
Step 5: Start and Test
- Start your server
- Wait for it to fully load (watch console)
- Join with your ATM9 client
- Test chunk generation
- Check TPS with /forge tps
If TPS is under 19, something's wrong with your hosting.
Common ATM9 Server Issues
"Server keeps running out of memory"
Your plan doesn't have enough RAM. ATM9 needs at minimum 10GB.
Upgrade to larger plan or remove some mods (not recommended, breaks progression).
"TPS drops to 15 when exploring"
Your CPU is probably too slow for ATM9 chunk generation.
"Server takes 10 minutes to start"
You're on HDD not SSD. Or your host has slow storage.
Get NVMe SSD hosting. Server starts get a lot faster.
"Random crashes every few hours"
Usually memory leaks from specific mods or bad JVM arguments.
Use the optimized arguments I posted above. If still crashing, check crash logs for specific mods.
Optimization Tips
Pre-generate Your World
Use Chunky mod to pre-gen like a 5000x5000 area:
/chunky world <worldname>
/chunky radius 2500
/chunky start
Let it run overnight. Saves SO much lag later.
Set View Distance Properly
In server.properties:
view-distance=8
simulation-distance=6
Don't go higher unless you have 16GB+ RAM.
Use ServerCore Mod
ATM9 includes it but make sure these configs are set:
- Dynamic view distance: enabled
- Entity activation range: optimized
- Teleport chunk loading: disabled
Regular Restarts
Restart your server every 12-24 hours to clear memory leaks:
- Set up automatic restart schedule
- Warn players 5 min before
- Keeps server fresh
Player Count Guide
How many players can your server handle?
10GB RAM:
- 5-10 players: Perfect
- 10-15 players: Good if they don't all explore at once
- 15+ players: Will struggle
12GB RAM (MC Special 1):
- 10-15 players: Perfect
- 15-20 players: Good
- 20+ players: Struggles
16GB RAM (MC Special 3):
- 15-20 players: Perfect
- 20-30 players: Good
- 30+ players: Need more RAM
These assume normal gameplay. If everyone's building massive automation, you'll need more.
Cost Comparison
Let me show you real hosting costs for ATM9:
Space-Node MC Special 1 (€10.80/month):
- 12GB RAM
- Perfect for 10 players
- €1.08 per player
Random "cheap" host (€6/month):
- "8GB" RAM
- Laggy for 5 players
- €1.20 per player (because you can host less)
- Constant frustration
See? The "cheaper" host actually costs MORE per player because performance sucks.
My Honest Recommendation
If you're serious about hosting ATM9:
For small group (5-8 friends): Get Space-Node MC Special 1 (12GB) for €10.80/month. It fits this group size.
For community server (10-15 players): Get Space-Node MC Special 1 (12GB) for €10.80/month, or MC Special 3 (16GB) for €14.40/month if your players explore a lot. The extra RAM helps during peak times.
For public server (20+ players): Get Space-Node MC Special 3 (16GB) for €14.40/month. You need the resources for that many players.
Don't try to cheap out on ATM9 hosting. The modpack is too heavy. You'll just frustrate yourself and your players.
Check out Space-Node's ATM9 server hosting. They have everything from small servers to massive setups.
Want the newer All The Mods 10 instead? It runs on Minecraft 1.21.1 with NeoForge and needs Java 21. The ATM10 server hosting page shows which plan fits your player count.
Or if you want to run multiple servers (like ATM9 + vanilla), get a VPS plan and run both on one VPS.
Final Tips
- Backups: Set up automatic backups daily
- Whitelist: Use whitelist for stability
- Rules: Ban quarries and other lag-heavy automation
- Monitoring: Watch TPS and RAM usage regularly
- Updates: Keep ATM9 updated but test first
ATM9 is an amazing modpack but it needs proper hosting. Don't settle for laggy servers when €10.80/month gets you a 12GB plan.
Your players will actually thank you for spending the extra few euros on good hosting instead of dealing with constant crashes.