What Is simulation-distance in Minecraft Server?
Learn what simulation-distance does in Minecraft servers, how it affects ticking chunks, entities, farms, redstone, mobs, and TPS performance.
simulation-distance controls active ticking around players.
simulation-distance=6
It is one of the most important performance settings for survival servers because it affects how much world activity the server processes.
What It Affects
| Area | Impact | | --- | --- | | Entity AI | Mobs and villagers | | Random ticks | Crops and block updates | | Farms | Behavior around players | | Redstone expectations | Active area changes | | TPS/MSPT | Often significant |
View distance controls what players can see. Simulation distance controls what actively runs.
Starting Values
| Server type | Starting point |
| --- | --- |
| Small SMP | 6 |
| Busy survival | 4 to 6 |
| Technical/farm-heavy | Tune carefully with player expectations |
| Lobby | Often low |
Players may notice farm, mob, villager, and redstone changes. A performance win can still feel like a gameplay break if it is unexpected.
How to Tune
Change simulation distance in small steps and profile the same player pattern. If MSPT improves and gameplay remains acceptable, keep the change. If farms or mobs feel broken, adjust more carefully.
For the comparison with view distance, read view distance vs simulation distance.
FAQ
What does simulation-distance control?
It controls how far around players chunks actively tick entities, random ticks, and block behavior.
Does simulation-distance affect farms?
Yes. Lower values can change how farms, mobs, villagers, crops, and redstone behave when players are farther away.
Should simulation-distance be lower than view-distance?
Often yes. Many servers keep a wider visible range and a smaller active ticking range.
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