---
url: https://connect.minekube.com/guide.md
---
# Minekube Connect Introduction

-> The Ingress Tunnel for Minecraft Servers

Connect is a global gateway to a DDoS-protected Minecraft native Superproxy.
A developer platform with public Anycast domains for localhost allowing admins
to secure and scale servers/proxies to build durable Minecraft networks in
any environment easily.

*Sounds like techno marketing to you? Let's break the promises down, shall we?*

-> No time to read! Get me started! [Quick Start](quick-start) / [Dashboard](https://app.minekube.com/)

## The Connect Platform

The Connect Platform consists of the following components:

* [The Connect Network](#the-connect-network) - A global edge network of router proxies
* [The Connectors](/guide/connectors/) - Tunnels players <-> to servers through Connect Network
* [The Connect Dashboard](#the-connect-dashboard) - A web interface for organizing your Minecraft network

[//]: # "- [The Connect Browser](#the-connect-browser) - Server discovery for players"

## The Connect Network

The Connect Network consists of highly available, scalable and self-healing edge proxies
built on top of best-of-breed cloud native technologies and securely interconnects all active
Minecraft server and proxy endpoints through [Connectors](/guide/connectors/)
without noticeable overhead.

The **Connect Network** is vital to the **Connect platform** and responsible for:

* Establishing [Tunnels](/guide/tunnels) between players and your servers
* Providing free public [domains](/guide/domains) to your public or [localhost](/guide/localhost) servers
* [Advertising](/guide/advertising) your servers to players through multiple channels like
  the [Browser Hub](/guide/advertising#browser-hub)

Connect can replace traditional proxies like BungeeCord or Velocity and
become the largest shared Minecraft network in the world.

*Core features of Connect are free and will always be free for everyone.*

## The Connect Dashboard

The Connect Dashboard is a web interface for managing all
resources of your Minecraft network in one place.

-> https://app.minekube.com/

It allows you to manage your Endpoints, Connectors, Custom Domains,
analyze statistics about your network, and much more.

## The Connect Browser

The Connect Browser encompasses all the features that allow players to discover
and join endpoints on the Connect Network. **Most notably, it's the in-game server
browser that players can access with the `/browser` global command or by joining `minekube.net`.**

Check out the [Advertising guide](/guide/advertising) to learn more!

## Connect Endpoints

A Connect endpoint is a Minecraft server or proxy that is linked with the [Connect Network](#the-connect-network)
through a [Connector](/guide/connectors/) and is identified by a globally unique human-readable name.

Endpoints are also referred to as *servers* for simplicity.

Endpoints are advertised to players and can be joined
by using the [Connect Browser](#the-connect-browser).
Any server that can serve Minecraft clients and is linked with the Connect Network can be an Endpoint.

If you do not specify the Endpoint name in your [Connect Plugin](#the-connect-plugin) configuration,
the plugin will ask the [Random Name Service](https://randomname.minekube.net/).

**Related Guides:**

* [Joining guide](/guide/joining) - Learn how to join endpoints.
* [Advertising guide](/guide/advertising) - Learn about advertising your endpoints.
* [Endpoint Domains guide](/guide/domains) - Learn how to use free domains for your endpoints.
* [Bedrock support guide](/guide/bedrock) - Learn which Bedrock path applies to your setup.
* [Offline Mode guide](/guide/offline-mode) - Learn how to allow offline mode players on your server.

## Connect Tunnels

As soon as your server is started [Connectors](/guide/connectors/) link with
Connect networking services and players can start joining your Minecraft server even if it's running
[locally on your PC](/guide/localhost).

Check out [How Tunnel connections work!](/guide/tunnels) for a technical explanation.

## Connect Sessions

Connect defines two specific types of sessions:

* **Endpoint Sessions**: These sessions are established by your [Connector](/guide/connectors/)'s Minecraft server/proxy
  to the Connect edge proxy to watch for incoming player sessions.
* **Player Sessions**: These sessions are established by Connect edge proxies between players and available Endpoints
  that have an active Connector.

## Let's Speedrun the Quick Start!

You have a Minecraft server locally or somewhere else?
Let's get started and link it with the **Connect Network** for the first time!
Just click the `Next page` button or click [Quick Start](quick-start)!

## The Connect Plugin

Moved to [Connectors / Plugin](connectors/plugin).