Coalstack on Linux

Coalstack on Linux

The app is the same one Windows users get. It manages the same server files, streams the same console, runs the same backups and automations. Most of this page is about the parts that are different or rough.

If you want the full feature walkthrough, read the main Documents page. Everything there applies on Linux unless this page says otherwise.

Running on a headless server is the setup we test most. The app starts with --headless (or COALSTACK_HEADLESS=1), keeps servers, backups and Conduit working with no window, and stops servers cleanly when systemd sends it a stop signal.

Installing

Three packages are on the Download page, under the Linux tab.

• .deb for Debian and Ubuntu. Install it with sudo apt install ./coalstack_*_amd64.deb. This one registers the app properly with your desktop.
• .rpm for Fedora and openSUSE. Install it with sudo dnf install ./coalstack-*.rpm.
• .AppImage for anything else. Run chmod +x coalstack_*.AppImage and then start it. Nothing gets installed system wide.

All three need a fairly recent system: 64-bit, glibc 2.35 or newer, and WebKitGTK 4.1 (libwebkit2gtk-4.1-0). In practice that means Ubuntu 22.04 or later, Debian 12 or later, Fedora 36 or later, or a rolling release. Older systems will not run it.

The build is not signed. There is no Windows style warning screen, it just runs.

Features that do not work

These rely on something Windows-only, or on a package manager owning the install.

• Auto update for the .deb and .rpm. Your package manager owns that install, so the in-app updater leaves it alone. Grab the new package from the site when there is a release. The AppImage does update itself.
• Bedrock servers on other CPUs. Mojang only publishes a 64-bit x86 Linux build of the Bedrock Dedicated Server, so Bedrock servers can't be created on ARM machines (a Raspberry Pi, for instance). Java servers are unaffected. Mojang's Linux server was checked under WSL, but Coalstack's Bedrock support hasn't been run on a full Linux desktop yet.
• The RAM type label. The Performance page shows your CPU name and total RAM. It does not show "DDR4" or "DDR5" on Linux. That reading came from a Windows-only query, and it is purely cosmetic.

Things that often need a fix

• The tray icon on GNOME. Stock GNOME hides tray icons. You need the AppIndicator extension to see Coalstack's. KDE, XFCE, Cinnamon and MATE show it fine. Without it you just lose the quick show/quit shortcut - closing the window and reopening it from the taskbar or dock still works fine either way.
• Docker mode. This works on Linux, and Linux is a good place to run it. You do have to set Docker up yourself first: install it, then add your user to the docker group and log back in. There is no Docker Desktop step like on Windows.

Smaller things that might bite

• The interface uses a different browser engine. On Windows the app draws its UI with the same engine as Edge. On Linux it uses WebKitGTK, which is closer to Safari. Almost everything looks the same. A panel here or there might be slightly off, and blur or see-through effects are the most likely to look wrong or drop out.
• Saved keys need a keyring daemon. Your Anthropic API key, your website login, and per-server RCON and S3 keys are saved through your desktop's keyring (GNOME Keyring, KWallet, or similar), which is what actually keeps them across a reboot - this is standard on GNOME and KDE, so it works out of the box for almost everyone. On a minimal setup with no keyring daemon running at all, saving a key fails outright with an error rather than silently not sticking, so you will know right away rather than after the next reboot.
• The title bar is custom. Coalstack draws its own title bar rather than using the system one. Dragging the window works. Resizing from an edge, and tiling or snapping, can feel a little off on some Wayland setups.
• "Open folder" and "open in browser". These call xdg-open. Any normal desktop has it. A bare server install might not, in which case install xdg-utils.

What works well

The core of the app is solid on Linux:

• Creating, cloning and running servers
• The live console, chat log and Send Command box
• RCON, player lists, whitelist, bans and operators
• Local backups, the secondary copy, and S3 cloud backups
• Automations, scheduled commands and scheduled restarts
• Conduit remote control, and Discord or webhook alerts
• The live map, the Marketplace, and the Auto Debugger
• Java auto-download, DuckDNS and Cloudflare dynamic DNS
• Headless mode, and a clean shutdown on systemctl stop
• Firewall rules from the Networking page, via ufw or firewalld - the button prompts you for authorization the same way a Windows UAC dialog would, instead of needing a manual ufw allow
• coalstack:// links (the website's "Connect this app" and invite links) from the AppImage too, not just the .deb - the app registers the URL scheme with your desktop itself the first time it runs
• Forge/NeoForge server folders migrated from Windows - the app converts the launch file's classpath separator automatically instead of refusing to start
• UPnP port forwarding on machines with more than one active network connection (Wi-Fi + Ethernet, a VPN, etc.) - every interface is checked, not just the default route

Where Coalstack keeps its files

Downloaded Java versions and the app's own settings live in Coalstack's data folder under ~/.local/share/ (or wherever $XDG_DATA_HOME points). App config sits under ~/.config/ the same way.

Your server folders are wherever you told the Setup Wizard to put them. They are normal directories. Nothing about them is Coalstack-specific, so you can move, back up, or open them like any other folder.

Reporting a bug

Hit something not on this list? Tell us on Discord. Say which package you used (.deb or .AppImage), your distro and version, and your desktop (GNOME, KDE, and so on). If the app logged anything, the console output helps.