[BDS-1634] BDS requires online subscription even in offline mode

Summary

Local, offline servers still require PS+, XBL or Nintendo Online subscriptions to connect

Steps to reproduce...

On your local network, start a BDS server with the online-mode option set to false
Open a Minecraft client on the same local network without an online subscription (Xbox, PS4 or Switch)
Connect to the server from the "Friends" tab
Note it takes you to the platforms store to buy an online sub

What I expected to happen...

Because a BDS server on the local network and set to offline mode does not require any connectivity to, or resources from, the platforms online services it shouldn't require a subscription. You should be able to join an offline BDS server successfully.

What actually happened...

Since the release of 1.13 you are now prompted to buy an online services subscription for the relevant platform.

Notes

The OP mentioned the BDS server was no longer showing in the friends tab list (but was still causing a 1 to show on the tab) until an online sub was purchased. I don't know if this has changed since the original report or is platform specific but PS4 and Switch both show the server but present the store page when you try to connect.

Original Description:

My dedicated server is no longer appearing in the friends list. This happened when v 1.13 was released.
Note that when the BDS application is running, the "Friends" tab number displays as 1, but the server is not displayed in the tab itself.

Linked issues

is duplicated by 8

MCPE-177592 offline LAN games requiring playstation plus Resolved

MCPE-60569 PS4 LAN game should not require Playstation Plus Resolved

MCPE-169380 PlayStation should not require PS plus for us to join lan worlds Resolved

BDS-2036 Minecraft bedrock does not identify local server. Resolved

BDS-16219 PS5 Minecraft requires Playstation Plus for local network game Resolved

3 more links

relates to 1

MCPE-105763 Can’t Join LAN worlds Resolved

Comments 17

Jon Tabor 2019-12-21T04:31:47Z

I have this exact issue, also starting with 1.13, but the issue persists on 1.14.1.4. I tried creating a brand new world, but same outcome. I'm running BDS on Ubuntu.

Adrian Lonsdale 2019-12-30T13:29:56Z

@Jon Tabor

So. It turns out that the BDS now works if you have an Xbox Live subscription.

I find this slightly ridiculous, as I'm now paying Microsoft for online gaming to a laptop on my own LAN. (i.e. to access content that is not out in the big wide world, but local).

Given that this was not a requirement before the 1.13 update, I still see this as a bug.

Jon Tabor 2019-12-30T14:28:44Z

@Adrian Lonsdale

I concur, having an Xbox Live subscription is not mentioned as a requirement, ergo the requirement that it have one to function is indeed a bug. The closest things I can find are in the server.properties file (online-mode=true), and the whitelist.json file needs the Xbox Live gamertag. However, at least for "online-mode=true", in the past that has not required an Xbox Live subscription, merely being logged in on the Xbox.

My hunch is this has to do with the whitelisting features. However, even when a whitelist is not used, the problem persists.

Jon Tabor 2020-02-10T15:56:47Z

Can someone officially comment on whether or not an XBox Live subscription is now required for XBox to be able to join a Bedrock Dedicated Server instance, even on the same LAN?

IonicEcko 2020-02-25T02:46:39Z

Hi Jon/Adrian,

What is leading you to think you need an Xbox Live sub? I'm not saying you're wrong, but I have multiple BDS instances myself and have a test Xbox on my LAN and have not needed to upgrade to a Gold sub to join, so am just looking for some clarification so I can do some testing. I just have the free account and am testing bugs from here daily without issue.

Ionic

7 more comments

Jon Tabor 2020-02-25T14:44:49Z

I don't have Xbox Live subscription beyond the free one, so I can't comment on if it's really a requirement. Adrian indicated that it was such, but I'm unable to verify, and unwilling to sign up for a subscription just to find out.

All I can say for sure is that on my Xbox, when my BDS is running it shows that I have 1 friend online, but when you go to that tab, the BDS is not listed.

I'm beginning to wonder if this isn't BDS related specifically, though. Yesterday, while testing, I loaded up a bit of software called phantom (https://github.com/jhead/phantom), which essentially is a proxy server that makes remote Minecraft servers appear as local LAN servers. By using this with an external server (not BDS), it acted the same way - namely, showed that I had 1 friend online, but did not show the server in the list.

Unfortunately, I'm at a loss as to what the issue is. Both my BDS and my Xbox are on the same LAN. All firewalls on the LAN are disabled. The only firewalling I have is on my WAN connection to the outside world, though I do have that fairly restrictive (but I've had it that way forever, even when it was working).

Does the Xbox need to "call home" over the internet to validate something, and perhaps I'm blocking it? Does the BDS need to "call home" for any reason, and I might be blocking? I really don't know at this point, but I'd love any insight. My gut feeling - and 20+ years in IT - tell me this is maybe something network related.

Adrian Lonsdale 2020-02-25T15:24:20Z

I had a standard Xbox Live account (the free one) and the BDS didn't work. As soon as I took a Gold account, it started working.

Jon Tabor 2020-02-25T21:45:43Z

I did some more testing; part of my firewall config is to not allow UPnP, which I know the Xbox prefers to have. So I was thinking perhaps this was causing some issues with detecting friends (and BDS). To that end, I enabled it on my firewall, and I instructed the Xbox to re-test my NAT configuration. I could see it accessing UPnP via the logs, and the Xbox correctly identified my NAT type as 'open.'

Unfortunately, it did not make a difference. The situation remains.

IonicEcko 2020-08-11T08:18:02Z

I've just tried to reproduce this and my experience was a little different so just need to check in with others here.

I started a BDS server in offline mode on my local network. I then loaded up Minecraft (1.16.1) on my PS4 which does not have PS+. The server showed in the Friends tab but when joining I was taken to the PS Store and told to purchase PS+.

The same occured on my Switch.

That differs to the Xbox experience mentioned here where the digit on the tab shows the server but its not listed. Can someone with an Xbox and no XBL please test this and post the results? Unfortunately I have XBL and its set as my home Xbox so any account I sign in with "inherits" the XBL Gold status from my primary account.

Jon Tabor 2020-12-27T17:54:42Z

Hi just re-visited this issue by starting from scratch. Note that I do not have XBL. I downloaded the latest BDS (1.16.201.02) and set it up, in it's default state, on my Ubuntu 18.04 system. Same issue as initially described – on the Xbox the "friends" tab shows "1" in the tab, but no servers are listed.

I then fired up a Windows 10 system and did the same test. Same result.

Omar Berrow 2021-10-16T18:45:01Z

MCPE-60667

hug0 2023-04-30T18:44:02Z

it's been 3 years & 5 months and this is still a problem

biodolo 2023-05-07T17:00:13Z

When you start a local area network play session, It isn't an online play session so there's no sense to ask for online play subscription

dlim84 2023-06-09T17:16:23Z

Just started happening for me. Mojang will you refund me money for buying playstation plus to continue playing?

Evon Silvia 2023-10-22T01:01:43Z

Confirmed still an issue today on the PS4, update 1.20.2. My kids just got Kindles and I wanted to play together with them with cross-play instead of splitscreen, but no such luck. I spent two hours sorting through the web of permissions and privacy settings in both PSN and xbox live, only to hit the PS+ paywall for creating and joining LAN games. Very disappointing, and seemingly unnecessary. 😞

crowlord9321 2023-12-14T19:16:37Z

I have just installed a MC Bedrock 1.20.5 server at home to play with my family, and this is still a problem. Does anyone know a fix or a workaround? I dont want to buy a PS Plus for all that needs to play, so i might just as well get a refund.

Pw 2025-07-21T13:33:05Z

Found a similar issue, posted it, marked as working as intended, linking to your post not showing any of the comments they made but yours.