What op status grants
Operators can teleport, change gamemode, give items, kick and ban players, edit the whitelist, and at the highest level control the server process itself. They also gain visibility tools like seeing other players’ inventories.
Because op is per-server and not a Mojang account feature, it cannot be transferred or scoped from outside. The server decides, and the server alone.
Granting and revoking access
Run op PlayerName in the console or in-game, and the server updates ops.json immediately. To take it back, run deop PlayerName — the change applies on the next login for that player.
The console is the safest place to do this, because it cannot be used by a compromised operator account. If you are ever locked out of your own server, editing ops.json with the server stopped restores access.
Keeping op under control
Treat op like a spare house key. Give it to as few people as possible, prefer a lower level where you can, and never grant it to an account protected by a weak password or shared between players.
On plugin servers, escalate in stages: a plugin role for moderators, level 3 for a second-in-command, and level 4 for you. That keeps a working way to stop anyone who goes rogue.
FAQ
Common questions
Can an operator do anything a normal player cannot undo?
Yes. Operators can change gamemodes, teleport players, and alter the world; level 4 can stop the server outright. Anything destructive they do is undone by a backup, not by a command, which is why backups and op discipline belong together.
Where is the operator list stored?
In ops.json in the server root, which maps each operator name to a level. It is a plain text file, so the server must be stopped when you edit it, and the server overwrites it when it shuts down cleanly.
