minecraft-java-core

v4.0.0 • minecraft‑java‑core

minecraft‑java‑core is a NodeJS/TypeScript solution for launching both vanilla and modded Minecraft Java Edition without juggling JSON manifests, assets, libraries or Java runtimes yourself. Think of it as the core of an Electron/NW.js/CLI launcher.

Getting support

Need help or just want to chat? Join the community Discord!

Installing

npm i minecraft-java-core
# or
yarn add minecraft-java-core

Requirements: Node ≥ 18, TypeScript (only if you import .ts), 7‑Zip embedded binary.

Standard Example (ESM)

import { Launch, Microsoft } from 'minecraft-java-core';

// ⚠️  In production, perform auth **before** initialising the launcher
//     so you can handle refresh / error flows cleanly.
const auth = await Microsoft.auth({
  client_id: '00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000',
  type: 'terminal' // 'electron' | 'nwjs'
});

const launcher = new Launch();

launcher.on('progress', p => console.log(`[DL] ${p}%`))
        .on('data', line => process.stdout.write(line))
        .on('close', () => console.log('Game exited.'));

await launcher.launch({
  root: './minecraft',
  authenticator: auth,
  version: {
    number: '1.20.4',
    type: 'release'
  },
  loader: { type: 'fabric', version: '0.15.9' },
  memory: { min: '2G', max: '4G' }
});

Documentation

Launch class

Function	Type	Description
`launch`	Promise	Launches Minecraft with the given `LaunchOptions` (see below).

LaunchOptions

Parameter	Type	Description	Required
`path`	String	Working directory where game files are stored (usually `.minecraft`).	✔︎
`url`	String \| null	Custom version manifest base URL (only for mirror setups).	—
`authenticator`	Object	Microsoft / Mojang / AZauth profile returned by the authenticator.	✔︎
`timeout`	Integer	Network timeout in milliseconds for downloads.	—
`version`	String	`'latest_release'`, `'latest_snapshot'`, `'1.21.1'`.	—
`instance`	String \| null	Name of the instance if you manage multiple profiles.	—
`detached`	Boolean	Detach the Java process from the launcher.	—
`intelEnabledMac`	Boolean	Force Rosetta when running on Apple Silicon.	—
`downloadFileMultiple`	Integer	Max parallel downloads.	—
`loader.enable`	Boolean	Whether to install a mod‑loader (Forge/Fabric/…).	—
`loader.type`	String \| null	`forge`, `neoforge`, `fabric`, `legacyfabric`, `quilt`.	—
`loader.build`	String	Loader build tag (e.g. `latest`, `0.15.9`).	—
`loader.path`	String	Destination folder for loader files. Defaults to `./loader`.	—
`mcp`	String \| null	Path to MCP configuration for legacy mods.	—
`verify`	Boolean	Verify SHA‑1 of downloaded files.	—
`ignored`	Array	List of files to skip during verification.	—
`JVM_ARGS`	Array	Extra JVM arguments.	—
`GAME_ARGS`	Array	Extra Minecraft arguments.	—
`java.path`	String \| null	Absolute path to Java runtime.	—
`java.version`	String \| null	Force a specific Java version (e.g. `17`).	—
`java.type`	String	`jre` or `jdk`.	—
`screen.width`	Number \| null	Width of game window.	—
`screen.height`	Number \| null	Height of game window.	—
`screen.fullscreen`	Boolean	Start the game in fullscreen mode.	—
`memory.min`	String	Minimum RAM (e.g. `1G`).	✔︎
`memory.max`	String	Maximum RAM (e.g. `2G`).	✔︎

Recommendation: Start with the minimal set (authenticator, path, version, memory) and gradually add overrides only when you need them.

Default configuration

Below is the complete default LaunchOptions object returned by minecraft‑java‑core when you don’t override any field. Use it as a quick reference for every available parameter and its default value.
(Parameters marked nullable can be left null/undefined and the library will figure out sane values.)

const defaultOptions = {
  url: null,                        // Optional custom manifest URL
  authenticator: null,              // Microsoft/Mojang/AZauth profile
  timeout: 10000,                   // Network timeout in ms
  path: '.Minecraft',               // Root directory (alias: root)
  version: 'latest_release',        // Minecraft version (string or 'latest_…')
  instance: null,                   // Multi‑instance name (optional)
  detached: false,                  // Detach Java process from parent
  intelEnabledMac: false,           // Rosetta toggle for Apple Silicon
  downloadFileMultiple: 5,          // Parallel downloads

  loader: {
    path: './loader',               // Where to install loaders
    type: null,                     // forge | neoforge | fabric | …
    build: 'latest',                // Build number / tag
    enable: false,                  // Whether to install the loader
  },

  mcp: null,                        // Path to MCP config (legacy mods)

  verify: false,                    // SHA‑1 check after download
  ignored: [],                      // Files to skip verification
  JVM_ARGS: [],                     // Extra JVM arguments
  GAME_ARGS: [],                    // Extra game arguments

  java: {
    path: null,                     // Custom JVM path
    version: null,                  // Explicit Java version
    type: 'jre',                    // jre | jdk
  },

  screen: {
    width: null,
    height: null,
    fullscreen: false,
  },

  memory: {
    min: '1G',
    max: '2G',
  },
} as const;

Note : Any field you provide when calling Launch.launch() will be merged on top of these defaults; you rarely need to specify more than authenticator, path, version and memory.

Events

Event Name	Payload	Description
`data`	String	Raw output from the Java process.
`progress`	Number	Global download progress percentage.
`speed`	Number	Current download speed (kB/s).
`estimated`	Number	Estimated time remaining (s).
`extract`	String	Name of the file currently being extracted.
`patch`	String	Loader patch currently applied.
`close`	void	Emitted when the Java process exits.
`error`	Error	Something went wrong.

Authentication (built‑in)

Microsoft — OAuth 2 Device Code flow via Xbox Live → XSTS → Minecraft.
Mojang (legacy) — classic Yggdrasil endpoint.
AZauth — community Yggdrasil‑compatible server.

The authenticator returns a profile object that you pass directly to Launch.launch().

Utilities

Downloader — resilient downloader with resume, integrity check & progress/speed events.
Status — simple TCP ping that returns MOTD, player count & latency.

File structure (simplified)

src/
  Authenticator/       Microsoft, Mojang, AZauth flows
  Minecraft/           Version JSON, assets, libraries, args builder
  Minecraft-Loader/    Forge, NeoForge, Fabric, Quilt, … installers
  StatusServer/        Server ping implementation
  utils/               Downloader & helpers
  Launch.ts            Main entry point
assets/                LWJGL native indexes

Contributors

See the commit history for a full list. Special thanks to:

Luuxis — original author.
Community testers & issue reporters.

License

Released under Creative Commons Attribution‑NonCommercial 4.0 International.