Plugin channels
Plugin channels allow client mods and server plugins to communicate without cluttering up chat. This post by Dinnerbone is a good introduction and basic documentation.
Reserved channels
REGISTER
Two-way
Allows the client or server to register for one or more custom channels, indicating that data should be sent on those channels if the receiving end supports it too. Payload is a null (0x00
) separated list of strings.
UNREGISTER
Two-way
Allows the client or server to unregister from one or more custom channels, indicating that the receiving end should stop sending data on those channels. Payload is a null-separated list of strings. This is only useful if plugins are disabled/unloaded while the client is connected.
Channels internal to Minecraft
As of 1.3, Minecraft itself started using plugin channels to implement new features. These internal channel names are prefixed by MC|
. They are not formally registered using the REGISTER channel. The vanilla Minecraft server will send these packets regardless, and the vanilla client will accept them.
MC|AdvCmd
Client to server
Sets the contents of a command block or command block Minecart. The Notchain client only uses this for command block minecarts and uses AutoCmd for blocks, but the Notchian server still accepts it for either.
In 1.8 and earlier the name of this channel was incorrectly spelled as MC|AdvCdm
. This was fixed in snapshot 15w34a.
The packet starts with a single byte, which determines the type of thing being edited (block or minecart). If it is 0, then it is a block and the location is 3 ints; if it is 1, then it is a minecart and the location is the entity's EID as an int.
- type = 0
Type | Field Name | Field Type | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
0x00 | X | Int | |
Y | Int | ||
Z | Int | ||
Command | String | ||
Track Output | Boolean |
- type = 1
Type | Field Name | Field Type | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
0x01 | Entity ID | Int | |
Command | String | ||
Track Output | Boolean |
MC|AutoCmd
Client to server
Sets command block data; this seems to be a newer version of MC|AdvCmd
but the older version still works.
Field Name | Field Type | Notes |
---|---|---|
X | Int | |
Y | Int | |
Z | Int | |
Command | String | |
Track output | Boolean | If false, the output of the previous command will not be stored within the command block. |
Mode | String enum | One of "SEQUENCE", "AUTO", and "REDSTONE" |
Is conditional | Boolean | |
Automatic | Boolean |
MC|Beacon
Client to server
Two integers corresponding to the 2 effects a user wishes to have active.
MC|BEdit
Client to server
When a player edits an unsigned book.
This payload is simply a set of bytes corresponding to a Slot.
The NBT section of the Slot contains
TAG_Compound(''): 1 entry
{
TAG_List('pages'): 2 entries
{
TAG_String(0): 'Something on Page 1'
TAG_String(1): 'Something on Page 2'
}
}
MC|BSign
Client to server
When a player signs a book.
This payload is simply a set of bytes corresponding to a Slot.
The Item ID in the Slot should be a Written Book
The NBT section of the Slot contains
TAG_Compound(''): 3 entires
{
TAG_String('author'): 'Steve'
TAG_String('title'): 'A Wonderful Book'
TAG_List('pages'): 2 entries
{
TAG_String(0): 'Something on Page 1'
TAG_String(1): 'Something on Page 2'
}
}
MC|BOpen
Server to client
When a player right clicks with a signed book. This tells the client to open the book GUI. This payload is empty.
MC|ItemName
Client to server
When a player uses an anvil to name an item. The payload is just a string: the item's new name.
MC|Struct
Client to server
Does something with the (inaccessible) Structure block.
Field Name | Field Type | Notes |
---|---|---|
X | Int | Tile entity location |
Y | Int | Tile entity location |
Z | Int | Tile entity location |
Action | Byte | See below |
Mode | String enum | One of "SAVE", "LOAD", "CORNER", "DATA". |
Name | String | |
Position X | Int | ? |
Position Y | Int | ? |
Position Z | Int | ? |
Size X | Int | ? |
Size Y | Int | ? |
Size Z | Int | ?x |
Mirror | String enum | One of "NONE", "LEFT_RIGHT", "FRONT_BACK". |
Rotation | String enum | One of "NONE", "CLOCKWISE_90", "CLOCKWISE_180", "COUNTERCLOCKWISE_90". |
Metadata | String | ? |
Ignore entities | Boolean |
Possible modes:
- 2 - Save the structure
- 3 - Load the structure
- 4 - Detect size
MC|PickItem
Client to server
Swaps out an item at the given inventory index(?) with an item on the hotbar. The server sends back several packets. TODO: Document them.
Payload is a single varint.
MC|TrList
Server to client
The list of trades a villager NPC is offering.
Field Name | Field Type | Notes | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Window ID | Int | The ID of the window that is open; this is an int rather than a byte. | ||
Size | Byte | The number of trades in the following array | ||
Trades | Input item 1 | Array | Slot | The first item the villager is buying |
Output item | Slot | The item the villager is selling | ||
Has second item | Boolean | Whether there is a second item | ||
Input item 2 | Optional slot | The second item the villager is buying; only present if they have a second item. | ||
Trade disabled | Boolean | True if the trade is disabled; false if the trade is enabled. | ||
Number of tool uses | Int | May actually be the number of times this trade has been used; MCP may be misleading me | ||
Maximum number of trade uses | Int | Number of times this trade can be used |
MC|TrSel
Client to server
When a player selects a specific trade offered by a villager NPC. It contains a single int id corresponding to the selected slot int the players current (trading) inventory.
MC|PingHost
Client to server
Sent after a Server list ping in Minecraft 1.6. More information on Server List Ping#1.6. In 1.7 and above, the Request (Status, 0x00, serverbound) packet is instead sent before the ping.
MC|Brand
Two-way
Announces the server and client implementation name right after a player has logged in. For the Notchain client and server server, this is "vanilla" (encoded as a protocol string: a UTF-8 string with the length prefixed as a VarInt).
These brands are used in crash reports and a few other locations; it's recommended that custom clients and servers use changed brands for the purpose of identification (for the Notchian client, the class used to get the brand is one of the few non-obfuscated classes). The brand is not processed in any other way, and Notchian clients will connect to servers with changed brands with no issue (the brand is not used to validate).
Some modified clients and servers will not send this packet (or will take longer to send it than normal), so it is important to not crash if the brand has not been sent.
MC|DebugPath
Server to client
Never sent, but does something with pathfinding debugging. The client reads the data and stores it, but does not render anything with it.
Name | Type | Notes |
---|---|---|
? | Int | |
? | Float | ? |
Entity | PathEntity | See below |
PathEntity structure:
Name | Type | Notes |
---|---|---|
Path index | Int | |
? | PathPoint |
PathPoint structure:
Name | Type | Notes |
---|---|---|
? | Float | |
? | Float | |
? | Float | |
Has been visited | Boolean | |
Node type | Int enum | See below |
Distance to target | Float |
Values for node type:
- 0: BLOCKED
- 1: OPEN
- 2: WALKABLE
- 3: TRAPDOOR
- 4: FENCE
- 5: LAVA
- 6: WATER
- 7: RAIL
- 8: DANGER_FIRE
- 9: DAMAGE_FIRE
- 10: DANGER_CACTUS
- 11: DAMAGE_CACTUS
- 12: DANGER_OTHER
- 13: DAMAGE_OTHER
- 14: DOOR_OPEN
- 15: DOOR_WOOD_CLOSED
- 16: DOOR_IRON_CLOSED
Notable community plugin channels
Channels listed in this section are not used by the vanilla Minecraft client or server. This is just a likely-incomplete list of channels used by mods/plugins popular within the Minecraft community.
BungeeCord
FML|HS
, FML
Two-way
Used by Minecraft Forge to negotiate required mods, among other things.
FML|HS
FML
For more information, see Minecraft Forge Handshake.
ML|OpenTE
Server to client
Used by ModLoader to support custom GUI windows. Does not use the REGISTER channel.
WECUI
Two-way
Used by the server-side WorldEdit and the client-side WorldEditCUI to coordinate selections.