Server Software

Server Software

loader	build means	Downloaded from	Upstream checksum	evoker downloads
vanilla	(unused)	Mojang version manifest	SHA-1	server.jar
paper	Paper build number	PaperMC API (fill v3)	SHA-256	server.jar
purpur	Purpur build number	Purpur API v2	MD5	server.jar
fabric	Fabric loader version	Fabric meta (server launcher)	none	fabric-server-launch.jar
quilt	Quilt loader version	Quilt meta + Quilt installer	none	quilt-installer.jar, then runs it
neoforge	NeoForge version (e.g. 21.4.158)	NeoForged Maven installer	none	neoforge-installer.jar, then runs it
spigot	Spigot build number (e.g. 4458)	SpigotMC BuildTools (Jenkins)	none	BuildTools.jar, then builds Spigot locally

The pack's evoker.lock records the exact build and the upstream checksum. Where the upstream publishes none, each server pins the file it first downloaded by its own SHA-256 in .evoker/installed.json.

For paper, purpur and spigot packs, clients run vanilla Minecraft; for fabric, quilt and neoforge, clients run the same loader and build (see Clients).

build: "latest"

• paper: the newest STABLE/RECOMMENDED build, or the newest build if none is stable.
• purpur: the newest build.
• fabric: the newest stable loader, with the newest stable installer.
• quilt: the newest non-beta loader available for the game version, or the newest beta if there is none.
• neoforge: the newest non-beta NeoForge for the game version, or the newest beta. NeoForge versions follow the game version: 1.21.4 → 21.4.x, 1.21 → 21.0.x, 26.1 → 26.1.0.x.
• spigot: the current Spigot build for the game version (from hub.spigotmc.org/versions/<version>.json).

A newer installer, launcher or BuildTools on its own never counts as an update: a server is only re-downloaded or rebuilt when the locked build changes.

Installers (quilt, neoforge, spigot)

evoker downloads the installer and runs it:

• quilt: java -jar quilt-installer.jar install server <version> <build> --download-server --install-dir=.
• neoforge: java -jar neoforge-installer.jar --installServer .
• spigot: java -jar BuildTools.jar --rev <build> --compile spigot --output-dir <server folder> --final-name server.jar --nogui, run inside .evoker/buildtools/ (where BuildTools clones and compiles). Spigot publishes no server downloads, so it is built locally: this needs git and takes several minutes, but only once per build. Unless you specifically need Spigot, paper runs the same plugins and downloads in seconds.

The installer's output is shown in the console as it runs, and also saved to .evoker/installer.log. evoker records what it installed in .evoker/installer.stamp and only runs the installer again when the loader, version, build or installer changes. A failing installer is an error.

How the server is launched

<java> <jvmArgs…> <launch> nogui, in the server folder (evoker server command prints it), where <launch> is the following and java / jvmArgs are server settings:

loader	Launch
vanilla, paper, purpur, spigot	-jar server.jar
fabric	-jar fabric-server-launch.jar
quilt	-jar quilt-server-launch.jar
neoforge	@user_jvm_args.txt @libraries/net/neoforged/neoforge/<build>/win_args.txt (unix_args.txt on Linux/macOS), same as NeoForge's own run.bat / run.sh

Notes

• fabric / quilt: the vanilla server ends up in server.jar and libraries in libraries/.
• paper / purpur keep the vanilla jar they patch in cache/ and libraries/.
• neoforge: user_jvm_args.txt is passed through if it exists; evoker's jvmArgs setting works too.
• spigot: .evoker/buildtools/ keeps BuildTools' clones so later builds are faster; it is safe to delete.