JsonForge

Visual JSON UI editor for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition.

_{Web + Electron · MIT licensed · open source}

---

What it is

JsonForge is a visual editor that lets you build Minecraft Bedrock JSON UI screens with a dockable interface - drag elements onto a canvas, tweak properties, drop in textures, export valid JSON UI for your resource pack. It runs in any modern browser and as a native desktop application via Electron, from a single codebase.

Features

• 10 element types out of the box - panel, stack_panel, collection_panel, scrolling_panel, image, label, button, input_panel, toggle, custom.
• Dock layout (react-mosaic) - Toolbox, Hierarchy, Canvas, Properties, Textures, Bindings, JSON Preview, History panels. Drag splitters to resize, drag tabs to rearrange.
• Live, pixel-perfect canvas - every element renders with image-rendering: pixelated, nine-slice via CSS border-image, real anchors. Edit/Preview toggle hides editor decorations to match the in-game look.
• Welcome screen - Template gallery and Recent Projects on startup.
• .jfproject bundled format - one file that contains the element tree, bindings, and all textures (base64). The installer registers the extension and double-clicking opens JsonForge.
• Drag-and-drop textures from the Textures panel onto image elements or property fields.
• Bindings editor per element (global, view, collection, collection_details, none).
• Undo / Redo command history.
• Native installer on Windows (NSIS + portable), macOS (DMG), Linux (AppImage + deb). Desktop and Start Menu shortcuts.

Quick start

git clone https://github.com/jfbedrock/jsonforge
cd jsonforge
npm install

npm run dev               # web at http://localhost:5173
npm run dev:electron      # desktop window

Build

npm run build             # static web bundle in dist/
npm run build:electron    # bundles desktop installer in installer/

Outputs land in installer/ (NSIS setup, portable .exe, DMG, AppImage, deb).

File formats

Extension	Purpose
.jfproject	Bundled project (tree + bindings + textures). Use this format.
.json	Raw Minecraft Bedrock JSON UI - import / export.

The installer registers .jfproject with JsonForge automatically.

Keyboard

Combo	Action
Ctrl/Cmd+N	New project
Ctrl/Cmd+O	Open .jfproject
Ctrl/Cmd+S	Save .jfproject
Ctrl/Cmd+Z	Undo
Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+Z	Redo
Ctrl/Cmd+D	Duplicate
Delete / Backspace	Delete selection
Wheel	Zoom toward cursor
Drag empty canvas / Alt+drag / middle-click / right-click / Space+drag	Pan canvas

Architecture

Two-layer service-oriented OOP (no inline business logic in entry points):

src/core/
├── base/         Service + ServiceRegistry + Module + ModuleMapping
├── di/           Container
├── event/        EventBus
├── element/      ElementType base + 10 concrete impls + ElementRegistry
├── property/     PropertyType + PropertySchema + CommonProperties
├── io/           JsonUiExporter, JsonUiImporter, ProjectSerializer, JfProjectFormat
└── services/     Platform, Persistence (IndexedDB), Project, Selection,
                  History, Texture, Binding, Preset, Keyboard, File, AutoSave

src/platform/    PlatformBridge interface + Web + Electron implementations
src/state/       Zustand stores (editor, project)
src/ui/
├── layout/      MenuBar, StatusBar, DockLayout
├── panels/      Toolbox, Hierarchy, Canvas, Properties, Textures,
│                Bindings, JsonPreview, History
├── canvas/      anchorMath, ElementRenderer, SelectionOverlay
├── properties/  PropertyField router + 10 typed fields
├── modals/      ModalShell, NewProject, Settings, About
├── welcome/     WelcomeScreen (sidebar + templates + recents)
└── icons/       Lucide icon registry per element type

electron/
├── main.ts      BrowserWindow, single-instance, file-association
└── preload.ts   Exposes window.jsonforge contextBridge

build/icons/    Platform icon resources (consumed by electron-builder)
installer/      Generated installers (gitignored except README)

Adding a new element type

1. Implement ElementType in src/core/element/impl/MyElement.ts. Return metadata, override schema() to declare properties.
2. Register in src/core/element/ElementBootstrap.ts.
3. Optionally add an icon in src/ui/icons/elementIcons.ts.

Toolbox, Hierarchy, exporter, and property panel pick it up automatically.

Adding a new service

1. Extend Service in src/core/services/MyService.ts, set getPriority().
2. Append to Container.boot([...]) in src/main.tsx.

Lifecycle (onLoad → onEnable → onDisable) runs in priority order.

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md. Bug reports and PRs welcome.

For security issues, see SECURITY.md - do not open a public issue.

Acknowledgements

• react-mosaic-component - dock layout
• Monaco Editor - JSON preview
• lucide-react - icons
• zustand - state
• Minecraft Bedrock (lol i know) - JSON UI target format
• Inspired by SebTheSigma/JSON-UI-Maker and Blockbench.

License

MIT © 2026 JsonForge Developer Team