Nebula

Generate a distribution.json for Helios. Documentation on this format can be found here.

Requirements

• Node.js 20
• Java 8+ (https://adoptium.net/)
  • This is required to run the forge installer, process XZ files, and run bytecode analysis on mod files.
  • Although 1.17 requires Java 16, the forge installer works with Java 8.

Setup

1. Clone the repository
2. Install the dependencies (npm i)
3. Create a file called .env at the root directory of the cloned folder and set the required values.

Example

JAVA_EXECUTABLE=C:\Program Files\Eclipse Adoptium\jdk-17.0.12.7-hotspot\bin\java.exe
ROOT=D:\TestRoot2
BASE_URL=http://localhost:8080/
HELIOS_DATA_FOLDER=C:\Users\user\AppData\Roaming\Helios Launcher

Usage

Nebula is still being developed. Usage may change, but it has remained stable for some time now.

TL;DR (Too Long; Didn't Read) Usage

This is the barebones overall usage. Please read the rest of this document.

• Follow the setup instructions above.
• Run the init root command.
• Generate servers using the g server command.
• Put all files in their respective folders (documented below).
• Generate the distribution using the g distro command.
• When in doubt, reread this document and then ask on Discord.

Commands

Commands will be documented here. You can run any command with the --help option to view more information.

Command Usage

This explains how to run the commands listed below. There are a few ways to run commands, pick your preferred method.

Example: To run init root, you would do npm run start -- init root.

Recommended

• Run npm run start -- <COMMAND>
  • Why is this recommended? This command will compile the source code first.

Other

• Build the project using npm run build
• Run node dist/index.js <COMMAND> OR npm run faststart -- <COMMAND>
  • faststart is an alias to run the main file without building.

Note:

• If you modify any files, you will have to rebuild the project.
• After pulling from git, you will have to rebuild the project.

npm start does this automatically.

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Init

Init commands are used for initializing empty file structures.

Aliases: [init, i]

Subcommands

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Init Root

Generate an empty standard file structure. JSON schemas will also be generated.

init root

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Generate

Generate commands are used for generation.

Aliases: [generate, g]

SubCommands

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Generate Server

Generate an new server in the root directory. Options are provided to include forge in the generated server.

generate server <id> <version> <options>

Options:

• --forge <string> Specify forge version. This is WITHOUT the minecraft version (ex. 14.23.5.2847)
  • OPTIONAL (default: null)
  • If not provided forge will not be enabled.
  • You can provide either latest or recommended to use the latest/recommended version of forge.
• --fabric <string> Specify fabric loader version
  • OPTIONAL (default: null)
  • If not provided fabric will not be enabled.
  • You can provide either latest or recommended to use the latest/recommended version of fabric.

Note

Forge and fabric cannot be used together on the same server. This command will fail if both are provided.

Example Usage

generate server Test1 1.12.2 --forge 14.23.5.2847

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Generate Server from CurseForge Modpack

Generate an new server in the root directory, including files and mods from an existing CurseForge modpack.

generate server-curseforge <id> <zipFile>

The cursforge modpack must be downloaded as a zip and placed into ${ROOT}/modpacks/curseforge. Pass the name of the modpack as the <zipFile> argument.

Example Usage

generate server-curseforge WesterosCraft-Prod The+WesterosCraft+Modpack-2.1.6.zip

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Generate Distribution

Generate a distribution file from the root file structure.

generate distro [name]

Arguments:

• name The name of the distribution file.
  • OPTIONAL (default: distribution)

Options:

• --installLocal Have the application install a copy of the generated distribution to the Helios data folder.
  • OPTIONAL (default: false)
  • This is useful to easily test the new distribution.json in dev mode on Helios.
  • Tip: Set name to distribution_dev when using this option.
• --discardOutput Delete cached output after it is no longer required. May be useful if disk space is limited.
  • OPTIONAL (default: false)
• --invalidateCache Invalidate and delete existing caches as they are encountered. Requires fresh cache generation.
  • OPTIONAL (default: false)

Notes

As of Forge 1.13, the installer must be run to generate required files. The installer output is cached by default. This is done to speed up subsequent builds and allow Nebula to be run as a CI job. Options are provided to discard installer output (no caching) and invalidate caches (delete cached output and require fresh generation). To invalidate only a single version cache, manually delete the cached folder.

Example Usage

generate distro

generate distro distribution_dev --installLocal

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Generate Schemas

Generate the JSON schemas used by Nebula's internal types (ex. Distro Meta and Server Meta schemas). This command should be used to update the schemas when a change to Nebula requires it. You may need to reopen your editor for the new JSON schemas to take effect.

generate schemas

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Latest Forge

Get the latest version of Forge.

latest-forge <version>

---

Recommended Forge

Get the recommended version of Forge. If no recommended build is available, it will pull the latest version.

recommended-forge <version>

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File Structure Setup (Tentative)

Nebula aims to provide users with an information preserving structure for storing files. The application will use this structure to generate a full distribution.json for HeliosLauncher. For coherency, the distribution structure is modularized and encapsulated by a directory pattern. These encapsulations will be explained below. They can be generated manually or by using the commands documented above.

Distribution Encapsulation

The distribution object is represented by the main root. All command output will be stored in this directory. The structure is documented below.

Ex.

• TestRoot The root directory which encapsulates the distribution.
  • servers All server files are stored in this directory.

Server Encapsulation

Server objects are encapsulated in their own folders. The name of the server's folder contains both its id and version.

Ex.

• servers
  • TestServer-1.12.2 A server with id TestServer set to version 1.12.2.

The server directory will contain files pertaining to that server.

Ex.

• TestServer-1.12.2
  • files All modules of type File.
  • libraries All modules of type Library
  • forgemods All modules of type ForgeMod.
  • fabricmods All modules of type FabricMod.
    • This is a directory of toggleable modules. See the note below.
  • TestServer-1.12.2.png Server icon file.

Setting the Server Icon

You can set the server icon in two ways.

1. (Preferred) Place your server icon in the root server directory as shown in the example above. Only jpg and png files will be looked at. The name of the file does not matter.
2. Paste the full URL to your server icon in the servermeta.json for your server. It is highly recommended to only use files that are hosted on your own servers.

The value in servermeta.json will always be used so long as it is not empty and is a valid url. If it is empty or an invalid url, then the first method will be used.

Toggleable Modules

If a directory represents a toggleable mod, it will have three subdirectories. You must filter your files into these three.

• required Modules that are required.
• optionalon Modules that are optional and enabled by default.
• optionaloff Modules that are optional and disabled by default.

Additional Metadata

To preserve metadata that cannot be inferred via file structure, two files exist. Default values will be generated when applicable. Customize to fit your needs. These values should be self explanatory. If further details are required, see the distribution.json specification document.

${ROOT}/meta/distrometa.json

Represents the additiona metadata on the distribution object.

A JSON schema is provided to assist editing this file. It should automatically be referenced when the default file is generated.

Sample:

{
  "$schema": "file:///${ROOT}/schemas/DistroMetaSchema.schema.json",
  "meta": {
      "rss": "<LINK TO RSS FEED>",
      "discord": {
          "clientId": "<FILL IN OR REMOVE DISCORD OBJECT>",
          "smallImageText": "<FILL IN OR REMOVE DISCORD OBJECT>",
          "smallImageKey": "<FILL IN OR REMOVE DISCORD OBJECT>"
      }
  }
}

servers/${YOUR_SERVER}/servermeta.json

Represents the additional metadata on the server object (for a YOUR_SERVER).

A JSON schema is provided to assist editing this file. It should automatically be referenced when the default file is generated.

Sample:

{
  "$schema": "file:///${ROOT}/schemas/ServerMetaSchema.schema.json",
  "meta": {
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "name": "Test (Minecraft 1.12.2)",
    "description": "Test Running Minecraft 1.12.2 (Forge v14.23.5.2854)",
    "icon": "How to set the server icon: https://github.com/dscalzi/Nebula#setting-the-server-icon",
    "address": "localhost:25565",
    "discord": {
      "shortId": "1.12.2 Test Server",
      "largeImageText": "1.12.2 Test Server",
      "largeImageKey": "seal-circle"
    },
    "mainServer": false,
    "autoconnect": true
  },
  "forge": {
    "version": "14.23.5.2854"
  },
  "untrackedFiles": []
}

Untracked Files

Untracked files is optional. MD5 hashes will not be generated for files matching the provided glob patterns. The launcher will not validate/update files without MD5 hashes.

{
  "untrackedFiles": [
    {
      "appliesTo": ["files"],
      "patterns": [
        "config/*.cfg",
        "config/**/*.yml"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

In the above example, all files of type cfg in the config directory will be untracked. Additionally, all files of type yml in the config directory and its subdirectories will be untracked. You can tweak these patterns to fit your needs, this is purely an example. The patterns will only be applied to the folders specified in appliesTo. As an example, valid values include files, forgemods, libraries, etc.

{
  "untrackedFiles": [
    {
      "appliesTo": ["files"],
      "patterns": [
        "config/*.cfg",
        "config/**/*.yml"
      ]
    },
    {
      "appliesTo": ["forgemods"],
      "patterns": [
        "optionalon/*.jar"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Another example where all optionalon forgemods are untracked. Untracking mods is NOT recommended. This is an example ONLY.

Note on JSON Schemas

The $schema property in a JSON file is a URL to a JSON schema file. This property is optional. Nebula provides schemas for internal types to make editing the JSON easier. Editors, such as Visual Studio Code, will use this schema file to validate the data and show useful information, like property descriptions. Valid properties will also be autocompleted. For detailed information, you may view the JSON Schema Website.

Nebula will store JSON schemas in ${ROOT}/schemas. This is so that they will always be in sync with your local version of Nebula. They will initially be generated by the init root command. To update the schemas, you can run the generate schemas command.