Kubek

Kubek is a self‑hosted web control panel tailored for Minecraft server administration. Built with modern JavaScript tooling, it exposes a single‑page React interface that communicates with a Node.js backend over HTTP/WS. The core purpose is to abstract the repetitive shell‑based workflow of starting, stopping, and configuring Minecraft servers (Vanilla, PaperMC, Spigot, Waterfall, Velocity, Purpur, Magma) into a browser‑friendly UI while keeping the full power of the underlying OS. From a developer standpoint, Kubek can be treated as an extensible micro‑service that manages process lifecycles, file systems, and user permissions.

Architecture

• Frontend: React (Vite) with TypeScript, styled via CSS modules. The SPA communicates through a REST/WS API exposed by the backend.
• Backend: Node.js (≥20) + Express/Koa style routing, with native child‑process handling to launch Java server binaries. It also embeds an FTP daemon (likely ftpd or a Node module) for direct file transfers.
• Persistence: Configuration and user data are stored in JSON files (config.json, users.json) within a dedicated directory. No external database is required, simplifying deployment.
• File System: The panel mounts three volumes (servers, logs, binaries) and exposes a file manager with syntax highlighting. It uses the Node fs module for CRUD operations, and monitors changes via chokidar.

Core Capabilities

• Process Management: Start/stop/restart servers, stream console output to the browser in real time.
• Server Configuration: Edit server.properties, manage plugins/mods via a file picker, and run custom commands.
• User & Role System: JWT‑based authentication with role‑based access control; administrators can grant per‑server permissions.
• FTP Integration: A lightweight FTP server running on a configurable port, enabling traditional file clients to interact with the server files.
• Webhooks & API: Exposes endpoints for external tools (e.g., Discord bots) to trigger server actions or retrieve status. Custom hooks can be added by editing the config.json.

Deployment & Infrastructure

Kubek is intentionally lightweight: a single Docker image (seeroy/kubek-minecraft-dashboard) that runs on Linux or Windows. It listens on port 3000 by default and forwards the Minecraft port (25565) via Docker’s -p mapping or host networking. The image pulls no external services, making it suitable for isolated environments or on‑premise setups. For scalability, multiple instances can be load‑balanced behind a reverse proxy (NGINX/Traefik), with each instance pointing to separate server directories. The use of JSON config files allows for easy versioning and automated deployment scripts.

Integration & Extensibility

The panel’s extensibility is twofold:

1. Plugin Directory: Users can drop additional Java jar files into the plugins folder; Kubek will list them and allow enable/disable toggling.
2. API Hooks: Developers can write custom scripts in Node.js that listen to Kubek events (e.g., serverStarted) and perform actions such as notifying Slack or updating a database. The open‑source license (MIT) encourages community contributions and custom forks.

Developer Experience

The project emphasizes clean code, modularity, and minimal external dependencies. Documentation is concise but covers all major API endpoints, configuration options, and Docker usage. The community is active on GitHub Issues, with contributors quickly addressing bugs or feature requests. The lack of a heavy database stack lowers the barrier to entry, allowing developers to spin up Kubek on any machine with Node.js and Docker.

Use Cases

• Self‑Hosted Game Servers: Indie developers or hobbyists who want full control over their Minecraft environment without a paid hosting provider.
• Educational Environments: Schools or universities can deploy Kubek on campus servers to teach server administration, scripting, and network management.
• DevOps Pipelines: Integrate Kubek into CI/CD workflows to automatically deploy, test, and tear down Minecraft instances for automated testing or game jams.

Advantages

• Zero‑Cost Licensing: MIT license means no royalties, making it attractive for commercial or open‑source projects.
• Performance: Node.js child processes are lightweight, and the panel’s minimal overhead keeps CPU usage low.
• Flexibility: JSON‑based configuration and plugin support allow rapid adaptation to new server types or custom workflows.
• Cross‑Platform: Runs natively on Linux and Windows, broadening the potential deployment environments.

In summary, Kubek offers a developer‑friendly, low‑friction platform for managing Minecraft servers. Its modular architecture, lightweight deployment model, and rich API surface make it a compelling choice for anyone needing an automated, self‑hosted game server control panel.