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Essential’s player hosting feature (also known as SPS or Invite Friends) allows you to open your singleplayer worlds to friends without needing to set up a dedicated server.

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Quick overview

Instant hosting

Start hosting your world with one click from the main menu or in-game

World settings

Manage gamerules, permissions, PvP, and other settings per world

Voice chat

Built-in support for Plasmo Voice and Simple Voice Chat mods

Resource packs

Share your resource packs with joining players automatically

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Getting started

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Starting a hosted session

1

Open world or main menu

You can host from the main menu or while playing
2

Click 'Host World' button

  • Main menu: “Host World” button for quick access
  • In-game: Open pause menu and select host option
3

Configure settings

Choose world settings like gamerules and permissions (optional)
4

Invite friends

Select friends to invite from your friends list
All hosted sessions are invite-only for privacy and security. The “friends” privacy setting has been removed.

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World settings

Essential provides comprehensive world settings for hosted sessions.

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Settings screen

Control world gamerules for your session:
  • PvP toggle - Enable/disable player combat
  • Mob spawning - Control hostile/peaceful mobs
  • Weather - Manage weather cycle
  • Time - Day/night cycle settings
  • Keep inventory - Items on death
  • Fire spread - Control fire mechanics
  • All standard Minecraft gamerules
Game rule text now wraps correctly on the World Host Settings screen for better readability.
Manage what players can do:
  • Cheats setting:
    • Enabled: Host gets OP and can choose who to OP
    • Disabled: No one gets OP (including host)
  • Building permissions - Allow/deny building
  • Inventory access - Control inventory interaction
  • Command permissions - Who can use commands
The “Cheats” option behavior was improved to give hosts better control over operator permissions.
Settings are remembered:
  • Per-world memory - Last used settings saved for each world
  • Quick rehost - Reuse previous configuration
  • Default templates - Set default settings
  • Easy adjustments - Modify settings between sessions
The “Cheats” option now correctly reflects the saved value when sharing a singleplayer world for the first time.

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Host commands

Hosts have access to special commands: 
# Invite a player to your world
/essential invite <player>

# Kick a player from your world
/essential kick <player>

# Grant operator status to a player
/essential op <player>

# Remove operator status from a player
/essential deop <player>
Commands are available when cheats are enabled for the hosted world.

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Connection system

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Connection quality

Essential uses advanced networking for optimal connections: Connection methods:
  1. Direct connection - Best performance, lowest latency
  2. Regional proxies - Used when direct connection isn’t possible
  3. Fallback routing - Ensures connectivity in all scenarios
Improvements:
  • Reduced latency for proxy connections
  • Better connection quality worldwide
  • Fewer timeout issues
  • Improved stability
Players are no longer kicked from World Hosting when the host temporarily loses connection to Essential infrastructure.

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Joining hosted worlds

Players can join via:
  • Direct invite notifications
  • Social Menu world invites
  • Discord invites (with integration)
  • Friends list (see active hosted worlds)
Join process:
  1. Receive invite notification
  2. Click “Join” button
  3. Automatic connection handling
  4. Load into host’s world

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Resource pack sharing

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How it works

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Share your resource pack

When hosting a world:
  1. Enable “Share Resource Pack” in world settings
  2. Essential packages your active resource pack
  3. Joining players automatically download it
  4. Pack applies when they join your world
Resource pack sharing now supports outdated resource packs, ensuring compatibility.

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Voice chat integration

Essential integrates with popular voice chat mods for immersive communication.

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Supported mods

Plasmo Voice

Full support for Plasmo Voice mod including version 2.x

Simple Voice Chat

Complete integration with Simple Voice Chat mod

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Features

  • Automatic detection - Works when mods are installed
  • Proximity chat - Distance-based voice communication
  • Group channels - Private voice channels
  • Spatial audio - 3D positional audio
  • Quality settings - Adjustable audio quality
Plasmo Voice 2.x compatibility issues with World Hosting have been fixed.

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Social integration

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Friends list integration

See what your friends are doing:
  • Active worlds - Which friends are hosting
  • Server indicators - Friends on servers
  • Multiplayer menu - Enhanced server entries
  • Quick join - One-click join from friends list
Friend indicators on server entries and hosted worlds in the Multiplayer menu have been improved.
Multiple ways to invite friends:
  • Friend selection modal - Updated design for better UX
  • Social Menu invites - Send invites via chat
  • Direct invites - Quick invite from friends list
  • Group invites - Invite entire groups at once
Share worlds easily:
  • Updated invite buttons - Better design in Social Menu
  • Join buttons - Quick join from messages
  • Invite messages - Rich invite formatting
  • Status updates - See when friends join/leave

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Discord integration

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Discord rich presence

Essential displays in Discord activity status:
  • Currently playing - Shows world/server info
  • Hosting status - Indicates when hosting world
  • Player count - Number of players in session
  • Elapsed time - How long you’ve been playing
Enable Discord integration in Essential settings to show activity status.

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Privacy & safety

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Privacy settings

All hosted worlds are invite-only:
  • No public hosting - Only invited friends can join
  • Explicit invites - You choose who to invite
  • Kick system - Remove unwanted players
  • Session control - Full control over your world
The “friends” privacy setting was removed. All sessions are now invite-only for better privacy.
Control privacy per server:
  • Individual settings - Different privacy for each server
  • Activity visibility - Control who sees your server
  • Friend visibility - Manage friend status display
  • Custom configuration - Tailor to your needs
Control what friends can see:
  • Server visibility - Toggle server name display
  • Activity status - Show/hide what you’re playing
  • Join permissions - Who can request to join
  • Dialog confirmation - Confirm sharing preferences
The “Show friends what server you play on” dialog now only appears once, even if the screen is resized.

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Troubleshooting

Solutions:
  • This issue has been largely resolved with connection improvements
  • Ensure all players have stable internet
  • Try hosting from a different network if issues persist
  • Check firewall settings aren’t blocking connections
Improvements made:
  • Regional proxies now provide better quality
  • Reduced latency in all connection modes
  • Better fallback routing
If still experiencing issues:
  • Check network stability
  • Close bandwidth-heavy applications
  • Try direct connection if possible
Plasmo Voice:
  • Update to Essential latest version (2.x support fixed)
  • Verify Plasmo Voice is installed correctly
  • Check voice chat keybinds
Simple Voice Chat:
  • Ensure mod is properly installed
  • Verify audio permissions
  • Check voice settings in-game
Feature: A “Create New World” button has been added to the host world modal for convenience.If not visible, ensure you’re running the latest Essential version.

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Compatibility

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Mod compatibility

Compatible with:
  • Plasmo Voice (including 2.x)
  • Simple Voice Chat
  • Not Enough Gamerules (fixed)
  • Most gameplay mods
  • Resource pack mods
Platform compatibility:
  • Vivecraft: World Hosting, chat, and other features now work correctly
  • FreeBSD: Full support added

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Server compatibility

Essential’s online indicator now works correctly on most servers. If it doesn’t appear, check server permissions.

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Best practices

Hosting tips

  • Configure world settings before inviting friends
  • Use saved settings for quick rehosting
  • Enable resource pack sharing for consistent experience
  • Set up voice chat mods for better communication

Management

  • Use kick commands to remove disruptive players
  • Grant OP status only to trusted friends
  • Review gamerules before starting session
  • Monitor connection quality of players

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Advanced features

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Create new world

The host world modal includes a “Create New World” button:
  • Quickly create worlds to host
  • Configure settings during creation
  • Invite friends to brand new worlds
  • Streamlined workflow

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Session management

  • View active players - See who’s currently in your world
  • Kick players - Remove players via command or UI
  • Transfer OP - Grant operator status to others
  • Save and quit - Properly close hosted sessions

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Next steps

Social features

Learn about the Social Menu and messaging features

Discord setup

Set up Discord integration for enhanced features

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

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