Architecture

Fabricator is a Python/Flask backend plus a Vue 3 dashboard, deployed as a systemd service by shell tooling.

Repository structure

Fabricator/
├── backend/
│   ├── core/          # App factory, config, version helpers
│   ├── server/        # Server registry, installers, Java manager, players
│   ├── modrinth/      # Modrinth client and API routes
│   ├── backups/       # Backup/restore storage, jobs, scheduler
│   ├── system/        # Self-update routes and update service
│   └── utils/         # Shared parsing, platform, route, time, zip helpers
├── frontend/          # Vue 3 + Vite dashboard
├── tools/             # install.sh, update.sh, uninstall.sh, CLI
├── tests/             # Pytest coverage for backend behavior
└── run.py             # Process entry point

Backend

The Flask app is created in backend/core/app.py. Blueprints mount under /api and keep feature areas isolated:

• backend/server/routes.py — server CRUD, install/start/stop/restart, files, mods, Java, metrics, loader versions, console.
• backend/modrinth/routes.py — Modrinth search, version resolution, mod install, modpack install.
• backend/backups/routes.py — backup configs, snapshots, downloads, restores, job polling.
• backend/server/players/routes.py — player state, whitelist, ops, bans, IP bans, kicks.
• backend/system/routes.py — self-update status and trigger.

Config is instance-based: each get_config() call reads current environment variables. This avoids stale import-time values in tests and after .env loading.

Server registry

ServerProcessRegistry owns runtime state for each server id:

• Resolves each server install path under SERVER_ROOT.
• Builds launch commands from stored launch specs.
• Selects Java from explicit javaPath, managed Java, or java on PATH.
• Caches ServerManager instances.
• Tracks start time and formats uptime.
• Provides logs and stdin command dispatch.

Persisted records live in SERVER_INDEX_FILE. Runtime data is added to API responses without blindly overwriting transitional states such as installing, starting, or stopping.

Installer registry

backend/server/installer/__init__.py maps loader names to installer classes:

LOADER_REGISTRY = {
    "fabric": FabricInstaller,
    "vanilla": VanillaInstaller,
    "neoforge": NeoForgeInstaller,
    "quilt": QuiltInstaller,
    "forge": ForgeInstaller,
}

Adding a loader means adding an installer class and registering it. The loader version endpoints and server creation UI use this registry.

Frontend

The dashboard is a Vue app with route groups:

/                         # server list
/server/:id/overview      # runtime overview
/server/:id/console       # logs and commands
/server/:id/players       # player management
/server/:id/mods          # mods and modpacks
/server/:id/files         # file browser/editor
/server/:id/backups       # snapshots and backup configs
/server/:id/settings      # server.properties editor

The sidebar hides the Mods tab for Vanilla servers. API modules live in frontend/src/api/, state stores in frontend/src/stores/, and feature pages in frontend/src/views/server/.

Deployment

tools/install.sh installs release tarballs into /opt/fabricator/app, creates /opt/fabricator/venv, writes /etc/fabricator/fabricator.env, creates fabricator.service, and links the CLI to /usr/local/bin/fabricator.

The systemd service runs as the fabricator user, with mutable write paths limited to /opt/fabricator, /var/lib/fabricator, and /etc/fabricator.

Test coverage

The main repo contains pytest coverage for app factory behavior, storage, installers, Java compatibility, Modrinth routes, backups, players, and runtime status contracts. When changing backend contracts, update tests together with the docs.