Minecraft: Java Edition · Game update

Minecraft 1.12: World of Color Update

1.12, the World of Color Update, added concrete, glazed terracotta and coloured beds, plus parrots and the recipe book. It also replaced achievements with data driven advancements and functions, and it is the first version that requires Java 8.

Released
Server needs
Java 8
Protocol
335
Start a 1.12 serverStart a free server

Seven days free, no card. Pick 1.12 when you create the server, or switch an existing one from the panel.

What is new in Minecraft 1.12

The additions people noticed first, then everything else by area.

  • Concrete and concrete powder in 16 colours
  • Glazed terracotta in 16 colours with directional patterns
  • Beds in all 16 colours
  • Parrots in jungles, tameable with seeds
  • Advancements replace achievements and are JSON driven
  • Functions, the recipe book and the reload command

Blocks and items

  • Concrete, formed when concrete powder touches water
  • Concrete powder, gravity affected and craftable from sand, gravel and dye
  • Glazed terracotta, smelted from stained terracotta
  • Fifteen new bed colours alongside the existing red bed
  • Knowledge book, which unlocks recipes when used
  • Hardened clay renamed to terracotta

Mobs

  • Parrots spawn in jungles in red, blue, green, cyan and grey
  • Parrots are tamed with seeds and sit on the player's shoulder
  • Feeding a parrot a cookie kills it
  • Parrots imitate nearby hostile mob sounds and dance to jukeboxes
  • Illusioner added but unused, summonable only by command

Gameplay

  • Advancements replace achievements, with a tabbed interface
  • Advancements are defined in JSON and can grant recipes, loot or XP
  • Recipe book unlocks recipes as players collect materials
  • New doLimitedCrafting gamerule restricts crafting to unlocked recipes
  • Saved toolbars tab added to the creative inventory
  • Toast notifications appear when a player earns an advancement

Commands and technical

  • New function system using .mcfunction files in the world data folder
  • New commands: advancement, function, recipe and reload
  • New @s selector targets the executing entity
  • New gamerules announceAdvancements, gameLoopFunction, maxCommandChainLength
  • maxCommandChainLength defaults to 65536
  • reload reloads advancements and loot tables from disk

Running a Minecraft 1.12 server

What the release means for whoever runs the server.

  • First version that requires Java 8
  • Protocol 335 and data version 1139; 1.11 clients cannot connect
  • announceAdvancements gamerule replaces announce-player-achievements in server.properties
  • The old server.properties entry migrates automatically, then is removed
  • Functions live in the world save under data/functions as .mcfunction files
  • reload needs operator level 4 and cannot run from a command block

Before you update a world: take a backup. A world opened in 1.12 cannot be opened in an older version again. How backups work here.

1.12 on FadeHost

The right Java, set for you
A 1.12 server needs Java 8 or newer, and the panel starts it with a Java that fits. Nothing to install, nothing to pick.
Server software for 1.12
PaperSpigotVanillaForge
Who can join
Players on 1.12. Other versions need plugins such as ViaVersion on a Paper server.
Start a 1.12 server

Patches after 1.12

The fix releases that followed, oldest first.

Minecraft 1.12.1

· Java 8

1.12.1 was a small bug fix release with four issues closed, including a private security issue in the recipe book. It breaks network compatibility with 1.12.

  • Fixes a private security issue in the recipe book
  • Fixes a performance problem with many block entities
  • Fixes diamonds jumping into crafting slots on any chat message
  • Four issues fixed

Minecraft 1.12.2

· Java 8

1.12.2 closed twelve issues including a hopper item duplication bug and a private security issue. It is the final 1.12 release and the last version to use numeric block ids.

What 1.12.2 changed

Questions about 1.12

When was Minecraft 1.12 released?

Minecraft: Java Edition 1.12, World of Color Update, was released on June 7, 2017.

What Java version does a Minecraft 1.12 server need?

Java 8. On FadeHost the server starts with the right Java for its Minecraft version on its own, so there is nothing to install or switch.

What did Minecraft 1.12 add?

1.12, the World of Color Update, added concrete, glazed terracotta and coloured beds, plus parrots and the recipe book. It also replaced achievements with data driven advancements and functions, and it is the first version that requires Java 8.

Can players on another version join a 1.12 server?

Only players on 1.12 itself: its network protocol (335) is its own. A Paper server can let other versions in with plugins such as ViaVersion and ViaBackwards.

Can I update my world to Minecraft 1.12?

Yes. Take a backup, switch the server to 1.12 and start it: the world is converted on the first boot. A world opened in 1.12 cannot be opened in an older version again, so keep the backup until you are sure.

How do I start a Minecraft 1.12 server?

Create a server on FadeHost and pick 1.12 in the software list: Paper, Spigot, Vanilla and Forge are there for this version. It is online in about a minute. The free tier runs a 2 GB server at no cost, and a paid server is sized to the RAM you need.

The release before

Minecraft 1.11.2

December 21, 2016

The release after

Minecraft 1.12.2

September 18, 2017

Read on

Change a server's version

Version, software and loader build are one setting in the panel.

Java version errors

What the wrong Java looks like in the console, and why it does not happen here.

RAM calculator

How much memory a server needs, sized from servers measured on our nodes.

Every Minecraft version

All releases, what each one added and the Java it needs.

Release facts from the Minecraft Wiki:Java Edition 1.12. Minecraft is a trademark of Mojang; FadeHost is not affiliated with Mojang or Microsoft.