minecraft-bedrock-raknet-proxy

A lightweight Node.js UDP proxy that works around a RakNet handshake bug in Minecraft Bedrock Dedicated Server v1.26.32.2, which prevents clients from connecting via the Servers tab.

Temporary fix. Once Mojang ships a corrected server binary, this proxy will no longer be needed. Track the bug at MCPE-239705 and itzg/docker-minecraft-bedrock-server#649.

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The bug

Bedrock Server 1.26.32.2 responds to a UNCONNECTED_PING with an incomplete UNCONNECTED_PONG — only 33 bytes instead of the required minimum of 35+. The client receives an EOF mid-handshake and never establishes a connection.

All three connection methods fail:

• LAN IP (e.g. 192.168.1.x:19132)
• Domain / DDNS (e.g. myserver.example.com:19132)
• VPN IP (e.g. Tailscale)

LAN discovery (broadcast ping from the Friends tab) may still work because the client is more lenient with broadcast responses.

Confirmed via the itzg/minecraft-bedrock-server health check:

failed to query bedrock server 127.0.0.1:19132: ping raknet: read unconnected pong: unexpected EOF

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How this proxy fixes it

Minecraft client ──UDP :19132──► proxy.js ──UDP :19134──► bedrock_server
                 ◄──────────────          ◄──────────────

1. The proxy listens on :19132 (the standard Bedrock port clients expect).
2. When it receives an UNCONNECTED_PING (0x01 / 0x02), it builds and sends a correctly-formed UNCONNECTED_PONG (0x1C) without forwarding the ping to the broken server.
3. All other game traffic is forwarded bidirectionally to the actual server on :19134.

No npm dependencies. Pure Node.js stdlib (node:dgram).

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Requirements

• Node.js 18+
• The Bedrock Dedicated Server must be configured to listen on port 19134 (or any port other than 19132)

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Quick start

Standalone (binary or existing Docker setup)

1. Change your server port to 19134.

If using server.properties directly:

server-port=19134

2. Start the proxy:

node proxy.js

3. Connect from Minecraft using your server's IP and port 19132 (the default — no need to type it).

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With Docker (recommended)

Use the included docker-compose.yaml, which runs both the BDS and the proxy:

# copy your worlds / config into ./worlds and ./config first
docker compose up -d

The compose file starts:

• bds — Bedrock server on port 19134 (host network)
• proxy — this proxy on port 19132 (host network)

See docker-compose.yaml for volume paths and environment variables.

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Configuration

All settings are controlled via environment variables (no need to edit proxy.js):

Variable	Default	Description
PROXY_PORT	19132	UDP port clients connect to
SERVER_PORT	19134	UDP port the real BDS listens on
SERVER_HOST	127.0.0.1	Host where the BDS is running
MOTD	Bedrock Server	Server name shown in the Servers tab
MAX_PLAYERS	10	Max players shown in the server list
PROTOCOL_VERSION	748	RakNet protocol version (match your BDS version)
GAME_VERSION	1.26.32.2	Game version string shown in the server list

Example:

MOTD="My Server" MAX_PLAYERS=20 node proxy.js

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Keeping the proxy alive

systemd (Linux)

[Unit]
Description=Minecraft Bedrock RakNet Proxy
After=network.target

[Service]
ExecStart=/usr/bin/node /opt/minecraft-bedrock-raknet-proxy/proxy.js
Restart=always
Environment=MOTD="My Server"
Environment=MAX_PLAYERS=20

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Synology DSM

Add a Triggered Task (Boot-up) in DSM → Task Scheduler:

nohup node /volume1/video/scripts/minecraft-proxy.js >> /volume1/video/scripts/minecraft-proxy.log 2>&1 &

PM2

pm2 start proxy.js --name mc-proxy
pm2 save

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Troubleshooting

Client shows "Unable to connect" immediately

• Verify the proxy is running: netstat -ulnp | grep 19132
• Verify the BDS is running on 19134: netstat -ulnp | grep 19134
• Check proxy logs for errors

Client connects but drops after a few seconds

• Make sure you're using --network host (not -p 19132:19132/udp) with Docker. Bridge networking causes the BDS to try to bind 19132, conflicting with the proxy.

Server shows outdated version warning

• Set PROTOCOL_VERSION and GAME_VERSION to match your BDS version. The proxy cannot auto-detect these from a broken server.

LAN discovery (Friends tab) works but Servers tab doesn't

• This is exactly the bug this proxy fixes. The Friends tab uses broadcast pings which the broken server handles; the Servers tab uses unicast pings which it doesn't.

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When to remove this proxy

When Mojang releases a fixed Bedrock Server version, you can stop using this proxy:

1. Stop the proxy process.
2. Change the BDS back to port 19132 (SERVER_PORT=19132 or server-port=19132).
3. Update firewall rules if needed.

Monitor MCPE-239705 for the fix.

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License

MIT — see LICENSE.