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ViaBackwards

by ViaVersion · for Minecraft

Allow Java Edition clients with older versions to connect to your Minecraft server

755KDownloads
3d agoLast updated
GPLLicense
Paper · Waterfall +1Loaders

About ViaBackwards

From Hangar

Allow Java Edition clients with older versions to connect to your Minecraft server

ViaBackwards

Installation

This plugin requires to have ViaVersion installed. Drag and drop both plugins in your plugin folder, and you are good to go.

Requires Java 17. See here how to update your installed Java version. As a last resort, you can download Java 8 downgraded builds from our ci.

Important: ViaBackwards cannot add new features to older clients. Certain features, like client-side attribute handling, will still break and cannot be fixed.

Supported Versions

https://i.imgur.com/zrQTcf0.png

FAQ

Do you support 1.8 and lower? \ No, use ViaRewind or ProtocolSupport if you want backwards compatibility for 1.8 and lower.

Can I use this with Velocity/Bungee? \ Yes, you can also use both ViaBackwards and ViaVersion with Velocity. For BungeeCord, you need https://hangar.papermc.io/ViaVersion/ViaBungee

Clients with versions lower than 1.17 can't see blocks under y=0, will that ever be fixed? \ No.

How can I report issues and bugs? \ You can report bugs on the GitHub issue tracker. You can also use the Discussion section from the resource or send me a private message.

Why did you not implement this inside ViaVersion? \ The aim of ViaVersion is to allow a newer Minecraft client on an older server; by making it inside ViaVersion, people will expect us to also create full backwards compatibility in the future.

API

Maven:

<repository>
    <id>viaversion-repo</id>
    <url>https://repo.viaversion.com/</url>
</repository>

<dependency>
    <groupId>com.viaversion</groupId>
    <artifactId>viabackwards</artifactId>
    <version>LATEST</version>
    <scope>provided</scope>
</dependency>

Links

Highlights

From source data

Game versions

Supports 73 Minecraft versions, the newest being 4.2.1.

Loaders

Runs on Paper, Waterfall and Velocity.

Footprint

Rated a light load on a server.

ViaBackwards on Nxeon

From our catalogue
One-click install
Supported on Nxeon Minecraft servers, for Paper servers. We download it from Hangar, place it, and restart the server.
Server side
Required on the server
Server type needed
Paper, Waterfall, Velocity
Server load
light
Smallest plan we suggest
Minecraft — 2 GB (2 GB RAM). This follows our own load rating above, not a benchmark.
Latest build
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+658 (snapshot), released 2026-10-12

Game versions by loader

LoaderGame versionsNewest
Paper1.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)26.3
Velocity1.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)26.3

From 16 recorded builds of ViaBackwards.

Recent builds

BuildReleasedGame versionsLoaders
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+658 snapshot2026-10-121.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)Paper, Velocity
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+657 snapshot2026-10-111.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)Paper, Velocity
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+656 snapshot2026-10-111.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)Paper, Velocity
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+655 snapshot2026-10-111.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)Paper, Velocity
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+654 snapshot2026-10-111.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)Paper, Velocity
5.12.2-SNAPSHOT+653 snapshot2026-10-111.10 to 26.3 (70 versions)Paper, Velocity

Dependencies

  • Required: ViaVersion (hangar, not in our catalogue)
  • Optional: ViaRewind (hangar, not in our catalogue)

Declared by the newest build that lists any. Required ones are installed with it on one-click installs.

Run ViaBackwards on a Minecraft server

Pick a server or deploy a new one above; it is installed in one click.

What kind of mod it is

From the catalog
Listed on Hangar as “Plugins”

Plugins

Its source category doesn’t say more about what it does, so NxLabs lists it under Other.

Runs on your server

From source side support

Hangar lists ViaBackwards as required on the server. Check its Hangar page to see whether players need it too.

Compatibility

Game
Minecraft
Loaders
PaperWaterfallVelocity
Runs on
Serverrequired on the server
Game versions
4.2.1 and 72 earlier
Requires
One-click install needs a Paper server.

Verified at the source

  • ✓HangarOfficial listing, checked 2026-10-13Open ↗
  • ✓AuthorViaVersion, as published on Hangar
  • ✓LicenseGPLFree

ViaBackwards, answered

Generated from the mod’s own source data.

Do my players need to install ViaBackwards?

Hangar lists ViaBackwards as required on the server. Check its Hangar page to see whether players need it too.

Which loaders does it support?

Paper, Waterfall and Velocity.

Is it free?

Yes. ViaBackwards is free to download from Hangar. Its license is GPL.

How do I add it to my Nxeon server?

Use “Add to a server” on this page, or open NxLabs from your dashboard. We install it, restart your server and switch it on.

NxLabs

Run ViaBackwards on a Minecraft server.

Deploy in about a minute from $4.99 a month, then add ViaBackwards in one click.