Mastering Server Access with WhitelistByTime
Running a Minecraft server is a balancing act. You want to welcome friends and trusted players, but sometimes you need to grant temporary access for events, trials, or moderation purposes. The vanilla whitelist is a blunt tool: a player is either permanently allowed or completely locked out. That is where WhitelistByTime steps in, transforming how you manage your server’s entry list with precision and flexibility.
Why Time-Based Whitelisting Matters
Imagine hosting a weekend building competition, a one-day PvP tournament, or simply letting a new player explore your survival world for a few hours before committing to a full invite. With a standard whitelist, you would have to manually add and later remove each participant, risking forgotten entries and security gaps. WhitelistByTime automates this entire workflow. You define exactly how long a player can stay whitelisted, and the plugin handles the rest. It is built specifically for Paper and Folia servers (1.20.x–1.21.x) and their forks, ensuring smooth performance on modern server cores.
Core Features That Set It Apart
WhitelistByTime is not just a simple timer. It packs a robust set of capabilities designed for serious server administrators:
- Flexible time management: Add players with custom durations like 2 days, 3 hours, and 10 minutes, or grant permanent whitelist access with a single command.
- Player freezing: Temporarily freeze a player’s whitelist status, effectively suspending their access without removing them from the list. Unfreeze them when ready.
- Multi-server support: Using SQL transactions, the plugin synchronizes whitelist data across multiple servers, perfect for networks and hubs.
- UUID and nickname safety: It stores UUIDs in online and Floodgate (GeyserMC) modes, so players who change their usernames remain correctly identified.
- Case-sensitive nicknames: You can enforce exact name matching to prevent impersonation.
- PlaceholderAPI integration: Use
%wlbytime_in_whitelist%and%wlbytime_time_left%in any PAPI-compatible plugin, chat formats, or scoreboards. - Lightweight and safe: The code is heavily covered by automated tests, and the plugin uses efficient libraries like Caffeine for caching and Elytrium Serializer for configuration, minimizing main thread load.
Commands and Permissions at a Glance
WhitelistByTime gives you full control through intuitive commands. Each subcommand has its own permission node, so you can delegate tasks to moderators without handing over full administrative power.
Adding and Removing Players
/whitelist add nickname– Adds a player permanently. Permission:whitelistbytime.add/whitelist remove [nickname]– Removes a player. Permission:whitelistbytime.remove/whitelist time set/add/remove [nickname] [time]– Sets, adds, or removes a specific time limit. Use formats like2d 3h 10m. Permission:whitelistbytime.time
Checking Status and Freezing
/whitelist check [nickname]– Check another player’s whitelist status. Permission:whitelistbytime.check/whitelist checkme– Check your own status. Permission:whitelistbytime.checkme/whitelist freeze [nickname] [time]– Freeze a player for a set duration. Permission:whitelistbytime.freeze/whitelist unfreeze [nickname]– Unfreeze a player. Permission:whitelistbytime.unfreeze
Administrative Tools
/whitelist getall (page)– Lists all whitelisted players, paginated. Permission:whitelistbytime.getall/whitelist reload– Reloads the configuration. Permission:whitelistbytime.reload/whitelist on/off/status– Toggles the entire whitelist system or checks its state. Permission:whitelistbytime.toggle
All messages are fully customizable in the configuration file, and the plugin supports MiniMessage for rich text formatting. If a player has any of the multiple permissions assigned to a command, access is granted, giving you layered control.
While server administrators handle the plugin setup, players looking to join such servers can benefit from a streamlined launcher like foxygame.net, which simplifies mod and version management. It allows you to download and organize mods directly from the menu, making it a convenient, flexible, and modern Minecraft launcher for anyone who frequently switches between custom servers.
Placeholders for Seamless Integration
WhitelistByTime exposes two powerful placeholders that work with any PlaceholderAPI-enabled plugin:
%wlbytime_in_whitelist%– Returns whether the player is currently whitelisted (true/false).%wlbytime_time_left%– Shows the remaining whitelist duration in a human-readable format, or “permanent” if no limit is set.
These can be used in tab lists, welcome messages, holograms, or even to create dynamic scoreboards that display temporary access timers. The configuration lets you tailor every output message, so the plugin blends perfectly with your server’s existing style.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the plugin file size larger than expected? The jar includes bundled libraries like ORMLite for database handling, Caffeine for high-performance caching, bStats for anonymous usage metrics, and Elytrium-Serializer for advanced config management. These dependencies ensure reliability and speed without requiring extra installations.
I have an issue or a suggestion. Where can I report it? You can open a detailed issue on the plugin’s repository or join the Discord community (invite code: 4XUPywnEyE). The developer actively welcomes feedback and bug reports.
Will there be support for BungeeCord or Velocity? No, the plugin is developed exclusively for Paper and Folia server software and their forks. It is optimized for these platforms and will not be ported to proxy solutions.
How are statistics collected? The plugin uses bStats to gather anonymous usage data. This helps the developer understand which server versions and features are most popular, guiding future updates. No personal player data is ever collected.
Conclusion
WhitelistByTime redefines whitelist management by adding a temporal dimension that vanilla Minecraft simply lacks. Whether you run a small community server or a large network, the ability to grant, freeze, and automatically expire access saves time and reduces human error. Its deep customization, UUID safety, and multi-server synchronization make it a professional-grade tool that remains lightweight. For server owners who value both security and convenience, this plugin is an essential addition to your Paper or Folia setup. Give your moderators the precise control they need, and let the plugin handle the countdown.