AutoConnect 26.6.3

This release is less about shiny buttons and more about making AutoConnect behave like it has had coffee: calmer config handling, clearer retry behavior, better saved-server controls, sturdier release automation, and fewer places for duplicated build logic to hide.

Commit references are included for traceability.

Added

• The AutoConnect config UI, retry status, reconnect button, and Cloth Config labels now use translatable strings. This should make future localization work much less awkward. (209bff3)
• The config screen now lets you use or clear the last connected server without editing the config file by hand. Tiny buttons, useful buttons. (909cd5d)
• Saved server addresses are validated before AutoConnect tries to use them. If the address is blank or malformed, AutoConnect now backs away politely instead of charging at the wall. (7163ca7)
• Config values are sanitized when loaded or saved, including saved addresses, retry count, and retry delay. (5cbf9b7, refined in 7163ca7)
• Broken or unreadable JSON config files are backed up before AutoConnect writes a clean replacement. (7163ca7)
• Config files now carry a config version, giving future migrations somewhere sensible to stand. (909cd5d)
• Auto-connect, manual reconnect, and ordinary manual joins now have separate retry counters, so one path no longer spends another path's attempts. (7163ca7)
• Unit tests now cover config sanitization, server address validation, and retry counter behavior. (7163ca7)
• A dependency bump workflow can now run on a schedule or manually. (345a538, refined in 7163ca7)
• A publish dry-run workflow now builds the release artifacts and validates Modrinth and CurseForge metadata without uploading anything. A rehearsal, but with fewer nerves. (909cd5d)
• CI now checks generated README content, Minecraft version builds, and unit tests. (7163ca7)
• Release jars now get SHA-256 checksum files. (7163ca7)

Changed

• The default automatic retry delay is now 3 seconds instead of 0, giving failed connections a tiny breather before the next attempt. (5cbf9b7)
• Leaving the Server Address field blank can now fall back to the last connected server when AutoConnect remembers one. (909cd5d)
• Manual reconnects and manual joins no longer enable automatic retry for that attempt, keeping retry-on-failure focused on AutoConnect's own automatic attempts. (909cd5d)
• The disconnect retry countdown now updates from the screen tick instead of widget rendering, which is a better fit for timing logic. (7163ca7)
• Config UI and mod metadata wording now more clearly describe the core behavior: joining a saved multiplayer server when the Multiplayer screen opens. (209bff3)
• Quilt metadata now suggests Cloth Config alongside Mod Menu. (209bff3)
• Loader, Minecraft version, dependency, artifact, and publishing metadata now live in gradle/autoconnect-metadata.json. One table to rule the release matrix, minus the dramatic soundtrack. (325d3bd)
• Shared Gradle helpers moved into gradle/autoconnect.gradle, while loader-specific build logic now lives under fabric/, forge/, neoforge/, and quilt/. (42424da, refined in 325d3bd)
• Release jar tasks now build, validate, checksum, and prepare the expected loader/version artifacts from shared metadata. (325d3bd, refined in 7163ca7)
• Modrinth and CurseForge publishing now use metadata-driven publisher scripts instead of a long line of nearly identical workflow steps. (9518706, refined in 7163ca7)
• Publish helper scripts now include artifact validation and platform metadata validation before upload. (909cd5d)
• README compatibility and artifact examples are now generated from Gradle metadata. (209bff3)

Fixed

• Blank or malformed server addresses are no longer remembered or used for automatic connections. (7163ca7)
• Retry count and retry delay values are clamped back into their supported ranges. (5cbf9b7, refined in 7163ca7)
• The last server address is only preserved when the joined server address is actually usable. (7163ca7)
• The release workflow now commits the version bump directly on the release branch. (7163ca7)

Maintenance

• Refreshed tracked loader and dependency versions for Fabric, Forge, NeoForge, Quilt, Mod Menu, Cloth Config, Mixin, ASM, Stonecutter, and Foojay resolver. (345a538, 325d3bd, 7163ca7)
• Reduced duplicated Gradle configuration across loaders and Minecraft targets. The build files are still build files, but they are at least telling the same story now. (325d3bd)
• Simplified Modrinth and CurseForge project descriptions and dependency notes. (209bff3)
• Added developer notes for extending the Minecraft version matrix in docs/adding-minecraft-version.md. (909cd5d)