LagXpert v2.3 - Performance & Reliability Update

🚀 What's New

Major Performance Improvements

• Atomic Counter System: Implemented high-performance atomic counters for TNT and block tracking, replacing expensive chunk scanning operations
• Pre-Placement Validation: Enhanced block placement validation to prevent race conditions and improve reliability
• Smart Alert System: Added intelligent alert filtering to reduce spam when no players are online

Enhanced Item Cleaner System

• Recently Broken Block Tracking: New system tracks when players break blocks and provides grace periods for dropped items
• Material-Specific Grace Periods: Configurable grace periods for valuable materials (diamonds, emeralds, spawners, etc.)
• Intelligent Item Protection: Prevents cleanup of items from recently broken blocks, solving the "mining diamonds but inventory full" scenario

Bug Fixes

• Fixed TNT Limit Bypass: Resolved critical race condition that allowed TNT placement after 3-4 attempts despite limits
• Improved Thread Safety: Enhanced concurrent access handling for block counters and cache operations
• Alert Frequency Fix: Resolved issue with alerts being sent every 2 minutes even when players are online

🔧 Technical Improvements

Performance Optimizations

• O(1) Block Counting: TNT and piston counting now uses atomic operations instead of O(n) chunk scanning
• Reduced Memory Usage: Optimized cache invalidation and cleanup processes
• Async Processing: Enhanced asynchronous chunk analysis with better error handling

Code Quality

• Better Error Handling: Improved exception handling throughout the codebase
• Enhanced Logging: Added detailed debug logging for troubleshooting
• Thread-Safe Operations: Strengthened concurrent access patterns

⚙️ Configuration Updates

New Configuration Options

itemcleaner.yml

broken-block-tracking:
  enabled: true
  default-grace-period-seconds: 180  # 3 minutes
  custom-grace-periods:
    DIAMOND_ORE: 300      # 5 minutes for valuable ores
    EMERALD_ORE: 300
    ANCIENT_DEBRIS: 300
    CHEST: 600           # 10 minutes for storage blocks
    SPAWNER: 900         # 15 minutes for spawners

monitoring.yml

alerts:
  delivery:
    skip-when-no-players-online: true  # Reduces alert spam

🎯 User Experience Improvements

For Server Administrators

• Reduced Log Spam: Fewer unnecessary alerts when server is empty
• Better Performance Monitoring: More accurate TPS and memory tracking
• Improved Debugging: Enhanced debug logs for troubleshooting

For Players

• Protected Valuable Items: Mining diamonds and other valuables is now safer
• Reduced Frustration: Items from recently broken blocks won't be cleaned immediately
• Better Performance: Smoother gameplay due to optimized block limit checking

🛡️ Compatibility & Requirements

Minecraft Compatibility

• Tested Versions: 1.16.5 - 1.21.7
• Newly Supported: 1.21.6, 1.21.7
• Server Software: Spigot, Paper, Purpur, and forks

Java Requirements

• Minimum: Java 11
• Recommended: Java 17 or newer

📋 Migration Notes

Automatic Configuration Migration

• Existing configurations will continue to work without changes
• New features are disabled by default to maintain current behavior
• Configuration files will be automatically updated with new options

Breaking Changes

• None - this update is fully backward compatible

🔍 Developer Notes

New API Features

• ChunkDataCache.getAtomicCounter() - High-performance block counting
• RecentlyBrokenBlocksTracker - Track recently broken blocks with grace periods
• Enhanced ChunkOverloadEvent with better context information

Internal Changes

• Refactored StorageListener for better performance and reliability
• Added ItemCleanerListener for broken block tracking
• Improved PerformanceTracker with smarter alert logic

🐛 Known Issues

Resolved

• ✅ TNT limit bypass exploit
• ✅ Alert spam when no players online
• ✅ Item cleaner removing freshly mined items
• ✅ Race conditions in block placement validation

Monitoring

• Performance impact of new tracking systems (expected to be minimal)
• Memory usage with large numbers of recent block breaks (automatic cleanup implemented)

🙏 Credits

Thanks to the community for reporting these issues and providing valuable feedback that made this update possible.

📚 Documentation

For detailed configuration and usage instructions, please refer to the main README.md file.

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Download: Available on GitHub Releases
Support: Open an issue on GitHub for bug reports or feature requests
License: GPL-3.0

LagXpert v2.3 - Making Minecraft servers faster and more reliable, one optimization at a time.