TLauncher and Minecraft servers: why you can't join and what you can do

Why you can't join a server with TLauncher

TLauncher is a launcher that doesn't come from Mojang or Microsoft. Many people use it to open the game without a Microsoft account that owns Minecraft, and that's the problem: most servers check with Mojang that each account is real, and without one there's nothing to check.

That's why the server kicks you with “Failed to verify username!” or the game says “Invalid session”. It isn't your internet, and reinstalling or changing your name won't fix it. We go through each message in Failed to verify username and Invalid session.

You can only join that way on servers whose owner has removed the check, known as cracked or non-premium servers. A server using official accounts has no way to let you through, and the big ones don't usually remove it.

If the message is about the version

The other common failure has nothing to do with the account: in a launcher you pick the game version by hand, and the server runs a specific one. If they don't match, it rejects you with an incompatible version message that says which one to use.

1. Check the server's version

   The message names it; if not, ask whoever runs the server. On NapNodes it's in “Mods & plugins” → “Server type”.

2. Pick that version in the launcher

   The exact one, not a similar one: a 1.21.4 won't join a 1.21.11 server.

3. If the server has mods, join with the same ones

   A Forge, NeoForge or Fabric server needs the same loader and the same mods on every player (joining a modded server).

4. If the group can't agree on a version

   Whoever runs the server can add ViaVersion, which lets newer versions than the server's join.

If you own the game

This is the easiest case: open the game with the official launcher and your Microsoft account. You can join any server without anyone changing anything, with your skin and your inventory, and if the server ever opens or closes, your things are still yours.

Also check that you're playing Java. If your friend has Minecraft on a phone or on Windows from the Microsoft store, theirs is Bedrock: they don't need any launcher, and with Geyser they can join the same server (from a console we can't promise it) (Java and Bedrock together).

If the server is yours and a friend uses TLauncher

First of all: Minecraft's terms only allow people who bought the game to play it, and that applies to whoever runs the server too. What follows explains how it works and what the risk is; it isn't encouraging you to do it. If you can, the best option is for everyone to have their own account: you buy it once and it's yours for good.

If you open it anyway, the setting is “Official Minecraft accounts only”. Just turning it off lets anyone in with any name, including your admin name, so it always goes with a password plugin. The full steps are in the cracked server guide; on NapNodes it goes like this:

1. Make a backup

   If there's already a world, in “Backups”, or download it from “Files”.

2. Remove the check

   In “Settings”, under “Joining and players”, turn off “Official Minecraft accounts only” and accept the window: the panel adds AuthMe. There's no AuthMe with mods, so you use the whitelist instead.

3. Restart

   The change saves itself and takes effect when you press “Restart”.

4. Register first

   Join and type /register password password, then /login password each time. Do it before giving anyone the address: whoever registers a name first keeps it.

What changes when you open the server

If there was already a world, each player is stored under a different identifier and joins with an empty inventory; everything is still in the world and comes back if you undo it. It's best to decide before you start (what happens with UUIDs).

Account skins don't show. You can set them with a plugin like SkinsRestorer.

And it's more exposed: without account checks, a program can make up players to fill it (bot attacks). A whitelist helps decide who gets in, but doesn't replace passwords, because names still aren't checked.

Playing together without renting a server

If you're in the same house, Open to LAN may be enough. If not, you need a server on someone's PC, a private network like Hamachi or Radmin VPN, or a tunnel: the options and their downsides. With all of them, the game ends when the host turns off their PC.

What to know about TLauncher

It isn't official, so neither Mojang nor Microsoft stands behind it, and if something goes wrong when joining a server, neither the server nor its host can fix it. On whether it's safe, there are opinions both ways and no clear conclusion: we haven't analysed it, so we neither recommend it nor call it bad.

A habit that works with any launcher and any cracked server: the owner of that server stores your /register password, so don't use the one from your email or anything important.

At NapNodes we don't provide launchers or accounts: each player brings their own game.

Try it with your group before deciding

If what you want is somewhere to play without depending on anyone's PC, NapNodes has a free Minecraft server with 3 GB, no card and no end date: you start it when you're going to play, it switches off after 1 hour with nobody on and, if nobody plays for 7 days, it's deleted after a warning. It's a way to check that everyone can join with your versions and launchers before starting the world for real.

Frequently asked questions