Introduction to HOCON

HOCON (Human-Optimized Config Object Notation) is an easy-to-use configuration format. It is used by Sponge and individual plugins utilizing the Sponge API to store important data, such as configuration or player data. HOCON files typically use the suffix .conf.

Components

  • a key is a string preceding a value

  • a value is a string, number, object, array, or boolean following a key

  • a key-value separator separates keys from values, and can be either : or =

  • a comment is prefixed with # or //, typically serving to provide feedback or instructions

Example:

yellow-thing: "Sponge"

In this example, the key is yellow-thing, the value is Sponge, and the key-value separator is :.

Working with HOCON

HOCON is more flexible than the JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) format in that there are several ways to write valid HOCON. Below are two examples of valid HOCON.

Example #1:

player: {
    name: "Steve",
    level: 30
}

Example #2:

player {
    name = "Steve"
    level = 30
}

In practice, it is best to follow the formatting conventions of the HOCON configuration you are editing. When editing a HOCON configuration for Sponge or an individual plugin utilizing the Sponge API, the values are likely the only thing you will be changing unless otherwise specified.

Debugging your configuration

If a HOCON configuration does not appear to be working, here are some tips.

  • Curly braces must be balanced

  • Quotation marks must be balanced

  • Duplicate keys that appear later take precedence

Specification

More information about the HOCON format can be found here.