Resource Locations

Minecraft uses resource locations to identify and organize game objects. They are sometimes called namespaced identifiers or just identifiers. If you have seen an ID like minecraft:dirt you have already seen a resource location.

Structure

Resource locations have two parts that are separated using a colon :. The first half is called the namespace. The namespace is the source of the resource. The second half is the path, which is the resource itself. Here are a few examples breaking down resource locations.

• minecraft:dirt - An entry called dirt that is added by minecraft.
• create:zinc_ingot - An entry called zinc_ingot that is added by create.
• tipsmod:smoke_bees - An entry called smoke_bees that is added by tipsmod.

Choosing a Namespace

When you are adding a new resource you should always use your own namespace instead of the minecraft namespace or the namespace of another mod. This will avoid confusion and potential ID conflicts. If you want to replace or expand a resource you should use the same namespace and path as the target resource.

Valid Characters

Resource locations can only contain the following characters. Using an invalid character in your resource location will prevent your resource from loading or being used.

• Lowercase latin alphabet - abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
• Numbers - 0123456789
• Underscore - _
• Hyphen - -
• Period - .

The path may also use a forward slash (/). The forward slash is not valid for namespaces.

Invalid Characters

Using invalid characters is the most common issue people experience with resource locations. You can NOT use spaces, upper case letters, or non-latin letters. These are strict limitations imposed by Minecraft.

Examples

Resource Location	Validity	Explanation
minecraft:dirt		This resource location is valid!
example_mod:stone		This resource location is valid!
test_mod:smelting/double_ores		This resource location is valid!
example:my mod		Spaces are not allowed!
MyPack:My_Id		Upper case characters are not allowed!
mypack:грязь		Non-latin alphabet is not allowed.
mypack/ores:platinum_ore		Forward slash can only be used in paths.
example:stone#painted		Underscores, hyphens, and periods are the only special characters allowed.

File Paths

Resource locations can also be used to reference a file in a data pack or resource pack. The namespace and path are combined with a resource type to create the file path. This process also works in reverse, using the location and name of a file to create a resource location. Additionally, data files are held in a data folder while client side resources like textures and models are held in an assets folder.

To give an example, a recipe with the resource location example:dirt is referencing the data/example/recipes/dirt.json file. If a file is located in sub-folders forward slashes will be used. For example the texture assets/example/textures/item/my_texture.png is referenced using the resource location example:item/my_texture.

File Extensions

In most cases file extensions like .png and .json are not included in the namespace. This is because the game already knows the type of file it is looking and will add it automatically. If an extension is required it should be mentioned in the documentation.