This workspace contains:
server: RPC2 server written in rust with plugin support.interface: RPC2 plugin interface for writing/using plugins.plugins/*: Provided plugins for the server.
The protocol works like BloxstrapRPC for roblox to host communication,
and for host to roblox it uses json files loaded from the content directory using rbxasset://rpc2/<cachebuster><command>, reading it using TextService:GetFamilyInfo(), which converts it to a table.
The cachebuster is determined by the client and sent along with the command.
It will also use EditableImage-s loaded from the content directory, given that they're available.
Note that this does NOT allow arbitrary file access, as they have to be specific-format json files (or image files), and they have to be in a roblox content directory with a known path.
TextService:GetFamilyInfoAsync(contentId) will return a verified and reprocessed version of the json file specified by the contentId.
It has a large file length limit, which is incredibly useful as it deserializes faster than an image for the same data (up to 2mb has been tested)
TextService:GetFamilyInfoAsync was added in v517, march 2022, meaning it can be used in 2022 clients.
EditableImages are only available if the game creator is ID verified and has enabled them.
For static purposes, prefer the font family method, as it is a plain text format and it isn't restricted to specific places.
Host -> Roblox communication enables a lot of things, a few examples being:
- mass data importing
- cross-place authentication using binary blobs
- cross-place settings(?)
- cross-place starter scripts (for command systems like Cmdr)
- live data input like midi or osc.
- function polyfills
Another thing its useful for is communicating with the host computer
without having to set up a webserver and (optionally) a domain, port forwarding and such.
This simplifies API servers greatly, and is less work for the game developer and the user.
This isn't in bloxstrap because I can't compile it on linux.