Install Iron Chests on your server

Iron Chests adds chests made from the metals in vanilla Minecraft, in larger sizes than a normal chest, plus upgrade items that turn one chest into the next tier in place. The crystal chest is the feature piece: it is transparent, so you can see some of what is inside without opening it. The mod is by cpw, alexbegt and progwml6 and runs on NeoForge and Forge. This guide installs it on a NeoForge server.

Checked against Iron Chests 16.8.3 on NeoForge 26.2, the newest build on Modrinth, October 2026.

Pick the right build

Modrinth lists no Fabric build of Iron Chests. It lists these files, and the file name carries the Minecraft version:

• NeoForge 26.2: 26.2-neoforge-16.8.3, published on 12 October 2026. The CurseForge page also lists 26.3-neoforge-16.9.3 from the same day.
• NeoForge 1.21.x: one file per version, for example 1.21-neoforge-16.0.7, which CurseForge tags for 1.21 and 1.21.1, and 1.21.4-neoforge-16.2.2.
• Forge: files from 1.16.5-11.2.21 up to 1.20.2-14.5.7, with 1.20.1-14.4.4 in between.

The NeoForge 26.2 jar asks for exactly Minecraft 26.2 and NeoForge 26.2.0.0-beta or newer. To change loader or version, open JAR Manager under More, choose the loader under Server software and the version under Minecraft version, then press Apply change. The switch reinstalls the server and keeps your world, so make a backup in the Backups tab first. Change your Minecraft version or mod loader has the full steps.

Install it

1. Open Mods under Content and keep the Modrinth chip selected in the source chip row at the top of the tab. The Game version filter starts on your server's version. On a 26.3 server, press the CurseForge chip instead to get the 26.3 file.
2. Search for Iron Chests and press Install. The listing names no other mod, so there is no prompt to answer.
3. Restart from the Console tab, or press Start if the server is stopped. The install toast says "Restart the server to load it".

Open the Installed view to check. Iron Chests should be listed with no Failed to load badge.

Players need it too

Modrinth lists Iron Chests as required on both the client and the server. Each player installs the same file for their loader and Minecraft version. Join a modded server from your launcher covers the player side, and Fix the mismatched mod channel list error explains a refusal when versions differ.

What you get

The mod's source defines these chest sizes in slots, and the Feed The Beast wiki's page for older versions lists the same numbers: copper 45, iron 54, gold 81, diamond 108, crystal 108, obsidian 108 and the DirtChest 9000, which holds a single stack. A trapped version of each chest exists too. The upgrade items are Wood to Copper, Wood to Iron, Copper to Iron, Iron to Gold, Gold to Diamond, Diamond to Crystal and Diamond to Obsidian. Custom shulker boxes are not part of this mod. The project moved them to a separate mod called Iron Shulker Boxes.

Settings

The 16.8.3 jar has no configuration file or option, so there is nothing to edit.

Common problems

• The server stops at startup: the jar is for a different Minecraft version. Delete Iron Chests in the Installed view and install the file that matches your version.
• A player cannot join: their Iron Chests version differs from yours.
• Other crashes: Fix mod and plugin errors on Minecraft covers reading the Console log.