Overview

GroupManager is a permissions plug-in for self-hosted Bukkit and Spigot Minecraft servers. It is best suited to operators who need a configurable rank hierarchy and control over how permissions are stored. Its core strength is flexible access management; build protection requires a separate plug-in.

Administrators can manage users and groups in configuration files, at the console, or with in-game commands. Group inheritance and promotion or demotion hierarchies help organize authority levels without assigning every permission separately. Wildcard, negative, and exception nodes allow broad rules with targeted restrictions, while timed assignments can expire. That control is useful for servers with distinct ranks, but the hierarchy and exceptions need deliberate upkeep.

Key features

Ranks and integrations

Groups and users can carry variables such as prefixes, suffixes, and build status. Chat plug-ins can read prefix and suffix values, and other plug-ins may use build status. GroupManager also exposes PlaceholderAPI placeholders for groups, subgroups, prefixes, suffixes, and permission checks, giving compatible plug-ins access to rank information.

Storage and setup

Storage options include YAML, H2, MySQL, SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB. This range gives operators a choice between configuration-file storage and database backends, which can better suit an existing server stack. Developer plug-ins can declare GroupManager as a provided Maven dependency through JitPack.

Installation involves placing the JAR in the server's plugins folder, starting and stopping the server, then editing config.yml. The v3.2 release is labeled for Minecraft 1.8 to 1.20+, so it spans a broad version range. User data is purged at server start after 90 days without login by default; setting lastplayed to 0 protects an account from that purge.

Pricing

GroupManager is free: the GroupManager plan costs 0.00 USD per free and is released under GPL-3.0. There is no paid plan. The free plan gives server owners the permission-management features and storage choices without a license charge; the trade-off is that operators must handle setup, hierarchy design, and data-retention behavior themselves.

Platforms

GroupManager is self-hosted for Bukkit and Spigot servers. It is not a general-purpose permissions service for other platforms, so its fit depends on running a compatible Minecraft server.

Who it's for

Choose GroupManager when a server needs configurable ranks such as default, builder, moderator, admin, and owner, with inherited permissions and promotion or demotion paths. It also fits operators who want permission data in a chosen supported backend or need other plug-ins to read rank variables through PlaceholderAPI. Do not choose it as an antigrief solution: it exposes build status for other plug-ins but does not itself protect builds.

Pros and cons

Pros: Inheritance, rank hierarchies, wildcard and exception rules, and expiring assignments support more nuanced permission management than static rank labels alone.
Pros: Six storage choices, including MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB, can accommodate different server data setups.
Pros: PlaceholderAPI values and developer integration make rank and permission data available to compatible plug-ins.
Cons: Antigrief behavior depends on other plug-ins, so GroupManager cannot serve as a standalone build-protection tool.
Cons: Accounts inactive for 90 days are purged at startup by default unless protected with lastplayed set to 0, a retention rule operators need to account for.

Alternatives

For a broader selection, start with Minecraft Permissions Plugins. The Windows taskbar utilities in this directory serve a different purpose: DisplayFusion, Taskbar Groups, Winstep Nexus Dock, 7+ Taskbar Tweaker, ExplorerPatcher, MonitorDock, RainbowTaskbar, and RetroBar.

Verdict

GroupManager is a sound fit for Bukkit and Spigot operators who want free, configurable ranks, inheritance, temporary permissions, and a choice of storage backends. Choose it for permission control that can integrate with other server plug-ins; look elsewhere or pair it with a dedicated plug-in if you need antigrief protection built in.

	GroupManager	MyDockFinder
Free plan	Yes	No
Free trial	No	No
Paid from	Free	—
Open source	No	No
Platforms	self-hosted	Windows
Free plan	Yes	No
Platform	—	windows
Multi-monitor support	—	Yes

GroupManager vs MyDockFinder

GroupManager

MyDockFinder