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Your own test server

Forge tests what you make on your own PC, on your own server. It runs a test copy of your game and a test server made from your Play Solo, both on this PC only. Nothing you test reaches Open Vanilla's realms or anyone else's server. Set it up once and Forge does the rest each time you press Test in game.

How it fits together

Your game, copied

Forge makes a test copy of your game beside it (it shares the big game files, so it takes almost no space) and puts your test build in it. The copy only ever signs in to this PC.

Your test server

A copy of your Play Solo that Forge starts and stops for you. It runs on this PC and listens to this PC only: no one else can join it, and it needs no internet.

Open Vanilla's realms

Never used for testing. Your work reaches a realm only when you publish it and the realm's staff choose to install it, on their own servers.

Your own game folder and your own Play Solo are never changed. Your Play Solo characters stay as they are.

Set it up, once

Get the launcher and your game. Install the Open Vanilla launcher and point it at your game client. No client yet? The client guide shows where to get one.
Set up Play Solo. In the launcher, switch PLAY to SOLO and press PLAY, as the Play Solo guide shows. The first time it downloads its server files and builds its world, so it takes a while; let it finish, and when the game opens you can close it. That's your own server, ready on your PC.
Open Forge and check the Test screen. Forge finds your game and your Open Vanilla folder from the launcher by itself. The Test screen shows them with a tick each. If one is missing, press Browse on Home for your game, or open Open Vanilla folder on the Test screen and pick the folder the launcher is in.
Make the test copies. On the Test screen press Build & install. The first time, Forge makes the test copy of your game and your test server from Play Solo (close Play Solo first: Forge copies it while it's quiet). That takes a few minutes; after that each install takes seconds.
Play it. Press Start, or on the World screen press Test in game (or T): Forge builds, starts your test server and the game, and puts you on the spot you were looking at. You sign in as solo. Press Make me a GM on the Test screen for the commands that find what you made.

Good to know

One server at a time. Your test server uses the same ports as Play Solo, so Forge waits while your own Play Solo is running. Close the game, or stop Play Solo, and test again.
Disk space. On the same drive as your game, the test copy takes a few megabytes; on another drive it's a full copy. The test server takes about as much as your Play Solo's database and world files.
Taking a test out. Remove the test build on the Test screen takes your pack out of both copies and puts the test server's files back as they were.
Collision and ground. What you shape and place reaches your test server too: its ground, water and zones, and walls on the buildings you place. Creatures find their way round new buildings once movement maps are rebuilt (optional for testing).
Offline. After setup, testing needs no internet. Forge goes online only to check for a new version of itself, and your test server, like Play Solo, picks up Play Solo's updates when it can.

Playing it with friends: your own server

To play your work with friends, host it on your own server: Host your own server sets one up on a Windows PC with Open Vanilla Server. Then build your pack for it with forge.exe, which comes with Forge (it's in Forge's install folder):

Publish your pack on Forge's Publish screen: it makes a signed .ovpack.

Write a realm.toml in a new folder, naming your server's folders and the packs to install:

[realm]
id = "my-realm"
name = "My realm"
patch = "patch-Z.MPQ"                  # the patch your players put in their Data folder
game = "C:/Games/YourGame"             # your game folder
server_dbc = "C:/YourServer/data/dbc"  # your server's folders (Open Vanilla Server's data folder)
server_maps = "C:/YourServer/data/maps"
server_vmaps = "C:/YourServer/data/vmaps"

[[pack]]
file = "my-pack-1.0.0.ovpack"

Build: forge.exe realm build realm.toml. In build\ you get the client patch for your players, and under server\ the database SQL, server DBCs, map tiles and collision files for your server. The report says what to copy where.
Install on your server while it's stopped: run server\sql\install.sql against its world database, copy the server\ folders over its data folders, and give your players client\patch-Z.MPQ.

It's your server and your copy: Forge reads your server's folders and writes its results into build\, never into the server itself.

Getting it on Open Vanilla's realms

Publish your pack and share it: addons can go to the Workshop; for content packs, talk to realm staff on Discord. They review it and, if they take it, install it on their own servers with the same realm build. Forge itself never connects to them.

Questions

Can I test on the live realm?

No. Testing is always on your own PC, so a half-made quest or a broken map never reaches other players, and the realm's own data stays the realm's. The test copy of your game is set to sign in to your PC only, even if you start it by hand.

Do I need Play Solo?

For playing your work in the game, yes: your test server is made from it, so it's set up and kept up to date the same way. You can make things, check them and use Forge's own Walk without it.

Forge says Play Solo isn't set up yet.

Run Play Solo once from the launcher (step 2) and let it finish, then come back to the Test screen and press Check again.

Forge says Play Solo is running.

Your test server and Play Solo can't run at the same time. Close the game (Play Solo stops with it), or run Play Solo.bat solo-stop in your Open Vanilla folder, then try again.

Mac or Linux?

The test server is Windows only for now, like Play Solo.