Source: Roblox Creator Hub · CC BY 4.0 · View source · Code samples: MIT Imported 2026-10-03. Formatting adapted for this site.
RemoteFunction
Inherits from: Instance → Object
The RemoteFunction object facilitates synchronous, two-way communication across the client-server boundary. You can use it to define a custom callback function and invoke it manually by calling RemoteFunction:InvokeClient() or RemoteFunction:InvokeServer(). The code invoking the function yields until it receives a response from the recipient.
In order for both the server and clients to access a RemoteFunction instance, it must be in a place where both sides can see it, such as ReplicatedStorage, although in some cases it's appropriate to store it in Workspace or inside a Tool.
If the result is not needed, it is recommended that you use a RemoteEvent instead, since its call is asynchronous and doesn't need to wait for a response to continue execution. See Remote Events and Callbacks for code samples and further details on RemoteFunction.
Streaming Precautions
Note that if an invoked RemoteFunction creates an instance on the server, there is no guarantee that it exists on the client when the function returns. This is particularly important in places where instance streaming is enabled and when the created instances are BaseParts or Models, since parts that are far away from the player's character may not be streamed to the client, and models that are Atomic depend on whether their parts are streamed. Even if a model is Persistent, there may be some delay between the creation of the model and when it is replicated to the client.
Parameter Limitations
Any type of Roblox object such as an Enum, Instance, or others can be passed as a parameter when a RemoteFunction is invoked, as well as Luau types such as numbers, strings, and booleans, although you should carefully explore the limitations.
Inherits from: Instance
Memory category: Instances
Methods
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| RemoteFunction:InvokeClient | Tuple | Invokes the RemoteFunction which in turn calls the OnClientInvoke callback. |
| RemoteFunction:InvokeServer | Tuple | Invokes the RemoteFunction which in turn calls the OnServerInvoke callback. |
Inherited from Instance
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Instance:AddTag | () | Applies a tag to the instance. |
| Instance:children | Instances | Returns an array of the object's children. |
| Instance:ClearAllChildren | () | This method destroys all of an instance's children. |
| Instance:Clone | Instance | Create a copy of an instance and all its descendants, ignoring instances that are not Archivable. |
| Instance:clone | Instance | |
| Instance:Destroy | () | Sets the Instance.Parent property to nil, locks the Instance.Parent property, disconnects all connections, and calls Destroy() on all children. |
| Instance:destroy | () | |
| Instance:FindFirstAncestor | Instance? | Returns the first ancestor of the Instance whose Instance.Name is equal to the given name. |
| Instance:FindFirstAncestorOfClass | Instance? | Returns the first ancestor of the Instance whose Object.ClassName is equal to the given className. |
| Instance:FindFirstAncestorWhichIsA | Instance? | Returns the first ancestor of the Instance for whom Object:IsA() returns true for the given className. |
| Instance:FindFirstChild | Instance? | Returns the first child of the Instance found with the given name. |
| Instance:findFirstChild | Instance | |
| Instance:FindFirstChildOfClass | Instance? | Returns the first child of the Instance whose ClassName is equal to the given class name. |
| Instance:FindFirstChildWhichIsA | Instance? | Returns the first child of the Instance for whom Object:IsA() returns true for the given className. |
| Instance:FindFirstDescendant | Instance? | Returns the first descendant found with the given Instance.Name. |
| Instance:GetActor | Actor? | Returns the Actor associated with the Instance, if any. |
| Instance:GetAttribute | Variant | Returns the value which has been assigned to the given attribute name. |
| Instance:GetAttributeChangedSignal | RBXScriptSignal | Returns an event that fires when the given attribute changes. |
| Instance:GetAttributes | Dictionary | Returns a dictionary of the instance's attributes. |
| Instance:GetChildren | Instances | Returns an array containing all of the instance's children. |
| Instance:getChildren | Instances | |
| Instance:GetDebugId | string | Returns a coded string of the debug ID used internally by Roblox. |
| Instance:GetDescendants | Instances | Returns an array containing all of the descendants of the instance. |
| Instance:GetFullName | string | Returns a string describing the instance's ancestry. |
| Instance:GetStyled | Variant | Returns the styled or explicitly modified value of the specified property, or else the default property value if it hasn't been styled/modified. |
| Instance:GetStyledPropertyChangedSignal | RBXScriptSignal | Returns an event that fires when the given style property changes on the instance. |
| Instance:GetTags | Array | Gets an array of all tags applied to the instance. |
| Instance:HasTag | boolean | Check whether the instance has a given tag. |
| Instance:IsAncestorOf | boolean | Returns true if an Instance is an ancestor of the given descendant. |
| Instance:IsDescendantOf | boolean | Returns true if an Instance is a descendant of the given ancestor. |
| Instance:isDescendantOf | boolean | |
| Instance:IsPropertyModified | boolean | Returns true if the value stored in the specified property is not equal to the code-instantiated default. |
| Instance:QueryDescendants | Instances | Returns an array containing all descendants of the instance that match the selector string. |
| Instance:Remove | () | Sets the object's Parent to nil, and does the same for all its descendants. |
| Instance:remove | () | |
| Instance:RemoveTag | () | Removes a tag from the instance. |
| Instance:ResetPropertyToDefault | () | Resets a property to its default value. |
| Instance:SetAttribute | () | Sets the attribute with the given name to the given value. |
| Instance:WaitForChild | Instance | Returns the child of the Instance with the given name. If the child does not exist, it will yield the current thread until it does. |
Inherited from Object
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Object:GetPropertyChangedSignal | RBXScriptSignal | Get an event that fires when a given property of the object changes. |
| Object:IsA | boolean | Returns true if an object's class matches or inherits from a given class. |
| Object:isA | boolean |
RemoteFunction:InvokeClient
Invokes the RemoteFunction which in turn calls the OnClientInvoke callback. Since this method is used to communicate from the server to a client, it will only work when used in a Script.
Any type of Roblox object such as an Enum, Instance, or others can be passed as a parameter to InvokeClient(), as well as Luau types such as numbers, strings, and booleans, although you should carefully explore the limitations.
See Remote Events and Callbacks for code samples and further details on RemoteFunction.
Warning
In practice, the server does not often invoke the client, as clients typically do not have information that the server doesn't have, and actions that only a client can take, such as displaying a GUI, typically do not require a callback. As such, RemoteEvent:FireClient() is recommended as an asynchronous method that doesn't need to wait for a response to continue execution.
If you legitimately need to invoke a client from the server, note the following risks:
- If the client throws an error, the server throws the error too.
- If the client disconnects while it's being invoked,
InvokeClient()throws an error. - If the client doesn't return a value, the server yields forever.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| player | Player | The Player associated with the client to invoke. | |
| arguments | Tuple | Values to pass to the OnClientInvoke callback. |
Returns
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Tuple | Values returned from the OnClientInvoke callback. |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| tags | ["Yields"] |
| security | None |
| thread safety | Unsafe |
| capabilities | ["RemoteEvent"] |
RemoteFunction:InvokeServer
Invokes the RemoteFunction which in turn calls the OnServerInvoke callback. Since this method is used to communicate from a client to the server, it will only work when used in a LocalScript.
If a returned result is not needed, it's recommended to use RemoteEvent:FireServer() instead, as its call is asynchronous and doesn't need to wait for a response to continue execution.
Any type of Roblox object such as an Enum, Instance, or others can be passed as a parameter to InvokeServer(), as well as Luau types such as numbers, strings, and booleans, although you should carefully explore the limitations.
See Remote Events and Callbacks for code samples and further details on RemoteFunction.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| arguments | Tuple | Values to pass to the OnServerInvoke callback. |
Returns
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Tuple | Values returned from the OnServerInvoke callback. |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| tags | ["Yields"] |
| security | None |
| thread safety | Unsafe |
| capabilities | ["RemoteEvent"] |
Callbacks
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| RemoteFunction.OnClientInvoke | Tuple | Callback for when the RemoteFunction is invoked with InvokeClient(). |
| RemoteFunction.OnServerInvoke | Tuple | Callback for when the RemoteFunction is invoked with InvokeServer(). |
RemoteFunction.OnClientInvoke
This callback is called when the RemoteFunction is invoked with InvokeClient(). When the bound function returns, the returned values are sent back to the calling server.
See Remote Events and Callbacks for code samples and further details on OnClientInvoke.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| arguments | Tuple | The parameters sent through InvokeClient(). |
Returns
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Tuple | Values returned by the callback function. |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| security | None |
| thread safety | Unsafe |
| capabilities | ["RemoteEvent"] |
RemoteFunction.OnServerInvoke
This callback is called when the RemoteFunction is invoked with InvokeServer(). When the bound function returns, the returned values are sent back to the calling client.
See Remote Events and Callbacks for code samples and further details on OnServerInvoke.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| player | Player | The Player associated with the client that the InvokeServer() call originates from. | |
| arguments | Tuple | The parameters sent through InvokeServer(). |
Returns
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Tuple | Values returned by the callback function. |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| security | None |
| thread safety | Unsafe |
| capabilities | ["RemoteEvent"] |
Properties
Inherited from Instance
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Instance.Archivable | boolean | Determines if an Instance and its descendants can be cloned using Instance:Clone(), and can be saved/published. |
| Instance.archivable | boolean | |
| Instance.Capabilities | SecurityCapabilities | The set of capabilities allowed to be used for scripts inside this container. |
| Instance.IsInSandbox | boolean | Indicates whether the instance is inside a sandboxed container. |
| Instance.Name | string | A non-unique identifier of the Instance. |
| Instance.Parent | Instance | Determines the hierarchical parent of the Instance. |
| Instance.PredictionMode | PredictionMode | Reflects the client-side prediction mode applied to the instance under server-authoritative physics. |
| Instance.RobloxLocked | boolean | A deprecated property that used to protect CoreGui objects. |
| Instance.Sandboxed | boolean | When enabled, the instance can only access abilities in its Capabilities list. |
| Instance.UniqueId | UniqueId | A unique identifier for the instance. |
Inherited from Object
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Object.ClassName | string | A read-only string representing the class this Object belongs to. |
| Object.className | string |
Events
Inherited from Instance
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Instance.AncestryChanged | Fires when the Instance.Parent property of this object or one of its ancestors is changed. | |
| Instance.AttributeChanged | Fires whenever an attribute is changed on the Instance. | |
| Instance.ChildAdded | Fires after an object is parented to this Instance. | |
| Instance.childAdded | ||
| Instance.ChildRemoved | Fires after a child is removed from this Instance. | |
| Instance.DescendantAdded | Fires after a descendant is added to the Instance. | |
| Instance.DescendantRemoving | Fires immediately before a descendant of the Instance is removed. | |
| Instance.Destroying | Fires immediately before (or is deferred until after) the instance is destroyed via Instance:Destroy(). | |
| Instance.StyledPropertiesChanged | Fires whenever any style property is changed on the instance, including when a property is set to nil. |
Inherited from Object
| Name | Type / Returns | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Object.Changed | Fires immediately after a property of the object changes, with some limitations. |