the DispenserRobots plugin has a really neat take on server-only automation. Dispensers can break blocks, but they require a timed pulse, at least as long as a player would have to click. So a wooden tool requires a longer pulse than an iron one, for instance. This "timed pulse" trick also means that you can have axes both strip logs and break logs, depending on whether they receive a short or a long pulse.
I'm currently building a Fabric + Geyser setup (so server-side mods only), and I'm wondering if there's anything remotely like this in the fabric ecosystem.
It's intended as a lite version of Gnembon's Carpet Mod, but it includes an additional option dispensersBreakBlocks. It uses gunpowder in a dispenser to break blocks. It's also only required server side.