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HyperOpen X A year in review (2025)

2025 marked a turning point in our work with the HyperOpen X project. After two years of foundational efforts, this year was about maturity—taking everything we had learned and building something production-ready. The result is a complete transformation of our platform architecture and a robust deployment infrastructure that validates the promise of hyper_edge and hyper_db.

2025 was defined by three major themes: modernization, independence, and documentation. Each of these reflects our commitment to making Abilian SBE not just compatible with the HyperOpenX ecosystem, but a showcase for what’s possible when open-source technologies come together.

hyper_edge: From Prototype to Production

Our initial focus was on stability. We addressed critical deployment issues that had surfaced during real-world testing: race conditions in file uploads, document conversion locking, and application initialization. These fixes were essential. Edge computing environments are unforgiving—intermittent connectivity and resource constraints amplify any weakness in your code.

With the foundation solidified, we turned to a more ambitious goal: reducing the footprint of Abilian SBE for edge deployment. We eliminated non-essential dependencies, including the integrated antivirus system, and streamlined configuration files. The result was a leaner, more deployable application—one better suited for resource-constrained edge nodes.

The most significant transformation came in the fall, when we completely rebuilt our frontend architecture. The migration from Bootstrap to Tailwind CSS, from jQuery to Alpine.js, and from LESS to native CSS allowed use to reduce our JavaScript bundle from ~80KB to ~15KB, to eliminate and streamline build-time dependencies, and to create a modular CSS architecture that makes maintenance and customization straightforward.

For this, we introduced Vite as our build system, bringing modern development workflows—hot module replacement, optimized builds, and faster iteration cycles—to a codebase that had evolved over more than a decade. This modernization ensures that Abilian SBE can continue to evolve without accumulating technical debt.

hyper_db: Validation and Exploration

On the database front, 2025 was a year of consolidation. PostgreSQL integration, which we had been developing throughout 2024, reached full production readiness. We validated the complete workflow: automated provisioning through SlapOS, secure credential generation, connection management, and promise-based health monitoring.

The Architecture Decision Records (ADRs) we produced this year document the motivation behind these changes. PostgreSQL for production, SQLite for development and testing, and MariaDB as a future option for scenarios requiring Signal18’s advanced replication features. These documents serve as a guide for other software vendors looking to integrate with hyper_db.

We also developed a storage plugin for S3-compatible object storage, allowing binary files to be externalized from the relational database. This architectural pattern—separating structured and unstructured data—is essential for hybrid edge/cloud deployments where storage constraints vary dramatically between nodes.

Building Independence: The Docker Infrastructure

One of our most significant achievements this year was something that might seem counterintuitive for a SlapOS-focused project: we built a complete Docker-based development infrastructure.

Why? Because adoption depends on accessibility. Developers need to be able to work on SlapOS applications without requiring constant network access to the SlapOS infrastructure. They need to iterate quickly, test locally, and deploy confidently. The build infrastructure we created—including diagnostic tools, troubleshooting guides, and comprehensive documentation—makes this possible.

This work also addresses air-gapped deployment scenarios, where network access is restricted or unavailable. By documenting cache strategies and providing local build alternatives, we’ve expanded the potential deployment contexts for hyper_edge applications.

Documentation as a Deliverable

To accompany our development work, we produced approximately 4,500 lines of technical documentation. This was a deliberate investment in knowledge consolidation for our team, and our ecosystem. The SlapOS ecosystem, while powerful, has a learning curve. By creating tutorials, reference guides, and architectural documentation, we’re lowering the barrier to entry for other developers and organizations.

Our documentation covers everything from the basics of SlapOS and Buildout to advanced topics like cache management and IPv6 compatibility. We also published comparative analyses—for example, explaining the differences between upstream Buildout and SlapOS’s variant—that help developers understand the ecosystem’s unique characteristics.

Collaboration and Community

The collaborative nature of HyperOpen X continued to drive our work. Regular exchanges with Nexedi helped us optimize our SlapOS integration. Discussions with Signal18 informed our approach to MariaDB compatibility. And the broader consortium—Rapid.Space, Jamespot, and others—provided validation that our work addresses real needs across different use cases.

This collaboration reflects the project’s core values: openness, sovereignty, and shared innovation. By working together, we’re building an ecosystem that no single organization could create alone.

By the Numbers

Metric Value
Total commits 119
Net code reduction ~4,800 lines
Python packages updated 32
Documentation produced ~4,500 lines
Build infrastructure ~2,800 lines
Frontend bundle reduction ~80KB → ~15KB

What’s Next?

As we enter 2026—and the extended fourth year of the HyperOpen X project—our focus shifts to broader adoption and commercialization. The technical foundation is solid. The deployment infrastructure is mature. Now comes the challenge of demonstrating value to new users and organizations.

We’re also exploring new directions. The integration of AI capabilities for automated monitoring and summarization—leveraging tools like TextSynth deployed on edge infrastructure—represents an exciting frontier. These capabilities could transform how organizations interact with their data and systems, all while maintaining the sovereignty and openness that define the HyperOpen approach.

2025 was the year we proved that Abilian SBE could thrive in the HyperOpen ecosystem. 2026 will be the year we help others do the same.

At Abilian, we remain committed to open-source innovation and the collaborative spirit that makes projects like HyperOpen X possible. The future of cloud and edge computing is being built today—and we’re proud to be part of it.

Follow our journey and learn more about our contributions to HyperOpen X on lab.abilian.com or connect with us on LinkedIn.

Support

The project is partially funded by:

#hyper_db #slapos #edge-computing #cloud-native #open-source

Page last modified: 2026-02-21 08:14:12