Server providers
Run the Resonate protocol on infrastructure you already operate — the core server, or a provider implementation built for a specific platform.
TL;DR#
Durable execution is a protocol, not a product. Any platform that gives you durable storage and an atomic compare-and-swap can implement the Resonate server protocol. A provider is one of those implementations: a separate server binary built for a specific platform, not a storage flag on the core server. Resonate builds and maintains the two below, independently of the platforms they run on.
Most teams should run the core server. Reach for a provider when the platform it targets is one you already operate and would rather not add a database beside.
What ships today#
| Provider | Storage | Transport | License | Drop-in? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core server | Postgres, MySQL, SQLite | HTTP | Apache 2.0 | — |
| ScyllaDB | ScyllaDB (CQL) | HTTP | Source-available (BUSL-1.1) | Yes |
| NATS | NATS JetStream | NATS | Source-available (BUSL-1.1) | No |
"Drop-in" means the provider speaks the same HTTP/JSON protocol the core server speaks, so your SDK and your application code do not change. Workers point at a different RESONATE_URL.
The NATS provider is not drop-in. It replaces both storage and transport, so it has no HTTP interface at all and workers connect over NATS using the NatsNetwork client built into the SDK. Your workflow code is unchanged; the client wiring is not, and only the TypeScript and Python SDKs have that client today.
What a provider is not#
- Not a plugin. There is no adapter interface to register a new backend against the core server. A provider is an independent implementation of the published protocol.
- Not a configuration flag. You do not get ScyllaDB by passing an option to
resonate serve. You run a different binary. - Not necessarily Apache 2.0. The core server is Apache 2.0. The ScyllaDB and NATS providers are source-available under BUSL-1.1 — free for development, testing, and evaluation, with production use requiring a commercial license until each version's Change Date. Read the license in the repository before you plan a production rollout.
Maturity#
The core server is the reference implementation and the default recommendation. The providers are newer. Both implement the core of the protocol, but neither implements search, neither has server-side authentication, and neither has a production reference deployment yet. They are also not equally proven — the ScyllaDB provider ships oracle-diff, crash, and linearizability suites; the NATS provider has unit tests only.
Each provider page has a "What's not there yet" section. Read it before you commit to one.
Building your own#
The protocol is public. If you want durable execution on a platform that isn't listed here, the server specification is the contract to implement, and the existing providers are worked examples of what a complete implementation looks like.