Introduction

Orbis is a plugin-driven desktop application platform built with Rust and React. It enables developers to create powerful, extensible desktop applications using a declarative JSON-based UI schema system.

What is Orbis?

Orbis provides a unique approach to building desktop applications:

• Plugin Architecture: Extend functionality through WASM-sandboxed plugins
• Schema-Driven UI: Define interfaces using JSON schemas instead of writing React code
• Rust Backend: High-performance, secure backend powered by Tauri
• Two Deployment Modes: Run standalone or in client-server mode for multi-user applications
• shadcn/ui Components: Beautiful, accessible UI components out of the box

Key Features

Declarative UI System

Plugins define their UI through JSON schemas that the Orbis renderer interprets:

{
  "type": "Container",
  "children": [
    {
      "type": "Heading",
      "level": 1,
      "text": "Hello, {{state.username}}!"
    },
    {
      "type": "Button",
      "label": "Click Me",
      "events": {
        "on_click": [
          {
            "type": "update_state",
            "path": "clickCount",
            "value": "{{state.clickCount + 1}}"
          }
        ]
      }
    }
  ]
}

Plugin Sandboxing

Plugins run in WASM sandboxes with configurable permissions, ensuring security:

• Network access control
• Filesystem restrictions
• Inter-plugin communication
• Resource limits

Reactive State Management

Built-in state management with Zustand provides reactive updates:

{
  "state": {
    "username": { "type": "string", "default": "Guest" },
    "clickCount": { "type": "number", "default": 0 }
  }
}

Architecture Overview

graph TB
    subgraph Frontend["Frontend"]
        UI[Schema Renderer ]
        State[Zustand State ]
        Actions[Action Executor ]
    end
    
    subgraph Backend["Backend"]
        Commands[Tauri Commands ]
        PluginRuntime[Plugin Runtime ]
        Auth[Authentication ]
    end
    
    subgraph Storage
        SQLite[(SQLite)]
        PostgreSQL[(PostgreSQL)]
    end
    
    UI --> State
    State --> Actions
    Actions --> Commands
    Commands --> PluginRuntime
    Commands --> Auth
    PluginRuntime --> Storage
    Auth --> Storage

When you’re ready to get started, check out the Getting Started Guide to set up your first Orbis application!