Assembling a Bigger Band: Backstage Plugins in Any Language with WebAssembly

on YouTube ↗37m

" summary

Claims a working framework that turns language-native code into Backstage plugins by compiling languages like Rust into Rust -> wasm32-wasi binaries, describing interfaces with WIT + WASI HTTP, and using Wasmtime and jco to run and glue them to JavaScript. A CLI builds the wasm, generates React frontend wrappers and backend servers, installs into a local Backstage, and serves an example endpoint (demoed on port 707). It is sandboxed and performant but UX is rough, installs rely on yarn, and more WIT bindings are needed.

AI-written summary · about

" chapters (14)

1. 0:00Extending Backstage with WebAssembly
2. 1:03Non-JavaScript plugins
3. 2:27WebAssembly for Backstage
4. 3:50What is WebAssembly
5. 6:16WebAssembly in plugin architecture
6. 8:24WebAssembly interfaces
7. 11:30Rust frontend plugin
8. 15:04Live demo: frontend plugin
9. 18:42Backend HTTP interfaces
10. 23:23Live demo: backend plugin
11. 25:37Future improvements
12. 31:39Project state and community
13. 33:24Cosmic’s investment
14. 34:08Q&A: Frontend vs backend

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