What is SolidOS?
SolidOS is an operating system for Solid — a modular, extensible data browser that lets users interact with data stored in Solid pods.
The Vision
Imagine an operating system where:
- Data is yours — stored in your personal Solid pod
- Apps are modular — "panes" that render specific data types
- Everything is linked — RDF/Linked Data connects it all
- You control access — fine-grained permissions on your data
SolidOS makes this real.
What You See
When you visit a Solid pod with SolidOS, you get an interactive data browser:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ SolidOS Data Browser [Login] │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ 📁 /public/ │
│ ├── 📁 contacts/ │
│ │ └── 👤 alice.ttl ← Contacts pane renders this │
│ ├── 📁 photos/ │
│ │ └── 🖼️ vacation.jpg ← Image pane renders this │
│ └── 📄 profile.ttl ← Profile pane renders this │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Key Components
SolidOS is built from several libraries:
| Component | Purpose |
|---|---|
| mashlib | Bundles everything into a deployable data browser |
| solid-panes | Collection of panes (modular apps) |
| solid-ui | Reusable UI widgets and components |
| solid-logic | Core business logic (auth, ACL, store) |
| rdflib.js | RDF processing and Linked Data |
The Pane System
The magic of SolidOS is panes — modular applications that know how to render specific data types.
When you navigate to a resource:
- SolidOS fetches the data
- It asks each pane: "Can you render this?"
- The most specific pane wins
- That pane renders the UI
User clicks /contacts/alice.ttl
↓
SolidOS: "Who can render a vcard:Individual?"
↓
Contacts Pane: "I can! I'm specialized for contacts."
Generic Pane: "I can show any RDF as a table..."
↓
Contacts Pane wins (more specific)
↓
Beautiful contact card UI
Where SolidOS Runs
SolidOS can be deployed in multiple ways:
- Embedded in Solid servers — solidcommunity.net uses it as the default UI
- Standalone web app — host mashlib.js anywhere
- Desktop app — Data Kitchen wraps it in Electron
- Your own app — embed panes in your applications
Who Uses SolidOS?
- solidcommunity.net — the largest Solid pod provider
- Inrupt's Pod Spaces — enterprise Solid deployment
- Self-hosters — running Community Solid Server
- Developers — building Solid applications
Next Steps
- Core Concepts — understand pods, RDF, and panes
- Quick Start — run SolidOS locally
- Your First Pane — build something!
Resources
- SolidOS GitHub — source code
- Solid Project — the Solid ecosystem
- Try it live — see SolidOS in action