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I have a computer which is always on and always connected. It's my smartphone. Can I just run a 'homeserver' on that and be connected?

by calanya 10y ago

kuschku 10y ago
If you are on Android or iOS, it’s not always connected – and you can’t actually run things in background all the time anymore either.
Perceptes 10y ago
Sure. Homeserver software doesn't care where it's hosted. If you want it to federate with other homeservers on the Internet, it will need to be accessible from outside your local network, of course.
- calanya 10y ago
  Is anyone working on it that I could help?
  - Perceptes 10y ago
    I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. The only practically usable homeserver software right now is Synapse (https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse), an implementation in Python built by the Matrix core developer team.
    - Arathorn 10y ago
      Synapse only runs serverside. In future we'd love to evolve things to be able to run clientside - e.g. our P2P Matrix GSoC project: https://github.com/matrix-org/GSoC/blob/master/IDEAS.md#peer-to-peer-matrix https://github.com/matrix-org/GSoC/blob/master/IDEAS.md#peer...
    - PeterisP 10y ago
      So, why did you answer "Sure" to his question if the answer is actually "No, you can not run a homeserver right now on your smartphone" ? I mean, a python app for posix systems is not really close to being run on unrooted android and iOS.
      - StavrosK 10y ago
        It was a "sure, in principle".
      - Perceptes 10y ago
        I somehow didn't process the "it's a smartphone part" and completely misunderstood his question as a result. I'll edit my original reply to correct that. Edit: Apparently I can't edit it anymore. :{
        calanya 10y ago
        That's fine. I am really interested in the possibility of running a 'homeserver' directly on a phone. Do you think that would be possible?
        Perceptes 10y ago
        Yes, it is possible. Ultimately, a homeserver is just a program that implements the client-server, and optionally the federation, APIs. The only feature-complete homeserver right now is Synapse, which is written in Python, and as of this moment has performance issues even running on a server, so it's not realistic that it could be modified to run on a phone. My homeserver Ruma is written in Rust, which is a systems language that actually is suited for mobile and embedded systems development, although I am currently not targeting that use case, nor is Ruma mature enough to be practically useful yet. If you're interested in the possibility of developing your own homeserver implementation specifically targeting your use case, you should take a look through the Matrix specification documents: https://matrix.org/docs/spec/ https://matrix.org/docs/spec/
rglullis 10y ago
Always connected? I really envy you. I mean, can you even take the subway or go on an overseas travel and still be sure that your smartphone is your single point of failure?

I have a computer which is always on and always connected. It's my smartphone. Can I just run a 'homeserver' on that and be connected?

by calanya 10y ago

I have a computer which is always on and always connected. It's my smartphone. Can I just run a 'homeserver' on that and be connected?

kuschku 10y ago

If you are on Android or iOS, it’s not always connected – and you can’t actually run things in background all the time anymore either.

Perceptes 10y ago

Sure. Homeserver software doesn't care where it's hosted. If you want it to federate with other homeservers on the Internet, it will need to be accessible from outside your local network, of course.

calanya 10y ago
Is anyone working on it that I could help?
- Perceptes 10y ago
  I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. The only practically usable homeserver software right now is Synapse (https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse), an implementation in Python built by the Matrix core developer team.
  - Arathorn 10y ago
    Synapse only runs serverside. In future we'd love to evolve things to be able to run clientside - e.g. our P2P Matrix GSoC project: https://github.com/matrix-org/GSoC/blob/master/IDEAS.md#peer-to-peer-matrix https://github.com/matrix-org/GSoC/blob/master/IDEAS.md#peer...
  - PeterisP 10y ago
    So, why did you answer "Sure" to his question if the answer is actually "No, you can not run a homeserver right now on your smartphone" ? I mean, a python app for posix systems is not really close to being run on unrooted android and iOS.
    - StavrosK 10y ago
      It was a "sure, in principle".
    - Perceptes 10y ago
      I somehow didn't process the "it's a smartphone part" and completely misunderstood his question as a result. I'll edit my original reply to correct that. Edit: Apparently I can't edit it anymore. :{
      - calanya 10y ago
        That's fine. I am really interested in the possibility of running a 'homeserver' directly on a phone. Do you think that would be possible?
        Perceptes 10y ago
        Yes, it is possible. Ultimately, a homeserver is just a program that implements the client-server, and optionally the federation, APIs. The only feature-complete homeserver right now is Synapse, which is written in Python, and as of this moment has performance issues even running on a server, so it's not realistic that it could be modified to run on a phone. My homeserver Ruma is written in Rust, which is a systems language that actually is suited for mobile and embedded systems development, although I am currently not targeting that use case, nor is Ruma mature enough to be practically useful yet. If you're interested in the possibility of developing your own homeserver implementation specifically targeting your use case, you should take a look through the Matrix specification documents: https://matrix.org/docs/spec/ https://matrix.org/docs/spec/

rglullis 10y ago

Always connected? I really envy you. I mean, can you even take the subway or go on an overseas travel and still be sure that your smartphone is your single point of failure?