Start Technologies

What is this?

This repository is the monorepo for all Start9 products. Its flagship is StartOS — an open-source Linux distribution for running a personal server, handling discovery, installation, network configuration, data backup, dependency management, and health monitoring of self-hosted services.

All products share a single Rust backend library (start-core) and a single Angular workspace; each product is a thin wrapper under projects/ that adds only its own entry point and any product-specific frontend or packaging, while shared code lives at the top level under shared-libs/.

Directory	Product	What it is
projects/start-os/	StartOS	The server OS — startbox/start-container bins, web UI + setup wizard, container runtime, OS packaging
projects/start-cli/	start-cli	CLI for managing servers, registries, and packaging
projects/start-registry/	start-registry	Package registry server (registrybox); serves the marketplace UI
projects/start-tunnel/	StartTunnel	VPN/forwarding server (tunnelbox) + its web UI
projects/start-wrt/	StartWRT	OpenWrt-based router OS (startwrt bin + embedded web UI), flashable image for the SpaceMiT K1
projects/start-sdk/	Start SDK	@start9labs/start-sdk for building StartOS service packages
projects/brochure-marketplace/	Marketplace site	Public marketplace/landing site (marketplace.start9.com)
projects/start-docs/	Docs site	The documentation website (docs.start9.com)
shared-libs/crates/start-core/	—	The entire Rust backend library shared by all bins
shared-libs/ts-modules/	—	Shared Angular libraries (the Angular workspace is rooted at the repo root)
shared-libs/crates/patch-db/	—	Diff-based reactive state store (first-party crate)

Tech stack: Rust backend (Tokio/Axum), Angular frontend (Taiga UI), Node.js container runtime with LXC, and a custom diff-based database (Patch-DB) for reactive state synchronization. Services run in isolated LXC containers, packaged as S9PKs — a signed, merkle-archived format supporting partial downloads and cryptographic verification.

See ARCHITECTURE.md for how the pieces fit together.

What can you do with StartOS?

StartOS lets you self-host services that would otherwise depend on third-party cloud providers — giving you full ownership of your data and infrastructure. Browse available services on the Start9 Marketplace, including:

• Bitcoin & Lightning — full Bitcoin node, Lightning node, BTCPay Server, and other payment infrastructure
• Communication — Matrix, SimpleX, and other messaging platforms
• Cloud Storage — Nextcloud, Vaultwarden, and other productivity tools

Services are added by the community. If a service you want isn't available, you can package it yourself.

Getting StartOS

Buy a Start9 server

The easiest path. Buy a server from Start9 and plug it in.

Build your own

Follow the install guide to install StartOS on your own hardware.

Build from source

git clone https://github.com/Start9Labs/start-technologies.git
cd start-technologies

See CONTRIBUTING.md for the shared toolchain and development workflow, and projects/start-os/CONTRIBUTING.md to build a StartOS image.

The rest of the monorepo

StartOS is the flagship, but it shares this repo with the rest of the Start9 stack:

• StartTunnel — a self-hosted VPN / reverse-proxy server that gives a StartOS box a public address and clearnet port forwarding without relying on a third-party tunnel.
• StartWRT — an OpenWrt-based router OS for home self-hosting: per-profile subnets and WiFi, inbound/outbound VPN, DDNS, and secure remote access, shipped as a flashable image for the SpaceMiT K1.
• start-cli — the command-line client for StartOS servers and registries, and the tool that builds and signs service packages (.s9pk).
• Start SDK — the @start9labs/start-sdk TypeScript SDK and packaging toolchain for wrapping any app into an installable StartOS service.
• start-registry — the registry server that hosts and serves marketplaces of packaged services.
• Marketplace site — the public marketplace at marketplace.start9.com, built on the same UI components the OS uses.
• Docs site — the documentation website at docs.start9.com.

Documentation

• ARCHITECTURE.md — how the monorepo fits together
• CONTRIBUTING.md — environment setup, build, test, and format workflow
• AGENTS.md — AI-developer/agent operating rules (CLAUDE.md is a one-line @AGENTS.md import)

Contributing

There are multiple ways to contribute: work directly on a product in this repo, package a service for the marketplace, or help with documentation and guides. See CONTRIBUTING.md or visit start9.com/contribute.

To report security issues, email security@start9.com.