Browsix brings UNIX to Web browsers

To let developers build applications without installing any bulky software, Browsix has emerged as a one-stop solution. The framework offers the essence of UNIX to enable Web app development on any compatible system, irrespective of a particular build or version.

Browsix comes as a JavaScript-only framework to provide developers with extensive JavaScript runtimes for C, C++, Go and Node.js. There is also a POSIX-like shell that eases app development.

Initially developed as a research project by the PLASMA lab at the University of Massachusetts, Browsix has the capabilities to convert a client-server application to run completely in a browser. It has a TypeScript kernel behind the scenes, alongside the runtimes for open source languages such as C, C++ and Go.

“The core of Browsix is a kernel that controls access to shared UNIX services, which include the shared file system, pipes, sockets, and task structures, live inside the kernel, which run in the main browser thread,” the Massachusetts University team comprising Boby Powers, John Vilk and Emery D. Berger, wrote in a detailed research paper.

Browsix enables developers to integrate a MemeGenerator-like meme server into the browser with no code modifications. Additionally, there is a need to modify the existing HTML code to load and initialise the Browsix JavaScript library.

Developers can convert their existing Web applications for Browsix using a process that compiles the code to JavaScript, staging the files required by the application to place in the in-browser file system, and then adding set-up code to the core HTML file.

The Browsix code can be accessed directly from a GitHub repository. It also includes the necessary licence files and documentation.