Nomad-capable server for an NGO

2026-08-05 00:57:50

adminsforum@hubzilla.org

Jakub Urbanowicz wrote the following Beitrag Wed, 05 Aug 2026 00:57:50 +0200

Nomad-capable server for an NGO

I'm thinking of installing Forte, exposing it to the world-wide Fediverse and Grid to have something similar to Facebook's fanpage.
Please rate the idea and give suggestions / alternatives.
Sorry if I am intruding on a Hubzilla-specific site.
So far I've had some experience with Hubzilla, and liked it, but it may be too heavy for a small server.
Best,
Jacob

2026-08-05 01:12:04

Der Pepe (Hubzilla) ⁂

pepecyb@hub.hubzilla.hu

@kubaurbanowicz@zotum.net

Especially when it comes to a website for an NGO, Hubzilla would be the first choice because it offers CMS capabilities. And it’s extremely resource-efficient, so it doesn’t place heavy demands on the server (I imagine it’s comparable to Forte).

I’ve also written an article on this (unfortunately only in German: Mit Hubzilla eine Organisations-Seite im Fediverse anbieten), in which I created a website using an NGO as an example (one that actually existed and whose team I was involved in). If you have any questions, please feel free to message me via DN (in English, if you like).

2026-08-05 01:29:44

Ema エマ

ema@utasansh.in

@Hubzilla Support Forum I agree with @Der Pepe (Hubzilla) ⁂ that Hubzilla is the best option, it's light and has CMS capabilities.

If you want to see the CMS in action, you may have a look at example sites which are built with Hubzilla:
https://emmaus-koeln.de
https://utasansh.in
https://hubzilla.org
etc.

2026-08-05 02:04:56

Bill Statler

billstatler@forum.statler.ws

@Jakub Urbanowicz - We have an unofficial group here: Streams/Forte Tea Garden.

I like Forte, but Hubzilla does have a large number of extra features that might be useful for an NGO.

2026-08-05 08:10:53

Jupiter Rowland

jupiter_rowland@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

Forte doesn't even support the Nomad protocol or any protocol other than ActivityPub.

Basically, Forte is (streams) without Nomad and Zot6 support and a few other minor differences which elude me right now.

(streams) is Hubzilla

with easier permission handling
with four channel types for groups that partially provide features absent from Hubzilla (moderated posts for certain members, permitting vs not permitting members to upload content to the group channel)
with better comment control
with OCAP override permanently on
with an even higher character limit
with Markdown and HTML available for formatting messages
with summaries in comments that actually work as Mastodon CWs
with multiple profiles per channel
able to verify external identities
with easier alt-text support (alt-text field in the Photo app)
able to block entire servers at channel level
able to block entire server applications (e.g. Threads, Mastodon) at admin level
with ActivityPub built into the core and on by default
understanding decentralised identities as per FEP-ef61
optionally able to receive entire conversations around comments made by contacts

but

without diaspora* support
without an RSS/Atom aggregator
without crossposters to Dreamwidth, Libertree, LiveJournal and WordPress
without articles
without planning cards
without wikis
without webpages
without OpenStreetMap support
without a QR code generator
without support for the CalDAV calendar in the event calendar frontend
without modern third-party themes like AdminLTE or Solidified (for now)

(@Everyone: Can you please refrain from repeating my forum comments to your Mastodon followers? I'm commenting here without safeguards.)

2026-08-06 01:51:27

Jakub Urbanowicz

kubaurbanowicz@zotum.net

@Jupiter Rowland
As far as I understand it, Forte should not be viewed as "(streams) without Nomad". It is better understood as an attempt to reimplement the capabilities of Nomad on top of ActivityPub, using a collection of emerging Fediverse Enhancement Proposals (FEPs) and a few project-specific mechanisms.

1. Nomadic identity

This is clearly the primary goal.

Historically:

Hubzilla → Zot6
(streams) → Nomad
Forte → ActivityPub

The OpenNomad project explicitly states that the long-term objective is to bring technologies such as:

nomadic identity,
portable identity,
identity proofs,
access control,
conversation containers,

into the ActivityPub ecosystem rather than keeping them exclusive to the Nomad protocol.

2. FEP-ef61 (Portable Objects)

This appears to be one of the key building blocks.

The idea is simple:

Instead of identifying an actor solely by

https://server.example/users/alice

the actor receives a portable identity based on a cryptographic identifier (conceptually similar to DID).

The URL becomes just one representation of that identity.

Isn't it exactly the direction Mike has wanted for many years?

FEP-ef61 is still a draft, but Forte is frequently mentioned in discussions around its implementation.

3. Object integrity proofs

Another major piece.

Nomad always relied heavily on cryptographic identity.

ActivityPub originally did not.

Several FEPs now introduce:

cryptographic signatures,
proof of ownership,
object integrity.

Without these, portable identities are difficult to secure.

4. Client-side signing

This is another important change.

Traditionally:

User
  ↓
Server signs everything

The proposed direction is:

User signs
Server relays

That makes identity independent of the server.

Again, this is very much aligned with Nomad's philosophy.

5. OpenWebAuth

This one is already much more concrete.

OpenWebAuth (formerly Magic Sign-On) has now been documented as its own FEP.

It provides federated login between independent sites without relying on OAuth providers such as Google.

The specification explicitly mentions compatibility with Hubzilla, (streams), Forte and ActivityPub-based deployments.

6. Conversation containers

This one is interesting.

One weakness of ActivityPub is that conversations are reconstructed heuristically.

Nomad had a much richer conversation model.

There are now proposals for "conversation containers" intended to preserve discussion context much more reliably across servers.

These are still evolving.

7. Channel cloning

This is the part that is not yet solved.

Today:

Hubzilla can clone Hubzilla channels.

(streams) can clone (streams) channels.

But ActivityPub software generally cannot.

The Hubzilla documentation still explicitly says that AP contacts cannot participate fully in Nomad cloning because ActivityPub lacks the necessary concepts.

So this remains one of the major gaps.

8. Cross-platform nomadic identity

The "holy grail", IMHO.

Today

Hubzilla  <--> Hubzilla

Streams   <--> Streams

Mastodon  <--> Mastodon

The goal becomes:

Hubzilla
     \
      \
       Forte
      /
     /
Mastodon
     \
      \
     Friendica

with a single portable identity moving between all of them.

That is what several of the current FEP discussions are trying to enable.

So, the effort appears to be:

"Let's teach ActivityPub how to do what Nomad already does."

2026-08-06 01:59:19

Jakub Urbanowicz

kubaurbanowicz@zotum.net

@Jupiter Rowland
Trouble is, things that are technically capable, are socially difficult to deploy.

2026-08-06 10:00:54

Jupiter Rowland

jupiter_rowland@hub.netzgemeinde.eu

@Jakub Urbanowicz Mastodon users would cheer if they got nomadic identity. Maybe unless it made things significantly more difficult for them because their identity was channelised.

Mastodon developers, however, would only implement nomadic identity under pressure, if at all. That pressure would be most of the rest of the Fediverse being nomadic and at least one nomadic microblogging/social networking application offering a fairly easy import of Mastodon accounts.

They would only implement nomadic identity if people started running away from Mastodon because it doesn't have nomadic identity. In all other cases, they'd refuse to implement it, at least pan-Fediverse nomadic identity, out of fear that Mastodon users would run away from Mastodon because it's so easy now. If anything, they'd implement nomadic identity in a way that still makes it impossible to move or clone from Mastodon to elsewhere.

But they probably wouldn't implement it if they didn't have to. After all, they refused to implement client-side OpenWebAuth support as well. There's literally a merge request on Mastodon's GitHub that'd implement client-side OpenWebAuth support, and that has been lingering since 2023, completely ignored by the devs. Back then, one merge would have been sufficient to give Mastodon client-side OpenWebAuth support.

So much about whether the Mastodon devs are willing to implement something that Mike Macgirvin has invented. Especially if they can't sell it to their faithful followers as their own original invention, and if they can't sell it to their faithful followers without admitting that there's something else than Mastodon out there in the Fediverse.

But even if Mastodon's devs wanted to implement full server-side nomadic identity, that doesn't mean it'll be easy. Basically, large parts of Mastodon's server backend would have to be rewritten. I guess this is why silverpill threw in the towel, gave up trying to implement nomadic identity on Mitra server-side and built a nomadic client instead.

There is no case of Hubzilla-level nomadic identity having been implemented in non-nomadic, ActivityPub-only, login-equals-identity Fediverse software after the fact. And there won't be any for quite a while.

2026-08-06 10:34:43

Der Pepe (Hubzilla) ⁂

pepecyb@hub.hubzilla.hu

@Jupiter Rowland

I’ll throw in one more thought here about Forte’s nomadic identity: it’s theoretical!

Yes, it’s supposed to work. But I don’t know myself whether it actually does. Even though I run a Forte Hub myself.

Why?

Because there are probably very few Forte Hubs; you simply can’t find them (in any of the usual Fediverse databases). Because you can search for them (if you know where and how, you might even find a few, but virtually none where registration is open).

So, with my Forte channel on my own Forte Hub (which, incidentally, is open for registrations), I have a nomadic channel, but simply no account where I could clone it (even just to test it out).

For me, therefore, the nomadic identity is purely theoretical.