What it is

A local development orchestrator for multi-service stacks with dependency-aware startup, readiness checks, runtime logs, and remote TUI sessions.

What it is not

Not a production orchestrator, not a replacement for every container or init-system workflow, and not an Internet-exposed control plane.

When to use it

Use it when teams need fast, repeatable local orchestration for source-based services and shared runtime visibility during distributed development scenarios.

• Getting Started

  Install FlowLayer, run a first stack, and understand server and TUI modes.

• Comparisons

  Honest technical comparisons with Docker Compose, Kubernetes, PM2, systemd, and Foreman/Overmind.

• Configuration

  Configuration model for services, commands, waves, and readiness.

• Recipes

  Task-focused guides for common local development and orchestration workflows.

• Patterns

  Reusable stack patterns for API, worker, infra bootstrap, and gradual decomposition.

• Distributed Use Cases

  Scenario-driven guides for distributed systems development across local, remote, and shared environments.

• Observability

  How to read service states, startup waves, snapshots, and live runtime events.

• Troubleshooting

  Symptom-first fixes for startup failures, connectivity issues, readiness stalls, and logs.

• Security

  Practical guidance for remote access, session tokens, and safe operation of distributed FlowLayer sessions.

• CLI Reference

  Real flags and invocation modes for flowlayer-server and flowlayer-client-tui.

• Protocol

  Reference material for WebSocket lifecycle, envelopes, events, and errors.

• API Reference

  Baseline for HTTP endpoints and resources exposed by FlowLayer.

• Clients

  Guidance for using the official TUI and building custom clients.