# phusion/passenger

A fast and robust web server and application server for Ruby, Python and Node.js

Repository: https://github.com/phusion/passenger
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/passenger
Homepage: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/
Language: C++
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: appserver, application-server, ruby, nodejs, cloud
Last push: 2026-08-26T18:29:08+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 99/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 98, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 6733, "days_push": 7, "days_rel": 15, "gap_med": 29, "n_releases_24m": 14}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 5088, forks 558 (observed 2026-08-28T04:09:09.618989+00:00)

## What it is
Phusion Passenger is a fast, robust web server and application server for Ruby, Python, Node.js and Meteor apps, built on a C++ core with a hybrid evented, multi-threaded and multi-process design. It integrates with Nginx or Apache (or runs standalone) and automanages application processes, restarting crashed or leaking apps and hardening against common attacks.

## Use cases
- deploy ruby on rails apps to production
- serve node.js apps behind nginx
- host multiple python web apps on one server
- auto-restart crashed web app processes
- simplify web app deployment without manual process management
- run web apps with apache integration
- deploy apps in docker containers

## When to choose
- you want a battle-tested, low-maintenance app server for Ruby, Python or Node.js
- you prefer Nginx or Apache integration with automatic process management
- you need production features like watchdog restarts, privilege separation and request buffering
- you host many small-to-medium web apps on shared servers

## When to avoid
- you need a pure reverse proxy or load balancer rather than an app server
- you run apps in languages other than Ruby, Python, Node.js or Meteor
- you rely on cutting-edge async runtimes with custom process supervisors
- you need Windows support

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: stable
- function: http-server, deployment, web-framework, middleware
- domain: web-development, backend, self-hosted
- platform: self-hosted
- tags: application-server, nginx-integration, apache-integration, ruby, nodejs, python, process-management, polyglot, devops, linux, macos, web-server, docker

## Member repositories
- phusion/passenger (main) score 99

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:09.618989+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T18:02:32.928955+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/phusion/passenger (fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:09.618989+00:00, sha d06825671545)
  - homepage: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/ (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.353173+00:00, sha bd77a17b4880)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/features (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.362869+00:00, sha 16ac2c2f59d5)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/docs (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.366949+00:00, sha d8bfe73546b2)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/install (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.368735+00:00, sha 3f1ea5bf043e)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/docs/advanced_guides/install_and_upgrade/standalone/upgrade.html (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.370638+00:00, sha 4743bd3fda2a)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/docs/advanced_guides/install_and_upgrade/standalone/install (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.372300+00:00, sha 3d386cf650c9)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/pricing (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.364784+00:00, sha e00036613a47)
  - site_page: https://www.phusionpassenger.com/support (fetched 2026-08-29T08:57:32.373978+00:00, sha 3dc9bfe2df62)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.