# sermant-io/Sermant

CNCF Sandbox project: A Cloud-Native Proxyless Service Mesh based on Java Bytecode Enhancement Technology

Repository: https://github.com/sermant-io/Sermant
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/sermant
Homepage: https://sermant.io/
Language: Java
License: Apache-2.0
License Family: permissive
Topics: javaagent, sermant, service-mesh, dubbo, springcloud, cloud-native, cncf, microservice-architecture
Last push: 2026-02-06T07:55:39+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 60/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 66, release rhythm 28, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 1822, "days_push": 208, "days_rel": 429, "gap_med": 38.0, "n_releases_24m": 7}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1343, forks 187 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:26.396387+00:00)

## What it is
Sermant is a CNCF Sandbox proxyless service mesh built on Java bytecode enhancement (JavaAgent) technology. It adds service governance capabilities to Java microservice applications without code changes, with a plugin ecosystem for extending governance features.

## Use cases
- add service mesh governance to Java microservices without sidecar proxies
- instrument Spring Cloud or Dubbo applications without modifying source code
- implement traffic management, load balancing, and fault injection via JavaAgent
- build custom service governance plugins with a plugin development framework
- reduce latency and resource overhead compared to proxy-based service meshes
- dynamically configure governance rules for running microservices

## When to choose
- you run large-scale Java microservices (Spring Cloud, Dubbo) and want proxyless service governance
- you cannot modify application source code but need mesh-like capabilities
- you want to avoid sidecar proxy latency and resource costs
- you need a pluggable, extensible bytecode-enhancement framework for governance features

## When to avoid
- your services are polyglot and not JVM-based
- you prefer a mature full-featured mesh like Istio with sidecars
- you need governance for non-Java workloads
- you want a turnkey product rather than a framework requiring plugin development

## Facets
- artifact type: framework
- maturity: active
- function: middleware, microservices, plugin-system, monitoring, configuration-management
- domain: microservices, cloud-computing, backend
- platform: jvm, cloud, self-hosted
- tags: javaagent, service-mesh, proxyless, bytecode-enhancement, service-governance, cncf-sandbox, spring-cloud, dubbo, non-intrusive, devops, java

## Member repositories
- sermant-io/Sermant (main) score 60

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:26.396387+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 2026-08-30T04:43:02.042730+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/sermant-io/Sermant (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:26.396387+00:00, sha 4fb439bece15)
  - homepage: https://sermant.io/ (fetched 2026-08-29T12:02:21.071292+00:00, sha a8c0f4e085fe)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.