# spotify/helios

Docker container orchestration platform

Repository: https://github.com/spotify/helios
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/spotify-helios
Language: Java
License: Apache-2.0
License Family: permissive
Topics: helios, java, docker, container, orchestration
Archived: true
Last push: 2024-09-12T12:43:28+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 10/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:39:23.370411+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4483, "days_push": 720, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: archived
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2135, forks 228 (observed 2026-08-28T04:06:17.568872+00:00)

## What it is
Helios is Spotify's Docker container orchestration platform for deploying and managing containers across a fleet of servers, with an HTTP API and command-line client. The project is officially sunset and no longer accepts contributions, as Spotify has moved to Kubernetes.

## Use cases
- deploy docker containers across a fleet of servers
- manage container deployments via http api
- orchestrate docker containers without kubernetes
- track deployment history and version changes in a cluster
- deploy and undeploy container jobs from the command line

## When to choose
- you maintain an existing Helios deployment and need reference material
- you need a simple, minimal container orchestration alternative to Kubernetes for legacy infrastructure

## When to avoid
- starting any new project - it is sunset and unmaintained
- you need an actively supported orchestrator - use Kubernetes, Nomad, or Docker Swarm instead
- you need modern features like autoscaling, service meshes, or declarative manifests

## Facets
- artifact type: service
- maturity: abandoned
- function: container-orchestration, deployment, http-server, cli
- domain: cloud-computing, microservices
- platform: jvm, self-hosted
- tags: docker, fleet-deployment, zookeeper, sunset-project, java, containers, devops, linux

## Member repositories
- spotify/helios (main) score 10

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:17.568872+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 2026-08-30T02:51:55.243407+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/spotify/helios (fetched 2026-08-28T04:06:17.568872+00:00, sha 348646067a73)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.