# tj/axon

message-oriented socket library for node.js heavily inspired by zeromq

Repository: https://github.com/tj/axon
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/tj-axon
Language: JavaScript
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Last push: 2018-10-11T04:10:47+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 32/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 0, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 5165, "days_push": 2883, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1492, forks 151 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:52.587206+00:00)

## What it is
Axon is a message-oriented socket library for Node.js heavily inspired by ZeroMQ. It provides lightweight messaging patterns such as push/pull, pub/sub, and req/rep over TCP or Unix domain sockets with automated reconnection.

## Use cases
- build pub/sub messaging between node services
- distribute work to workers with push/pull sockets
- implement request/reply communication between node processes
- send messages over unix domain sockets
- replace zeromq with a pure javascript node library
- build a lightweight message broker for microservices

## When to choose
- you need zeromq-style messaging patterns in pure JavaScript on Node.js
- you want simple pub/sub, push/pull, or req/rep sockets with automatic reconnection
- you need fast, lightweight message passing between Node.js processes or services

## When to avoid
- you need a full-featured message broker with persistence, queues, or clustering
- your project is not on Node.js
- you need guaranteed message delivery or advanced routing features zeromq provides

## Facets
- artifact type: library
- maturity: maintenance
- function: message-queue, networking, rpc
- domain: microservices, backend, developer-tools
- platform: cross-platform
- tags: zeromq-inspired, pub-sub, push-pull, req-rep, socket-library, wire-protocol, messaging, nodejs

## Member repositories
- tj/axon (main) score 32

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:52.587206+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 2026-08-30T04:33:31.999826+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/tj/axon (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:52.587206+00:00, sha f589839078e6)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.