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Unpacking the Future: Key Takeaways from the Backstage Community Gathering 🚀

Wow, what a day! We’ve navigated through a fantastic lineup of sessions, learned from each other’s best practices, and even had a peek into the exciting future of Backstage. While a couple of lightning talks had to be rescheduled due to travel woes (we’ve all been there!), the energy and insights shared today have been truly invaluable. Let’s dive into the key takeaways and what’s next!

What’s Rocking and What Needs a Tune-Up? 🎶

It’s always incredibly helpful to hear directly from you, the amazing Backstage community! We asked for your feedback, and the results are in. About 13-14 of you chimed in, and here’s the lowdown:

  • The Wins 🎉:

    • TikToks and Catalogs are a Hit! It’s fantastic to see these core features resonating so well.
    • Self-Service Templates Shine: Empowering users to build and deploy with ease is clearly working.
    • The Plugin Ecosystem is Thriving: The ability to extend Backstage and build custom plugins is a major plus point. We love seeing the innovation here!

  • The Hurdles to Overcome 🚧:

    • Updates and Upgrades Still a Challenge: This remains a common pain point, and we’re listening.
    • Testing Templates: Prone to Errors: Many are finding this process tricky and are looking for better solutions.
    • Scaling with PostgreSQL: This is a known area with specific challenges.
    • Legacy System Integrations: While plugins offer a path, deeper integration strategies are still being sought.
    • Internal “Selling” of Backstage: Competing with established internal tools or other vendor products can be tough. We understand the need for clearer value propositions.
    • RBAC and HA: These critical areas still present some complexities.
    • Identity Object Ownership: A nuanced challenge that needs careful consideration.
    • Yarn Scaling: For larger projects, scaling Yarn can become a bottleneck.
    • Mono Repo Splitting: The desire to break down large repositories is a clear trend.
    • Plugin Upgrade Rebuilds: Requiring a full rebuild for plugin updates is cumbersome. The team recommends exploring dynamic plugins and other technologies for smoother updates.

Your Top Suggestions: Charting the Course Ahead 🗺️

The future is bright, and your ideas are guiding us! Here are some of the most compelling suggestions:

  • AI Everywhere! 🤖: Unsurprisingly, AI integration is a top request. We’re already seeing this trend across the tech landscape, and Backstage is no exception. Get ready for more intelligent features!
  • More Cross-Pollination in the Community 🤝: This is a brilliant idea! We’ve seen the success of consolidating the community plugin repository, which has grown significantly. The thought of a central hub for all community-contributed templates and extensions is incredibly exciting. We’ll definitely be considering this.
  • Chaining Templates Together 🔗: Imagine a workflow where one template seamlessly triggers another! This would unlock even more powerful automation.
  • Enhanced Catalog Filtering 🔎: More robust filtering options in the catalog will make finding what you need even easier.
  • Seamless Workflow Integration ✈️: The ability to call Crossplane MCP or Argo workflows directly from templates would be a game-changer for complex pipelines.
  • Non-Commercial Quick Start Stacks 🛠️: While vendor-specific quick start stacks exist, there’s a clear demand for options that cater to non-commercial use cases. Keep an eye out for the operator for Backstage!
  • Pulling Remote Form Components 🧩: This could streamline the creation and reuse of form elements.
  • Contextual Frontend for Non-Devs 🧑‍💻: Making Backstage even more accessible and useful for a broader audience is a fantastic goal.

Join the Conversation & Stay Connected! 🌐

The feedback shared today is incredibly valuable, and the team is eager to dive deeper.

  • Discord is Your Hub! 💬: The full text of the feedback will be shared on the Discord channel. Join the conversation, share your solutions, and learn from others tackling similar challenges.
  • SIGs and Workshops Await! 🗓️: Want to contribute live or learn more?
    • Tuesday: Build Your Platform with Experts (Hands-on Workshop)
    • Wednesday: Composable Platforms in the Wild
    • Thursday: All Things Backstage, including a session on deploying Backstage in large organizations and the essential Maintainers Talk.
    • Don’t forget the Community Plugin SIG, Documentation SIG, Framework SIG, and Scaffolder SIG. You can find all the details at backstage/community and subscribe to the Google Calendar for dates and times.

A massive thank you to everyone who stayed, shared, and contributed to making this event such a success. Your feedback is what drives Backstage forward. Let’s keep building, innovating, and connecting! ✨

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