Coder is an open-source platform for creating and managing developer workspaces

on your preferred clouds and servers.

<p align="center">

<img src="./images/hero-image.png">

</p>

By building on top of common development interfaces (SSH) and infrastructure

tools (Terraform), Coder aims to make the process of **provisioning** and

**accessing** remote workspaces approachable for organizations of various sizes

and stages of cloud-native maturity.

<blockquote class="warning">

<p>

If you are a Coder v1 customer, view <a href="https://coder.com/docs/coder">the docs</a> or <a href="https://coder.com/docs/coder/latest/guides/v2-faq">the sunset plans</a>.

</p>

</blockquote>

Coder workspaces are represented with Terraform, but no Terraform knowledge is

required to get started. We have a database of pre-made templates built into the

product.

<p align="center">

<img src="./images/providers-compute.png">

</p>

Coder workspaces don't stop at compute. You can add storage buckets, secrets,

sidecars and whatever else Terraform lets you dream up.

[Learn more about managing infrastructure.](../admin/templates/index.md)

You can use any Web IDE ([code-server](https://github.com/coder/code-server),

[projector](https://github.com/JetBrains/projector-server),

[Jupyter](https://jupyter.org/), etc.),

[JetBrains Gateway](https://www.jetbrains.com/remote-development/gateway/),

[VS Code Remote](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/remote/ssh-tutorial) or even

a file sync such as [mutagen](https://mutagen.io/).

<p align="center">

<img src="./images/ide-icons.svg" height=72>

</p>

Migrating from local developer machines to workspaces hosted by cloud services

is an

[increasingly common solution for developers](https://blog.alexellis.io/the-internet-is-my-computer/)

and

[organizations alike](https://slack.engineering/development-environments-at-slack).

There are several benefits, including:

- **Increased speed:** Server-grade compute speeds up operations in software

development, such as IDE loading, code compilation and building, and the

running of large workloads (such as those for monolith or microservice

applications)

- **Easier environment management:** Tools such as Terraform, nix, Docker,

devcontainers, and so on make developer onboarding and the troubleshooting of

development environments easier

- **Increase security:** Centralize source code and other data onto private

servers or cloud services instead of local developer machines

- **Improved compatibility:** Remote workspaces share infrastructure

configuration with other development, staging, and production environments,

reducing configuration drift

- **Improved accessibility:** Devices such as lightweight notebooks,

Chromebooks, and iPads can connect to remote workspaces via browser-based IDEs

or remote IDE extensions

The key difference between Coder OSS and other remote IDE platforms is the added

layer of infrastructure control. This additional layer allows admins to:

- Support ARM, Windows, Linux, and macOS workspaces

- Modify pod/container specs (e.g., adding disks, managing network policies,

setting/updating environment variables)

- Use VM/dedicated workspaces, developing with Kernel features (no container

knowledge required)

- Enable persistent workspaces, which are like local machines, but faster and

hosted by a cloud service

Coder includes

[production-ready templates](https://github.com/coder/coder/tree/main/examples/templates)

for use with AWS EC2, Azure, Google Cloud, Kubernetes, and more.

- Coder is not an infrastructure as code (IaC) platform. Terraform is the first

IaC _provisioner_ in Coder, allowing Coder admins to define Terraform

resources as Coder workspaces.

- Coder is not a DevOps/CI platform. Coder workspaces can follow best practices

for cloud service-based workloads, but Coder is not responsible for how you

define or deploy the software you write.

- Coder is not an online IDE. Instead, Coder supports common editors, such as VS

Code, vim, and JetBrains, over HTTPS or SSH.

- Coder is not a collaboration platform. You can use git and dedicated IDE

extensions for pull requests, code reviews, and pair programming.

- Coder is not a SaaS/fully-managed offering. You must host Coder on a cloud

service (AWS, Azure, GCP) or your private data center.

- Learn about [Templates](../admin/templates/index.md)

- [Install Coder](../install/index.md)