WPYN

WPYN is a modular, open-source framework for defining and implementing lightweight web communication protocols. It provides a toolbox for developers to specify message schemas, transport layers, and routing logic, with a focus on interoperability and easy integration into existing web services.

The name WPYN is commonly expanded as Web Protocols for You and Network. The project began as a research initiative in the late 2010s by the WPYN Consortium; its first public release (version 1.0) appeared in 2020, followed by major updates in 2022 and 2024.

At its core, WPYN consists of a protocol definition language, a transport abstraction, and a runtime that manages message dispatch and state. The protocol definition language allows schemas to be described in a YAML-based syntax. Transports are pluggable; the default is HTTP/1.1 and WebSocket, with experimental QUIC support. The runtime provides routing, retries, and observability hooks to help integrate protocols across services.

Security and governance: messages can be signed, and optional mutual TLS is supported; the runtime includes replay protection and access controls. Governance is conducted by an open Working Group that uses RFC-like proposals and public reviews, encouraging community involvement and documentation.

Usage and reception: WPYN has seen adoption in some microservice and edge-computing projects that require consistent protocol schemas across services. It has been praised for clarity and extensibility but criticized for a relatively small ecosystem and for overlapping functionality with established protocols. See also: gRPC, Protocol Buffers, OpenAPI.