cmwith

cmwith is a proposed cross-system content management interoperability protocol and library intended to standardize the exchange of content metadata between content management systems (CMS) and digital asset management platforms. It envisions a common representation for items, their versions, permissions, provenance, and workflow state, enabling bidirectional synchronization and auditability.

Design goals emphasize extensibility and backward compatibility. The architecture centers on a core JSON-based metadata model, pluggable adapters for different CMS/DAM backends, and client SDKs. It supports RESTful operations and optional GraphQL bindings; events are published via webhooks or a light event stream to support real-time updates. Security is addressed via OAuth 2.0 and, where applicable, signed payloads.

History and status: cmwith emerged in industry discussions during the early 2020s as a potential standard for interoperability. Several prototype implementations exist in open-source repositories, primarily for research and pilot projects. There is no formal standard endorsed by a major standards body as of this writing, and organizations often rely on a mix of existing specifications such as CMIS, Dublin Core, or custom schemas.

Usage and components: A typical deployment includes a cmwith server that orchestrates metadata exchange, client libraries for CMS connectors, and adapters that map CMS/DAM schemas to the core cmwith model. Examples include items, versions, relations, and provenance chains. Authentication uses OAuth 2.0; data is exchanged in JSON with optional JSON-LD framing for semantics.

See also: CMIS, Dublin Core, OpenAPI, GraphQL, content interoperability.