Good experiences with NodeBB?

[Ghost]

I had wanted to try out NodeBB for a very long time but I was always too busy to really learn it. I had mostly been using PHP based software for over a decade so using things like phpBB, MyBB, WordPress, and other web software like those was quite simple. I just had to usually drag & drop a zip into FTP, unpack it, change some configs, and run an installer. Or even better, I would just use Softaculous or something similar to install it for me. For that reason, I didn't start using NodeBB because it was something that required a bit more setup on the command line and was using an unfamiliar language. However, fast forward many years from my last forum: I have now been using Node.js, Javascript, Linux CLI, etc for a while now. It made sense to finally try out NodeBB.

I don't really promote the forum or anything, but I hosted my first install on generalforum.org using NodeBB. I haven't messed around too much with custom plugins, themes, etc, but I do like the default UI and admin management options. It took me a few minutes to get situated in the backend, but overall I was happy with everything there. I haven't had a chance to really use it too much because I haven't taken the time to customize the site, promote it, or grow a community. I may do that in the future with a $50-100 monthly budget to grow GF. We'll see!

Have any of you used NodeBB and do you like it? Why or why not?

 

[JBCreates]

Recently started using NodeBB as I was looking for a software foundation for a project that was open source. So far, I've been enjoying the experience, and it didn't take too long to get accustomed to the admin side of things. They're working on integrating ActivityPub within the forum itself is another good thing to see.

 

[Ghost]

Recently started using NodeBB as I was looking for a software foundation for a project that was open source. So far, I've been enjoying the experience, and it didn't take too long to get accustomed to the admin side of things. They're working on integrating ActivityPub within the forum itself is another good thing to see.

sorry for my late reply here! That's great to hear - anything we can see yet?
Really powerful & modern in my opinion, but agreed w/ you about it being different from admin perspective if you're used to other software.

I made the mistake of using my server as a dev-server for a client and had to restart it recently, so my site is down but I didn't really work on growing GF. I'll restart nodebb at some point, or add an auto-restart feature to it so this can't happen again. the real solution is that... but I also need to get this client project the heck off my personal server! lol

 

[TechWiz18]

I can't say I've had any experiences with it yet. The UI seems friendly enough though, I'd be willing to try it out if there was a forum I wanted to join 🙂

 

[Ravenfreak]

From a member standpoint it looks great for modern software! I lack the knowledge to actually install it though, and the money to have a VPS in order to install it. I've noticed there's been quite a few communities that have switch to using NodeBB, in fact Infinity Free's support forum is powered by NodeBB!

 

[TechWiz18]

If I get around to it, I might look into running an instance of it just to play around with because I'm quite curious what the administrative side looks like. I can carve out a little piece of a VPS I have to try it out 🙂

 

[Ghost]

From a member standpoint it looks great for modern software! I lack the knowledge to actually install it though, and the money to have a VPS in order to install it. I've noticed there's been quite a few communities that have switch to using NodeBB, in fact Infinity Free's support forum is powered by NodeBB!

Yeah it can be a little annoying to get these types of things installed if you haven't done it before.
If you do want some help and I'm around, I'll see how I can help you out! just shoot me a message if you get started on this

If I get around to it, I might look into running an instance of it just to play around with because I'm quite curious what the administrative side looks like. I can carve out a little piece of a VPS I have to try it out 🙂

Nice, definitely recommend it... It feels fast & scalable overall
If you are in your VPS & want another JS build, check out Strapi too - a headless CMS option that I like 🙂

 

[JBCreates]

sorry for my late reply here! That's great to hear - anything we can see yet?
Really powerful & modern in my opinion, but agreed w/ you about it being different from admin perspective if you're used to other software.

I made the mistake of using my server as a dev-server for a client and had to restart it recently, so my site is down but I didn't really work on growing GF. I'll restart nodebb at some point, or add an auto-restart feature to it so this can't happen again. the real solution is that... but I also need to get this client project the heck off my personal server! lol

Life tends to get in the way at the worst times lol. I've set up my community forums running with NodeBB, it's the 2TonWaffle link in my signature.

From a member standpoint it looks great for modern software! I lack the knowledge to actually install it though, and the money to have a VPS in order to install it. I've noticed there's been quite a few communities that have switch to using NodeBB, in fact Infinity Free's support forum is powered by NodeBB!

I know there are a few game communities that run NodeBB, for example, the Sea of Thieves forums are running NodeBB.

If I get around to it, I might look into running an instance of it just to play around with because I'm quite curious what the administrative side looks like. I can carve out a little piece of a VPS I have to try it out 🙂

I was wondering about the install process when first wanting to get an instance up and running. The system I use is having a cloud server with Hetzner but, I'm sure it can be done on any other server. I install Cloudron which is like a control panel for installing these apps. Installation is a breeze and upkeep is easy as well through the panel.