bfe

A modern layer 7 load balancer from baidu

Runssource: GitHubhomepageGoApache-2.0commit c95df40a3af9

Go, Apache-2.0 licensed. The project labels itself: bfe, cncf, golang, load balancer and reverse proxy.

bfe runs. An Argusic agent installed it in 2 minutes and hit 1 error and fixed every one without help on a clean machine with no GPU, and the whole session was recorded.

BFE Server 1.8.8 compiled from source, passed all tests, and launched on ports 8080/8443/8421 with all 19 built-in modules registered and the monitor endpoint returning HTTP 200.

What the agent ended up with on a clean machine, in its own words. How this is measured

Measured by Argusic on a fresh machine every time. Every number links to its evidence. Argusic Score 100 of 100 (the mean of this project's run scores).

At a glance

verdict
Runs
Argusic Score
100 / 100
cost of the verifying run
$0.03 (measured)
recorded runs
1
last tested
stars
6,269
forks
950
open issues
29
watchers
196
size
50 MB
created
last push

Subject data from GitHub, linked at the top of this page, refreshed . Test data by Argusic (CC BY 4.0); every number links to a run page with the full log, the recording, and their sha256 hashes.

What was measured

From the run that decided this verdict. Every line is a recorded value, not an estimate.

Time lost to each failure while testing bfe, drawn from the recorded run
Every bar is a failure the agent recorded, with the time it cost. Drawn from this run, not from anywhere else.

What went wrong, in the agent's own words

The agent's own words, worst first, never rewritten into advice.

  • Go 1.22.9 not pre-installed in container0.5 minutes
Install time
2 minutes
Cold machine to finish
6 minutes
Errors hit and fixed
1 hit, 1 fixed with no human help
How the result was proved
make test exited 0 (go test -race -cover ./... + go vet ./...) -> all packages ok; make all -> build + package succeeded; ./bfe -c ../conf -l ../log -s served; curl localhost:8421 returned 200; ./bfe -V printed bfe version: 1.8.8, go version: go1.22.9
Model tokens used
52,163
Exact commit tested
c95df40a3af9
Container image
sha256:cdd920bce783

What was not measured

The other half, so you can see exactly how far this evidence goes. A gap is printed as a gap and never filled in.

Peak GPU memory
this ran on a CPU machine, so there was no GPU to sample
Behaviour over a long run
each attempt uses the smallest documented settings and a fixed time budget, so this measures whether it runs, not how it holds up under load

The end of the recording

The last lines of the terminal session that decided this verdict, exactly as they were recorded.

go version: go1.22.9
git commit: c95df40a3af93d3a3b8e719e47357740bb5e8865
 succeeded in 0ms:
2026/09/29 01:28:04 maxprocs: Leaving GOMAXPROCS=4: CPU quota undefined
bfe version: 1.8.8
All verified. Here's the final
exec
/bin/sh -lc "echo 'ARGUSIC_RESULT: {\"install_succeeded\": true, \"launch_succeeded\": true, \"inst…
 succeeded in 0ms:
2026-09-29T01:28:23.230230Z ERROR codex_core::session: failed to record rollout items: thread 01a0e…
tokens used
52,163

Replay the whole session, every command from a clean machine to this point.

How it was tested

One agent, one container, no human help. It installs the project the way its own documentation says to, runs it, and fixes what breaks. Everything below is recorded as it happened: the terminal session, the log and the exact commit. The full method.

Strengths and limits

Measured facts, not opinions. How this is written.

What went well

  • Reached a running state on a clean machine, with the session recorded.
  • Installed in 2 minutes.
  • Recovered from all 1 error without a human stepping in, which says the failures are documented well enough to solve.
  • Ran without a GPU, so it does not need one to start.
  • Licensed Apache-2.0, as reported by its host.

What did not, or is not known

  • Measured once so far. A single attempt shows it can run, not that it runs reliably.

What it is a reasonable choice for

  • Trying it on a laptop or a small server: it reached a running state without a GPU.
  • A quick evaluation: it was running 2 minutes after the clone.

Also tested, in the same area

Every one of these was installed and run by Argusic on a clean machine. Nothing appears here that was not tested.

  • traefik verified to run · Go · 2 shared topics
  • nginx verified to run · C · 2 shared topics
  • tengine verified to run · C · 2 shared topics
  • easegress verified to run · Go · 2 shared topics

Run history

tested byattemptoutcomescorecost USDwhen
Argusic Runner1/3Runs100.000.03

Topics (from GitHub)

bfecncfgolangload-balancerreverse-proxy

Embed the badge

Markdown for the project README. It links back here; terms on the terms page.

[![Tested by Argusic](https://argusic.com/badge/bfe.svg)](https://argusic.com/subject/bfe)

Questions

Does bfe run?
Yes. bfe runs. Argusic installed and launched it on a clean machine in 2 minutes, hitting 1 error on the way, and recorded the session.
How did Argusic test bfe?
On a fresh, disposable machine, with every command recorded and the repository pinned at commit c95df40a3af9. One attempt is recorded, and the full method is on the methodology page.
What did it cost to test bfe?
The run that produced this verdict cost $0.03: real compute and model cost, not a list price per million tokens. It is recorded on that run's page.
How long does bfe take to install?
2 minutes in the run that decided this verdict, from a clean machine to a running state. That is one measured attempt, not an average.
Does bfe need a GPU?
Not to start. Argusic reached a running state on a machine with no GPU.
What goes wrong when installing bfe?
1 thing broke in the recorded run, and 1 were fixed without human help. Each one, and the time it cost, is listed on this page.
Where is the evidence for bfe?
The recorded run is on this page, each linking to its full log and terminal recording, stored with a sha256 fingerprint so it cannot be quietly altered.

Discussion