nats-server
High-Performance server for NATS.io, the cloud and edge native messaging system.
Runssource: GitHubhomepageGoApache-2.0commit eb6f3a8c5786
Go, Apache-2.0 licensed. The project labels itself: cloud, cloud computing, cloud native, connected vehicle, distributed systems, edge, edge ai and edge computing.
nats-server runs. An Argusic agent installed it in 76 minutes and hit 10 errors and fixed every one without help on a clean machine with no GPU, and the whole session was recorded.
After installing Go 1.26.8, the server builds, reports v2.16.0-dev, serves /healthz with HTTP 200 while JetStream is enabled, completes real pub/sub and JetStream round trips, and exits 0 on SIGTERM; the targeted regression suites passed 37 tests with zero failures.
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
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.
What went wrong, in the agent's own words
The agent's own words, worst first, never rewritten into advice.
- go test ./... exited 1 after the server package hit its 20m timeout; a 45m ./server run reported three JetStream cluster failures and timed out; ServiceLatencySingleServerConnect failed once25 minutes
- server/pse TestPSEmulationMem failed RSS comparison at about 3.17 MB versus 4.7-5.4 MB18 minutes
- logger tests failed with 'Unix syslog delivery error' because local syslog sockets are absent7 minutes
- OCSP must-staple tests expected nats.ErrNoServers but received 'dial tcp [::1]: connect: cannot assign requested address'7 minutes
- go was not installed; go version failed with 'go: not found'3 minutes
- the shell lacked the time and nc utilities, so initial probes aborted2 minutes
- Install time
- 76 minutes
- Cold machine to finish
- 76 minutes
- Errors hit and fixed
- 10 hit, 10 fixed with no human help
- How the result was proved
- go build -o $HOME/bin/nats-server-released . exited 0; nats-server --version printed 'nats-server: v2.16.0-dev'; curl -s -o /dev/null -w '%{http_code}' http://127.0.0.1:64224/healthz returned 200; /varz reported version 2.16.0-dev and JetStream true; a separate-process probe exited 0 after health 200, pubsub 'verified', JetStream stream FINAL sequence 1 payload 'stored', and server exit 0; the final targeted go test command exited 0 with 37 passed, 0 failed, 0 skipped
- Model tokens used
- 518,153
- Exact commit tested
- eb6f3a8c5786
- 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
Watch the session
The whole run, from a clean machine, at the speed it actually happened. Nothing is cut and nothing is sped up.
A recording of attempt 1, run . The verdict above comes from a different attempt, so read this as one session and not as the current result. The terminal recording it was made from is the evidence, stored with a sha256 fingerprint; the video is a rendering of it. Nothing loads from the video host until you press play.
The end of the recording
The last lines of the terminal session that decided this verdict, exactly as they were recorded.
// Memory - *rss = (parseInt64(fields[rssPos])) * pageSize - *vss = parseInt64(fields[vssPos]) + *rss = parseInt64(fields[statmResidentPos]) * pageSize + *vss = parseInt64(fields[statmSizePos]) * pageSize // PCPU // We track this with periodic sampling, so just load and go. -- binary -- nats-server: v2.16.0-dev version_exit=0 tokens used 518,153
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 76 minutes.
- Recovered from all 10 errors 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.
- Measured 2 times, so the result is not a one-off.
What it is a reasonable choice for
- Trying it on a laptop or a small server: it reached a running state without a GPU.
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.
Run history
Topics (from GitHub)
cloudcloud-computingcloud-nativeconnected-vehicledistributed-systemsedgeedge-aiedge-computinggogolangmessage-busmessage-queuemessagingmicroservices-architecturenats-server
Embed the badge
Markdown for the project README. It links back here; terms on the terms page.
[](https://argusic.com/subject/nats-server)Questions
- Does nats-server run?
- Yes. nats-server runs. Argusic installed and launched it on a clean machine in 76 minutes, hitting 10 errors on the way, and recorded the session.
- How did Argusic test nats-server?
- On a fresh, disposable machine, with every command recorded and the repository pinned at commit eb6f3a8c5786. 2 attempts are recorded, and the full method is on the methodology page.
- What did it cost to test nats-server?
- The run that produced this verdict cost $0.47: real compute and model cost, not a list price per million tokens. It is recorded on that run's page.
- How long does nats-server take to install?
- 76 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 nats-server need a GPU?
- Not to start. Argusic reached a running state on a machine with no GPU.
- What goes wrong when installing nats-server?
- 10 things broke in the recorded run, and 10 were fixed without human help. Each one, and the time it cost, is listed on this page.
- Where is the evidence for nats-server?
- All 2 recorded runs are on this page, each linking to its full log and terminal recording, stored with a sha256 fingerprint so it cannot be quietly altered.