What is this?
Skynet is a lightweight, multi-user Lua framework built on the actor model, mainly used to build online game servers.
Skynet is a lightweight, multi-user Lua framework built on the actor model, mainly used to build online game servers.Is this a full game engine or something lower-level?It's a server-side concurrency framework: Lua actors (services) communicating via messages, not a graphics engine or client runtime.
It's a server-side concurrency framework: Lua actors (services) communicating via messages, not a graphics engine or client runtime.How do I build and run it?On Linux, install autoconf first (needed for jemalloc) then build with make; you test it by running the server and client in separate consoles.
On Linux, install autoconf first (needed for jemalloc) then build with make; you test it by running the server and client in separate consoles.Does it need a specific version of Lua?Skynet bundles a modified Lua 5.5.0 that supports multiple Lua states, but you can use official Lua releases instead by editing the Makefile.
Skynet bundles a modified Lua 5.5.0 that supports multiple Lua states, but you can use official Lua releases instead by editing the Makefile.Does it work the same way on FreeBSD?Mostly yes, but FreeBSD builds use gmake instead of make.
Mostly yes, but FreeBSD builds use gmake instead of make.Is this mainly a Chinese-ecosystem tool?It's heavily used in the Chinese game industry but is spreading to other industries and English-centric developers, and the community welcomes English-language questions and issues.
It's heavily used in the Chinese game industry but is spreading to other industries and English-centric developers, and the community welcomes English-language questions and issues.What language is Skynet actually written in?Its core is written in C for performance, with Lua used as the scripting layer for writing actor services and game logic.
Its core is written in C for performance, with Lua used as the scripting layer for writing actor services and game logic.Is the documentation available in English?The Wiki is written in both English and Chinese, though the FAQ is Chinese-only and readable via Google or DeepL translate.
The Wiki is written in both English and Chinese, though the FAQ is Chinese-only and readable via Google or DeepL translate.Can English speakers get support if they run into issues?Yes, the community is friendly and nearly all contributors speak English, so you can ask in Discussions or file issues in English.
Yes, the community is friendly and nearly all contributors speak English, so you can ask in Discussions or file issues in English.What are similar projects?pomelo, luanti, ReSkate, TrinityCore, Paper, nakama, brpc, docker-minecraft-server
pomelo, luanti, ReSkate, TrinityCore, Paper, nakama, brpc, docker-minecraft-serverWhich topics is it in?game-server, multiplayer, freebsd, lua, concurrency, game-development, gaming, distributed-systems, bsd, c, backend, networking
game-server, multiplayer, freebsd, lua, concurrency, game-development, gaming, distributed-systems, bsd, c, backend, networking