OSGI vs Apache Felix

Question

I have to create a project for school. We want to create a system that monitors sensors. Since sensors develop very much, there is the possibility that they use other sensors in a couple of years. To capture that problem, we want to create a system that lets users write plugins to monitor the sensors.

I am looking at different frameworks, mainly OSGI.

Could someone tell me the difference between Apache Felix and OSGI? Also, is OSGI still active?

Thanks!

Answer 1

OSGi is a set of specifications, which are developed and released by an industry consortium called the OSGi Alliance .

Apache Felix is a project in which several of the OSGi specifications are implemented. So whereas OSGi gives you a specification (essentially a PDF document!), Apache Felix is actual software that you can run. Because Felix conforms to the OSGi specification, any code that you write to run on Felix will also run on any of the other OSGi implementations. These include Eclipse Equinox, Knopflerfish and Concierge.

Yes OSGi is very active, and is particularly relevant to your requirements. Large companies (eg Bosch, Deutche Telekom, Huawei) are using it to build IoT systems and shipping them to people's homes, vehicles etc right now.

You might also look at Eclipse Kura , which builds IoT functionality eg device communications on top of OSGi.