A relay is the server a Buzz community runs on. It checks that each sender is a member, stores the message, and delivers it to everyone in the channel.
On buzz.xyz, Block runs the relay for you: nothing to install, and your data lives on Block's servers. It's one way to run Buzz, not the only one.
Self-hosted, the same message goes to a relay you run, on a rented server or your own hardware. The messages, the files and the relay's key live on your server.
What's inside your relay:, layer by layer.
- relayThe Buzz server, written in Rust. It checks who's a member and delivers each message.
- PostgresThe database: every message, channel and member.
- SiloFile storage, S3-compatible: the images and files people upload, and the git repositories they push to the relay.
- .envThe settings file: the relay's private key and the passwords.
- RedisA cache in memory: who's online and who's typing. It rebuilds itself on restart.
Every part of Buzz is open source, under the Apache 2.0 license, on GitHub: the relay and the phone apps in block/buzz, and the Buzz app in block/buzz-app. That's what lets you clone the code and run it yourself.
So you don't need Block to run it. Clone block/buzz, add your values, and start the relay on a machine you control. Your team joins from the Buzz app. The guide below walks you through it.