ze

Open, programmable network OS for Linux

Ze creates appliances or makes Linux speak BGP, IS-IS, and OSPF, manages interfaces, programs the FIB, and gives operators a CLI, web UI, telemetry, looking glass, API, and plugin system around one coherent configuration model.

Built for people who want a network stack they can inspect, automate, and extend. ExaBGP users get a migration path to a more performant codebase.

Quick Start Read Docs Get Help

bin/ze cli

# start the daemon
$ bin/ze example.conf
level=INFO  msg="hub ready" subsystem=hub plugins=1 peers=1 listen=":179"
level=INFO  msg="peer connecting" subsystem=bgp.reactor peer=test-peer address=10.0.0.2

# from another terminal
$ bin/ze cli -c "show bgp peer list"
$ bin/ze cli -c "bgp monitor"

17,300+ unit tests

Wire encoding, parsing
Config, FSM, plugins
Mutation testing via gomu

1,300+ end to end tests

Peering, sessions, updates
Editor, commits, reloads

65+ fuzz targets

Parsers, external inputs
Wire formats, config files

7 interop targets

FRR, BIRD, GoBGP
OpenBGPd, FreeRtr
RustyBGP, rustbgpd

Current status

Jump in early.

Ze has a modern routing core, BGP, OSPF, IS-IS, and MPLS, wrapped in a friendly network OS. The code is heavily tested, and the project is moving fast.

It is still young. Operational mileage is limited and configuration may change. Upgrade paths will be provided after the first release. Use it in labs, break it, read the code, and tell us what is wrong.

Ze is free software under the AGPLv3. See the roadmap for the path to a release, and the security policy to report an issue.

Full-featured BGP Sessions, capabilities, UPDATE handling, IPv4/IPv6 unicast, and growing FlowSpec family coverage.

Powerful tooling SSH CLI with diff and commit, web workbench, looking glass, telemetry, all from one config model.

Extensible by design RIB, route-server, graceful restart, RPKI, policy, persistence, and external process plugins.

Easy to explore Built-in doctor checks, readable state, MCP server for AI-assisted debugging, clear errors throughout.

Two ways to run Ze.

Same binary, same config, either way. Pick whichever fits how you already operate.

As a Daemon

Runs on any existing Linux distro, managed by systemd or your process manager of choice. The easier on-ramp if you're fitting Ze into infrastructure you already run.

Quickstart daemon install

As an Appliance

A dedicated bootable image built with gokrazy for purpose-built hardware: read-only rootfs, no shell, no package manager, automatic process supervision.

Install guide PXE, ISO, or Ventoy

Built for demanding operators.

Shipped and tested, or experimental and growing.

Ze owns its BGP engine, configuration model, plugin system, and operator surfaces, all designed together -- from the native BGP, OSPF, and IS-IS engines and SSH CLI to RPKI, looking glass, telemetry, firewall, VPN, MPLS, and appliance packaging.

Operate (6) Routing (8) Services (9) Automate (5) Observe (9) Secure (4) Platform (5)

Discover what makes Ze unique.

The best users today are people building labs, route-server experiments, BGP tooling, or network appliances, and anyone curious about what comes after ExaBGP.

quickstart.sh

# build from source
$ git clone https://github.com/ze-software/ze.git
$ cd ze && make build

# set up credentials and configure
$ bin/ze init
$ bin/ze config import router.conf

# start
$ bin/ze start

# connect to the CLI
$ bin/ze cli

Good first paths

Start with a lab peer, a migrated ExaBGP config, or a looking-glass instance. The project needs feedback from people who know what real routing operations look like.

YANG Configuration one model for everything Programmable API, plugins, automation MCP Control AI-assisted operations Compare how Ze stacks up -- and where it's still behind Labs real interop proof you can run yourself

Who should look now?

Ze is early enough that strong feedback can still shape the system. If you care about open routing software, now is the time to look.

BGP Operators

People who understand peering, route servers, policy, RPKI, and the pain of debugging control-plane state.

Network Builders

People building Linux appliances, labs, automation systems, test harnesses, or routing experiments.

ExaBGP Users

People with existing ExaBGP workflows who want a path toward a fuller programmable network stack.

Open routing needs boring miles.

Ze has the shape of the system we want: open, modern, and programmable. It still needs users, hardware, failures, odd networks, and the slow confidence that comes from deployments.

Latest from the blog.

Weekly updates, mined from git history and posted to Discord's ze-news.

See all updates

ze