FireCMS: Open Source at Heart​

Soon we will release an updated CLI that will make it easier to start a new project, in the different flavors of FireCMS.

FireCMS was born as an open-source software project, and our plans are to keep it that way. We believe in the power of open source and the community surrounding it. We are committed to building a product that is not only useful but also transparent and accessible to everyone.

We want to take a moment to share our plans regarding licensing, open source, and next steps.

The FireCMS Multiverse​

From the first version up to today, we have been working on different versions of providing services based on FireCMS. You may be familiar with the Pro or Cloud versions. Also, most of our code is public, but not all of it is open source, as some packages use a different license.

Yes, we experience fragmentation, similar to Android. Let's take a look at these versions and clarify them. Basically, FireCMS 3.0 comes in several flavors.

FireCMS Community​

The core of FireCMS has an MIT license. Use it as you wish, with the freedom to modify and distribute. This is how we started, and we will keep it that way.

A TypeScript library built on top of React to manage data in Firestore forms the foundation of all other versions.

Do You Need a No Code Tool for Firebase?​

This article was initially titled "No Code Tools for Firebase." We already knew some tools, but as we delved into the research, we decided to drop the title—and the idea. You probably don't need a No Code tool for Firebase. So instead of a benchmark, welcome to the most opinionated article about Firebase and No Code tools.

Firebase and Firestore​

Firebase is one of the greatest products built for developers. Based on Cloud Services, it features a Serverless architecture that allows you to focus on building your product without worrying about the underlying infrastructure. So you have:

• Firestore: a NoSQL database to store your data in the cloud.
• Functions: a serverless function that allows you to run your code in response to events.
• Authentication: a secure authentication system.
• Storage: a secure file storage system.
• Hosting: a web hosting service that allows you to deploy your static files.
• Messaging: a messaging service that allows you to send push notifications to your users.
• A/B Testing, Remote Config, and many more services.

It gained a lot of popularity among mobile app developers. Here is our easy-to-integrate Backend as a Service with Authentication and File Storage. Simple to use and easy to integrate. Outstanding.

Is your value proposition building an Authentication system, Storage, or Backend? Have a seat and build your product. That's the idea.

Firebase in Your Tech Stack​

So, you decided to use Firebase to build your product. That usually means you are a developer or have an internal development team. The first decision is made. I am building a React App, so I am going to use Firebase for the Backend.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of content management systems (CMS), choosing the right backend is more critical than ever. Developers are faced with a plethora of options, from traditional setups like WordPress to modern headless CMSs like Strapi, Contentful, and Sanity. At FireCMS, we've embraced Firebase as the backbone of our CMS, and in this article, we'll delve into the benefits of using Firebase over other CMS backends. We'll also provide direct comparisons to alternative CMSs to help you make an informed decision.

The Firebase Advantage​

Firebase, a platform developed by Google, offers a comprehensive suite of tools for app development. It provides:

• Cloud Firestore: A flexible, scalable NoSQL cloud database for storing and syncing data in real time.
• Authentication: Secure and easy-to-use authentication services supporting email and password, phone auth, and social logins.
• Cloud Functions: Serverless framework to run backend code without managing servers.
• Hosting: Fast and secure web hosting for your web app, static and dynamic content.
• Realtime Database: A real-time, low-latency database for mobile, web, and server development.

By leveraging Firebase, FireCMS offers a CMS that is not only powerful but aso scalable, secure, and cost-effective.

The sleek and intuitive FireCMS dashboard powered by Firebase.

OpenSource, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly​

Open source is a hot topic right now. Often making headlines due to high-profile conflicts like the recent WordPress vs. WP Engine dispute over plugin licensing disagreements, or Elastic's licensing battle with AWS, which led to a shift to a source-available license. These incidents underscore the complex landscape of open-source development, a journey we've been navigating since our initial commit on GitHub in April 2020.

Since its inception, FireCMS has evolved from an internal tool to a widely-used open-source content management system (CMS) that helps developers build and prototype products efficiently. We want to share our experiences; the good, the bad, and the ugly of building FireCMS in public with an open-source license.

The Good​

Our journey with FireCMS began as an in-house solution to streamline our development process. Seeing it grow beyond our organization and being utilized by other projects and companies has been profoundly fulfilling. It not only helped us in building and prototyping products faster but also empowered others to do the same.

The first time I saw the Stripe shader animation on their website, I was hooked. I really wanted to have something that cool for the websites I was working on and tried to reverse engineer what Stripe does. I must say, it wasn't easy! I had to learn a lot about shaders, WebGL, and three.js to get to the point where I could create something similar.

We are going to be using a lot of Perlin noise functions to generate the waves and the gradient. Perlin noise is a type of gradient noise used in computer graphics to create natural-looking textures. It was invented by Ken Perlin in the 1980s. The noise is generated by interpolating between random values. It is locally stable, so it is well-suited for generating animations by including a time parameter in the noise function.

The Stripe animation is really a 3D shape, a plane divided in triangles acting like a flag that has waves passing through it. On top of that, there is a gradient that changes color and brightness. That is really the essence of the effect.

Check what's new in your favourite CMS

We are excited to announce the release of FireCMS Beta.9. This release includes a lot of new features and improvements, including a new Markdown editor, multi select, and MongoDB support.

FireCMS continues its journey to become the most flexible and powerful CMS. We aim to become a true headless CMS, with and by headless we mean compatible with any database and backend, as well as also detached from any frontend technology.

New Markdown editor​

Completely revamped Markdown editor inspired by Notion, with an amazing UX and autocomplete features. The previous editor was not very user-friendly, and we have decided to replace it with a new one that is more powerful and easier to use. It is also now possible to upload images inline. The editor can be used as a Markdown field in your collections, as well as a standalone component in your components.

Multi select​

We have improved the multi select component, now supporting search and better performance. The previous version would clip items based on the position of the dropdown, which was not ideal.

MongoDB support​

FireCMS continues to expand its database support. We have added a new package @firecms/mongodb that allows you to connect to MongoDB databases.

You can now run FireCMS PRO with MongoDB as your backend, with no connection to any Firebase services. Use the Auth and Database services of MongoDB Atlas to authenticate and store your data.

This is part of our efforts to bring all the power of FireCMS with the PRO version to any database you want.

Say Hi to MongoDB!​

For FireCMS users, connecting to MongoDB just got a lot easier. While FireCMS has always offered the flexibility to integrate with various databases, we're thrilled to announce a dedicated package for seamless MongoDB integration.

How easy? npm easy npm install @firecms/mongodb, or yarn easy yarn add @firecms/mongodb.

This is part of our efforts to bring all the power of FireCMS with the PRO version. The most advanced and flexible version of FireCMS.

Why MongoDB?​

Choosing the right database is crucial, and MongoDB, especially when paired with its cloud counterpart Atlas, presents a compelling option for many projects. Its document-oriented structure aligns well with how we often model data, and its performance and scalability make it suitable for projects of all sizes.

Same FireCMS Experience, Now Powered by MongoDB​

We implemented the necessary utilities to connect and consume Atlas MongoDB database and authentication services.

If you are working on any kind of public-facing digital project —no matter if it's a website, a web app, a mobile app or desktop app — you will likely need a Content Management System. There are a lot of options to chose from, and different solutions are better suited for some needs than others. We can distinguish some categories straight away:

• General purpose or web oriented
• Headless or traditional
• By access to data APIs (GraphQL, REST, SDKs)
• Cloud based or self-hosted

We are building this guide to help you pick the right CMS for your project. We will be updating it regularly, so make sure to check back often.

One of the motivations for this guide is to help users understand the differences between CMSs. Despite creating FireCMS, we are not trying to promote it as the best solution for everyone. We are just trying to help people understand the trade-offs of different solutions. This is the same thing we say to our users when they ask us for advice on what solution to use.

General purpose or web oriented​

The first thing to consider is whether you need a general purpose CMS or a web-oriented one. A general purpose CMS is a tool that can be used to manage content for any kind of project (apps, desktop, web), while a web-oriented CMS is a tool that is designed to manage content for websites.

FireCMS 3.0 The Next CMS that is already here.🔥​

Three years ago we launched the first version of FireCMS. We started offering an open source core so that anyone could build whatever they need. FireCMS started as an internal tool that we offered to our clients. The usual use case is: you are building an app or a web using Firebase as a backend, and need a backoffice tool to manage your data, your users, your files. Everything in a secure environment and with a strong roles and permissions system. Along the years, we have developed full stack solutions for partners like as Oikosbrain, medicalmotion or ThePlanetApp. Likewise, many agencies have benefited from the open-source nature of the project and use it to develop internal apps for their own clients. Since it’s inception, FireCMS has been downloaded 200k+ times in NPM.

Along the years we understood that we need to make it simple for the customer to install and configure FireCMS, but also keep the power of using code to extend the base product with any feature. We helped customers build extensions for other database providers, such as MongoDB, or create a 3D model editor using Three.js. And that’s our focus for the next years: Build the best no-code CMS, while preserving all the customization options in code, and ease of use our users love.

Nowadays, search is a basic feature in a public online tool. It’s a commodity, a feature that you expect to be there. Can you imagine using a database manager and not being able to search through your records? What happens when you have 500 rows?

Text Search is not that easy at scale​

Now, if you are familiar with our tech stack, particularly Firebase and Firestore, you would know that it’s not such an easy task. In the past versions of FireCMS, we recommended using Algolia as an external plugin. Or any other compatible solutions, since you are in charge of everything, as in any open source product.

But what happens when you need it in a SaaS formulation. Recently, we launched FireCMS Cloud. We still allow customers to host their own Google Cloud project resources, but the app used for managing the data is on our side. So, we are in charge of the CMS, you don’t need to worry about that. Okay, great. We help you manage the app, rolling updates, support, and everything else.