Node-RED node parity

This matrix defines the deployment intent for compiled hosted-runtime artifacts.

Use three buckets:

• wasi: strict standalone WASI with no wrapper requirement
• wasmedge: standard server-side deployment target for maximum WASI compatibility
• wrapper/delegated: browser targets or features that still need host mediation

The practical reason for wasmedge is simple: standalone WASI still does not give us portable networking parity, while WasmEdge adds socket, DNS, and TLS extensions that make guest-owned network services realistic.

#wasi Target

These should run as plain standalone WASI programs with no wrapper layer:

• change
• switch
• range
• template
• json
• csv
• yaml
• xml
• html
• split
• join
• batch
• sort
• rbe
• link in
• link out
• link call
• debug
• deterministic flow routing and payload transforms
• file and file in when limited to WASI preopen/file access

Notes:

• inject only fits this bucket for direct/manual triggering, not scheduling.
• file parity here excludes file watching.

#wasmedge Target

These should aim to run in guest logic on WasmEdge without an extra wrapper:

• outbound http request
• inbound http in plus http response
• guest-owned TCP client/server behavior
• guest-owned UDP behavior
• guest-owned TLS/HTTPS behavior
• direct protocol services built on sockets
• WebSocket logic implemented in guest libraries over sockets/TLS
• MQTT logic implemented in guest libraries over sockets/TLS

Notes:

• websocket and mqtt are guest-library targets, not direct WasmEdge runtime APIs.
• prefer guest-owned protocol stacks over host wrappers whenever WasmEdge sockets/TLS are sufficient.

#Wrapper Or Delegated Host Required

These still require wrappers, delegated services, or explicit runtime support outside the guest:

• watch
• exec
• cron-style inject
• delay and trigger when they depend on wall-clock scheduling
• complete
• catch
• status
• browser-local inbound listeners
• browser-local durable filesystem behavior beyond browser storage adapters
• any feature that depends on OS process control or file watching

#Planning Rule

If a node can be implemented entirely inside guest code on top of standard WASI or WasmEdge extensions, it should not be modeled as a host capability. Host capabilities should be reserved for features that truly still need wrappers or delegated services.

Source of truth for this page: docs/node-red-default-node-parity.md. Regenerate with npm run build:docs.