diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-03-16-announcing-backstage.md b/microsite/blog/2020-03-16-announcing-backstage.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-03-16-announcing-backstage.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-03-16-announcing-backstage.mdx index b76ee6bffa..97565df538 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-03-16-announcing-backstage.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-03-16-announcing-backstage.mdx @@ -13,7 +13,6 @@ It’s the first open source infrastructure platform by Spotify that allows you ![img](assets/blog_1.png) - {/* truncate */} ## As simple as writing a plugin. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-03-18-what-is-backstage.md b/microsite/blog/2020-03-18-what-is-backstage.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-03-18-what-is-backstage.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-03-18-what-is-backstage.mdx index 0024033c66..caac489ca1 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-03-18-what-is-backstage.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-03-18-what-is-backstage.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/121166861/6919c047c0d0edaac Two days ago, we released the open source version of [Backstage](https://backstage.io/), our homegrown developer portal. And we learned a thing or two via the feedback we received. So, I wanted to take this opportunity to further explain what we’re trying to do with Backstage — and more importantly, what we want to give to the greater engineering community beyond Spotify. - {/* truncate */} ## What’s the big infrastructure problem? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-04-06-lighthouse-plugin.md b/microsite/blog/2020-04-06-lighthouse-plugin.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-04-06-lighthouse-plugin.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-04-06-lighthouse-plugin.mdx index f0957c99ff..d94ec8bd8d 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-04-06-lighthouse-plugin.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-04-06-lighthouse-plugin.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1224058798958088192/JPxS8uz We’re proud to announce that our first internal plugin at Spotify has been open-sourced as part of Backstage. This plugin works with the newly open-sourced [lighthouse-audit-service](https://github.com/spotify/lighthouse-audit-service) to run and track Lighthouse audits for your websites. - {/* truncate */} ## What is Lighthouse? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-04-30-how-to-quickly-set-up-backstage.md b/microsite/blog/2020-04-30-how-to-quickly-set-up-backstage.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-04-30-how-to-quickly-set-up-backstage.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-04-30-how-to-quickly-set-up-backstage.mdx index bbcebd9641..4884762560 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-04-30-how-to-quickly-set-up-backstage.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-04-30-how-to-quickly-set-up-backstage.mdx @@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ We want users to be able to create their own version of Backstage quickly and ea In this blog post we’ll look at what a Backstage app is and how to create one using our [CLI](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@backstage/cli). - {/* truncate */} ## What is a Backstage app? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-tech-radar-plugin.md b/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-tech-radar-plugin.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-05-14-tech-radar-plugin.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-05-14-tech-radar-plugin.mdx index 4f58b55c60..457a03d488 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-tech-radar-plugin.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-tech-radar-plugin.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars0.githubusercontent.com/bih Just a few weeks ago, we released our internal plugin for [Lighthouse website audits] as our first open source plugin, so the whole community could use it. Today, we’re excited to add a new plugin to that list — say hello to the [Tech Radar plugin]! - {/* truncate */} ## What is Tech Radar? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-weaveworks-covid-19-app-uses-backstage-ui.md b/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-weaveworks-covid-19-app-uses-backstage-ui.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-05-14-weaveworks-covid-19-app-uses-backstage-ui.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-05-14-weaveworks-covid-19-app-uses-backstage-ui.mdx index 06f98f5474..4555f495e1 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-weaveworks-covid-19-app-uses-backstage-ui.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-05-14-weaveworks-covid-19-app-uses-backstage-ui.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars2.githubusercontent.com/u/46946747 One of the great things about the open source community is once you put your work out there, you really never know where it might end up. That’s certainly the case here. - {/* truncate */} When Weaveworks decided to build an X-ray diagnostics app to help fight COVID-19, they pulled together a lot of different open source resources — from projects big and small, built by both familiar tech partners and some brand new ones, too. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-05-22-phase-2-service-catalog.md b/microsite/blog/2020-05-22-phase-2-service-catalog.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-05-22-phase-2-service-catalog.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-05-22-phase-2-service-catalog.mdx index e3a5b5eb8a..3b556bbd3d 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-05-22-phase-2-service-catalog.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-05-22-phase-2-service-catalog.mdx @@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ We released the open source version of Backstage a little less than two months a ![img](assets/20-05-20/Service_Catalog_MVP.png) - {/* truncate */} ## Progress so far diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-06-22-backstage-service-catalog-alpha.md b/microsite/blog/2020-06-22-backstage-service-catalog-alpha.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-06-22-backstage-service-catalog-alpha.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-06-22-backstage-service-catalog-alpha.mdx index 6e79de726b..98f4aa15e1 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-06-22-backstage-service-catalog-alpha.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-06-22-backstage-service-catalog-alpha.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ image: https://backstage.io/blog/assets/6/header.png ![img](assets/6/header.png) - {/* truncate */} ## You asked, we listened diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-07-01-how-to-enable-authentication-in-backstage-using-passport.md b/microsite/blog/2020-07-01-how-to-enable-authentication-in-backstage-using-passport.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-07-01-how-to-enable-authentication-in-backstage-using-passport.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-07-01-how-to-enable-authentication-in-backstage-using-passport.mdx index 961609f569..f1242fcee1 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-07-01-how-to-enable-authentication-in-backstage-using-passport.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-07-01-how-to-enable-authentication-in-backstage-using-passport.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars1.githubusercontent.com/u/1236238?s=460&v=4 Getting authentication right is important. It helps keep your platform safe, it’s one of the first things users will interact with, and there are many different authentication providers to support. To this end, we chose to use [Passport](http://www.passportjs.org/) to provide an easy-to-use, out-of-the-box experience that can be extended to your own, pre-existing authentication providers (known as strategies). The Auth APIs in Backstage serve two purposes: identify the user and provide a way for plugins to request access to third-party services on behalf of the user. We’ve already implemented Google and GitHub authentication to provide examples and to get you started. - {/* truncate */} ## What is Passport? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-08-05-announcing-backstage-software-templates.md b/microsite/blog/2020-08-05-announcing-backstage-software-templates.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-08-05-announcing-backstage-software-templates.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-08-05-announcing-backstage-software-templates.mdx index 5d0541f031..b8f787d630 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-08-05-announcing-backstage-software-templates.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-08-05-announcing-backstage-software-templates.mdx @@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ authorURL: https://twitter.com/stalund - {/* truncate */} ## Balancing autonomy and standardization diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-09-08-announcing-tech-docs.md b/microsite/blog/2020-09-08-announcing-tech-docs.mdx similarity index 98% rename from microsite/blog/2020-09-08-announcing-tech-docs.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-09-08-announcing-tech-docs.mdx index 8c693c658e..40ab40e5f0 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-09-08-announcing-tech-docs.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-09-08-announcing-tech-docs.mdx @@ -7,10 +7,15 @@ authorURL: https://github.com/garyniemen Since we [open sourced Backstage](https://backstage.io/blog/2020/03/16/announcing-backstage), one of the most requested features has been for a technical documentation plugin. Well, good news. The first open source version of TechDocs is here. Now let’s start collaborating and making it better, together. - + - {/* truncate */} Internally, we call it TechDocs. It’s the most used plugin at Spotify by far — accounting for about 20% of our Backstage traffic (even though it is just one of 130+ plugins). Its popularity is evidence of something simple: We made documentation so easy to create, find, and use — people actually use it. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-09-23-backstage-cncf-sandbox.md b/microsite/blog/2020-09-23-backstage-cncf-sandbox.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-09-23-backstage-cncf-sandbox.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-09-23-backstage-cncf-sandbox.mdx index f14f51ce55..b11b0ff18b 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-09-23-backstage-cncf-sandbox.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-09-23-backstage-cncf-sandbox.mdx @@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ authorURL: https://twitter.com/stalund ![cncf](assets/cncf-sandbox/cncf.png) - {/* truncate */} Backstage garnered quite a bit of interest from developers and organizations when it was first announced, and community interest continues to grow as plugins and new features are added with the open source community. We released the open source version of Backstage ‘early’. That was intentional. Because even though we’ve been using Backstage internally for years, we wanted the open source version to be developed with input and contributions from the community. And that’s exactly the product that’s going into the [CNCF Sandbox](https://www.cncf.io/sandbox-projects/) today. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-backstage-design-system.md b/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-backstage-design-system.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-09-30-backstage-design-system.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-09-30-backstage-design-system.mdx index 85b70dee9a..7fa30a6068 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-backstage-design-system.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-backstage-design-system.mdx @@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ authorURL: http://twitter.com/katherinemzhou We are excited to launch the Backstage Design System, which includes a [Figma UI kit](https://www.figma.com/community/file/850673348101741100), a rich set of [reusable code components](http://backstage.io/storybook) on Storybook, and [Guidelines](https://backstage.io/docs/dls/design) for designers and developers as they build plugins for Backstage. - {/* truncate */} ## Not just the way it looks diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-plugin-marketplace.md b/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-plugin-marketplace.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-09-30-plugin-marketplace.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-09-30-plugin-marketplace.mdx index 5c45583df0..2f74b0200e 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-plugin-marketplace.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-09-30-plugin-marketplace.mdx @@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ Now you may be thinking, “Yeah, sure, that sounds nice and all, but how does B ![plugins](https://backstage.io/img/cards-plugins.png) - {/* truncate */} Think of plugins as a mini version of an infrastructure tool or service — just the parts you need, made quick and easy. The advantage of using a Backstage plugin instead of a tool’s dedicated UI is that all your infrastructure is packaged into a “single pane of glass” instead of being spread out like independently built “islands”. Once you grow your infrastructure portfolio, the complexity really starts to add up. The Backstage plugin model allows you to add more tools without increasing the cognitive load for your users. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-10-22-cost-insights-plugin.md b/microsite/blog/2020-10-22-cost-insights-plugin.mdx similarity index 97% rename from microsite/blog/2020-10-22-cost-insights-plugin.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-10-22-cost-insights-plugin.mdx index 82721b7f19..98bca88477 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-10-22-cost-insights-plugin.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-10-22-cost-insights-plugin.mdx @@ -7,11 +7,17 @@ authorURL: https://twitter.com/janisa_a How did Spotify save millions on cloud costs within a matter of months?? We made cost optimization just another part of the daily development process. Our newly open sourced [Cost Insights plugin](https://github.com/backstage/backstage/tree/master/plugins/cost-insights) makes a team’s cloud costs visible — and actionable — right inside Backstage. So engineers can see the impact of their cloud usage (down to a product and resource level) and make optimizations wherever and whenever it makes sense. By managing cloud costs from the ground up, you can make smarter decisions that let you continue to build and scale quickly, without wasting resources. - + Are we turning engineers into accountants? Nope, we’re just letting engineers do what they do best, in the place that feels natural to them: inside Backstage. - {/* truncate */} ## Why put a cost management tool in the hands of engineers? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2020-12-22-stability-index.md b/microsite/blog/2020-12-22-stability-index.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2020-12-22-stability-index.md rename to microsite/blog/2020-12-22-stability-index.mdx index 60df5d8e74..07b5854dc2 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2020-12-22-stability-index.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2020-12-22-stability-index.mdx @@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ authorURL: https://github.com/Rugvip ![Animation cycling between stability index scores](assets/2020-12-22/stability-index-hero.gif) - {/* truncate */} Backstage has a great and growing community of users and contributors. With so much valuable feedback, this inevitably means that sometimes we will go back and revise design decisions that introduce breaking changes. Furthermore, as we continue to ship new features and systems, we’ll continue this cycle of iterating, gathering feedback, and iterating again before reaching a stable API. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-01-12-new-backstage-feature-kubernetes-for-service-owners.md b/microsite/blog/2021-01-12-new-backstage-feature-kubernetes-for-service-owners.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2021-01-12-new-backstage-feature-kubernetes-for-service-owners.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-01-12-new-backstage-feature-kubernetes-for-service-owners.mdx index 00b369d0cb..c1232a5f12 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-01-12-new-backstage-feature-kubernetes-for-service-owners.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-01-12-new-backstage-feature-kubernetes-for-service-owners.mdx @@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ TLDR; We’re rethinking the Kubernetes developer experience with a new feature: And since Backstage uses the native Kubernetes API, the feature works with whichever cloud provider (AWS, Azure, GCP, etc.) or managed service (OpenShift, IBM Cloud, GKE, etc.) you already use. - {/* truncate */} ## The missing link between K8s and your service diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-05-20-adopting-backstage.md b/microsite/blog/2021-05-20-adopting-backstage.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2021-05-20-adopting-backstage.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-05-20-adopting-backstage.mdx index c0f922dddc..9fc1e36618 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-05-20-adopting-backstage.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-05-20-adopting-backstage.mdx @@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ authorURL: https://www.linkedin.com/in/austinlamon One of the greatest strengths of Backstage also presents a never-ending challenge: Backstage is highly customizable and allows you to easily build a unique developer portal suited to your organization’s needs. The downside of this flexibility is that it can be hard to know where to start. Backstage can do so many things — integrating every part of your tech infrastructure and developer experience — but if you set off building a developer portal without a plan, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the possibilities. To help you form your plan, this post will detail how Spotify came to design our internal portal and recommend potential models for you to use when designing and building your own. - {/* truncate */} ## Infrastructure as tech culture @@ -24,12 +23,14 @@ Spotify’s developers were facing three big challenges on a daily basis: - They needed to keep an eye on what squads around them might be building to ensure they could reuse systems when they needed to solve similar problems in the future. In short, Spotify developers needed to continue building industry leading features at breakneck speed, while simultaneously maintaining a mental model for all the software at Spotify (oh, and help every new joiner develop that mental model as well!). -
+ +
## Three jobs: Create, manage, explore Around the same time, the [jobs to be done](https://hbr.org/2016/09/know-your-customers-jobs-to-be-done) framework was becoming popular and luckily, a few Spotifiers helped guide the vision for a _sense-making tool for developers_ toward using it. After user research and many failed attempts, we landed on three jobs Spotify developers needed to do consistently: -
+ +
- **Create**: Spotify developers want to delight their customers with incredible features. They create new software to do that. - **Manage**: Spotify developers are proud of their work and treat their software and data like products. That requires maintaining all the software they own on an ongoing basis. @@ -74,7 +75,8 @@ Within today’s complex development environments, there are barriers both big a After talking with companies who have already adopted Backstage, we’ve seen a few common strategies for getting started. The different strategies are based on the size of your engineering org (which often also corresponds with how fast you’re growing). ![200 engineers](assets/21-05-20/200-engineers_v.2.png) -
+ +
### My org has ~200 engineers (and is growing fast) diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-06-22-spotify-backstage-is-growing.md b/microsite/blog/2021-06-22-spotify-backstage-is-growing.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2021-06-22-spotify-backstage-is-growing.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-06-22-spotify-backstage-is-growing.mdx index 06dfcf8ecb..c90484c055 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-06-22-spotify-backstage-is-growing.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-06-22-spotify-backstage-is-growing.mdx @@ -13,7 +13,6 @@ In order to grow Backstage further, Spotify is increasing the support we provide And while Spotify remains committed to maturing the Backstage platform — both as original creator and active maintainer — we also want to make room for the community to take greater ownership. Backstage may have started inside Spotify, but it belongs to all of you. So, we hope you join us in what’s next. - {/* truncate */} ## What’s next: More support for adopters and contributors diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-06-24-announcing-backstage-search-platform.md b/microsite/blog/2021-06-24-announcing-backstage-search-platform.mdx similarity index 97% rename from microsite/blog/2021-06-24-announcing-backstage-search-platform.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-06-24-announcing-backstage-search-platform.mdx index dfa36ce3bb..bb30a3b9ec 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-06-24-announcing-backstage-search-platform.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-06-24-announcing-backstage-search-platform.mdx @@ -13,7 +13,6 @@ So, you don’t just get an improved out-of-the-box experience for searching wha With one query, your teams can find exactly what they’re looking for: anything and everything. - {/* truncate */} ## Search and explore @@ -81,9 +80,9 @@ That's why we have put effort into making your search page experience composable A good example of the level of customization the platform allows is how list items are displayed in search results. A search result component can be a list, this list can consist of different list items (search results returned from the search engine) — but these list items could look different depending on what the search result returns in terms of its fields. -Let’s say that for an entity returned from the software catalog maybe the most important information to show is the name, while a result returned from the TechDocs plugin should maybe show the text content as the most important information. This can be customized by creating components (like TechDocsResultListItem or CatalogResultListItem or whatever list item component you want) and configuring them in the app. +Let’s say that for an entity returned from the software catalog maybe the most important information to show is the name, while a result returned from the TechDocs plugin should maybe show the text content as the most important information. This can be customized by creating `` components (like `TechDocsResultListItem` or `CatalogResultListItem` or whatever list item component you want) and configuring them in the app. -If there is no need to customize your search result list items, the component is there for you to reuse. +If there is no need to customize your search result list items, the `` component is there for you to reuse. ## Getting started with Backstage Search diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-07-26-software-templates-are-now-in-beta.md b/microsite/blog/2021-07-26-software-templates-are-now-in-beta.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2021-07-26-software-templates-are-now-in-beta.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-07-26-software-templates-are-now-in-beta.mdx index 8ba7d9b810..25197220c4 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-07-26-software-templates-are-now-in-beta.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-07-26-software-templates-are-now-in-beta.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/3645856?v=4 **TLDR**; At a high level, Backstage performs three main jobs: [Create, Manage, and Explore](https://backstage.io/blog/2021/05/20/adopting-backstage#three-jobs-create-manage-explore). Throughout the year, we’ve been focussed on improving the stability and scalability of these areas while enhancing the feature sets based upon requests from the community. Software Templates — which enable push-button deployments with all your standards and best practices built-in — is our first feature-complete release candidate to graduate to beta. Read on to learn how this release improves template customization and flexibility, as well as performance. - {/* truncate */} Let’s rewind a little bit, around a year in fact. Backstage had been open sourced, and we released our first version of Software Templates and our Scaffolder plugin. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-09-16-the-techdocs-beta-has-landed.md b/microsite/blog/2021-09-16-the-techdocs-beta-has-landed.mdx similarity index 94% rename from microsite/blog/2021-09-16-the-techdocs-beta-has-landed.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-09-16-the-techdocs-beta-has-landed.mdx index 4c97723765..a576f4f032 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-09-16-the-techdocs-beta-has-landed.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-09-16-the-techdocs-beta-has-landed.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/3496491?v=4 **TLDR:** Another beta has landed! We continue to focus on improving the stability and scalability of Backstage while enhancing its functionality. Thanks to focused efforts from the TechDocs core team and community, we're happy to say that TechDocs — [our docs-like-code solution](https://backstage.io/blog/2020/09/08/announcing-tech-docs) for all the software in your catalog — is now, after [Software Templates](https://backstage.io/blog/2021/07/26/software-templates-are-now-in-beta), the second core feature to graduate to beta. - {/* truncate */} In addition to new features and improvements, we made numerous compatibility updates ahead of this feature release. You'll find support for a variety of CI systems, cloud storage solutions, and source control systems — so that TechDocs works for most orgs, right out of box. But there's much more to explore in this beta, thanks to contributions from the community. @@ -22,7 +21,10 @@ When we set out to define what beta looked like, we combed through GitHub issues TechDocs can be transformational once fully up and running (update your code and your docs with the same pull request!). But for first-time users and especially those unfamiliar with the MkDocs ecosystem upon which TechDocs is built, there are often many small, obtuse hurdles that can get in the way of success. Leading up to the beta release, we worked to surface and improve relevant errors and other details during the documentation generation process. Better still, all of this detail is now provided to users _in real-time_, as docs are generated and refreshed. -

🙌 Shout out to Dominik Henneke for implementing the interactive experience.

+

+ 🙌 Shout out to Dominik Henneke for + implementing the interactive experience. +

## Custom homepages: Make TechDocs yours @@ -30,7 +32,10 @@ TechDocs can be transformational once fully up and running (update your code and We strive to make it so that you can mold Backstage into the shape that best fits your organization. With this beta release, just as you can with the Catalog entities and [Search](https://backstage.io/blog/2021/06/24/announcing-backstage-search-platform#composable-search-page-experiences), you can now customize and compose your own TechDocs homepage. Use it to level up the front page of your Backstage documentation by highlighting golden documentation at your company, or use the new and improved (and Catalog-inspired) experience. Read more about [how to customize the TechDocs homepage](https://backstage.io/docs/features/techdocs/how-to-guides#how-to-customize-the-techdocs-home-page). -

🙏 Thanks to Phil Kuang for the improved default TechDocs home experience.

+

+ 🙏 Thanks to Phil Kuang for the + improved default TechDocs home experience. +

## Simpler YAML annotations: What's in a ref? @@ -40,7 +45,9 @@ We often forget that in order to enable TechDocs on a Catalog entity, documentat In the beta, we've simplified this annotation dramatically for documentation authors, aligning its value with TechDocs' docs-like-code philosophy itself. In the vast majority of cases, its value will simply be `dir:.` — which means this catalog entity contains documentation and the mkdocs.yml file describing this documentation lives in the current directory. We continue to support edge cases for [other techdocs-ref annotation values](https://backstage.io/docs/features/techdocs/how-to-guides#how-to-understand-techdocs-ref-annotation-values), as well. -

👏 Another round of applause for Dominik for driving this improvement through.

+

+ 👏 Another round of applause for Dominik for driving this improvement through. +

## Everything neat and tidy diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-09-30-50-public-adopters.md b/microsite/blog/2021-09-30-50-public-adopters.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2021-09-30-50-public-adopters.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-09-30-50-public-adopters.mdx index 4177d039d3..e8f6c58160 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-09-30-50-public-adopters.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-09-30-50-public-adopters.mdx @@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ We’re excited to celebrate an important milestone for the Backstage community: Before digging into why we believe this is so important, we want to send a huge “thank you” to all the Backstage adopters and contributors who have helped grow the Backstage community. First, to the publicly listed adopters as your visible support for the project excites others to learn more about Backstage. Second, to those non-listed adopters, many of whom still engage in the community via issues, comments, or code contributions. Thank you! - {/* truncate */} ## Why we care about public adopters diff --git a/microsite/blog/2021-12-20-backstage-wrapped-2021.md b/microsite/blog/2021-12-20-backstage-wrapped-2021.mdx similarity index 95% rename from microsite/blog/2021-12-20-backstage-wrapped-2021.md rename to microsite/blog/2021-12-20-backstage-wrapped-2021.mdx index bd1f21052b..b4bb0f8e4c 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2021-12-20-backstage-wrapped-2021.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2021-12-20-backstage-wrapped-2021.mdx @@ -15,7 +15,6 @@ In 2021 we’ve seen the project and community grow in every dimension, reaching Now let’s hear from the maintainers and look at the stats! - {/* truncate */} ## The community grew…and grew @@ -49,11 +48,25 @@ Along with the growth in contributors, PRs, and issues, our active, thriving com Watch the visualization below to see where in the world all those contributions came from this past year. - + ### What does 9,000 contributions look like? - + Can you spot your name in the video above? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-01-25-backstage-homepage-templates.md b/microsite/blog/2022-01-25-backstage-homepage-templates.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-01-25-backstage-homepage-templates.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-01-25-backstage-homepage-templates.mdx index ad07245184..c84ded530e 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-01-25-backstage-homepage-templates.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-01-25-backstage-homepage-templates.mdx @@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ _This blog post is co-authored by Emma Indal ([@emmaindal](https://github.com/em _TLDR;_ We’re excited to announce the arrival of homepage templates for Backstage. It can be intimidating to build up your own instance of Backstage, so we decided to make your life a bit easier by giving you an out-of-the-box homepage to hit the ground running. This template can be found in our [Backstage Storybook](https://backstage.io/storybook/?path=/story/plugins-home-templates--default-template), as well as future templates that we build. - {/* truncate */} ## Why homepage templates? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-03-04-backstage-upgrade-helper.md b/microsite/blog/2022-03-04-backstage-upgrade-helper.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-03-04-backstage-upgrade-helper.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-03-04-backstage-upgrade-helper.mdx index dbf52a6ef0..f3652ba59e 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-03-04-backstage-upgrade-helper.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-03-04-backstage-upgrade-helper.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/8433119?v=4 _TLDR;_ The Spotify team recently announced [Backstage Upgrade Helper](https://backstage.github.io/upgrade-helper): a tool that helps adopters keep their Backstage application up-to-date. **Spoiler alert**: this is also a hidden and heartwarming tale about the beauty of open source innovation. - {/* truncate */} ## Upgrading Backstage was a common pain point diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-03-16-backstage-turns-two.md b/microsite/blog/2022-03-16-backstage-turns-two.mdx similarity index 97% rename from microsite/blog/2022-03-16-backstage-turns-two.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-03-16-backstage-turns-two.mdx index 22421f234e..3a16588832 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-03-16-backstage-turns-two.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-03-16-backstage-turns-two.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars1.githubusercontent.com/u/1236238?s=460&v=4 **TLDR:** Backstage has turned two. Of course, this is software, so we expect things to move fast. But when you have a passionate, worldwide community building together, we’ve now seen firsthand just how fast that can be. We’re marking our second year as a community by becoming a CNCF incubating project, reaching 100 public adopters, releasing version 1.0 of the core app, and other very nice birthday gifts. Rather than a toddler finding their feet, Backstage today is beginning to look awfully grown-up for a two-year-old. - {/* truncate */} ## Out of the Sandbox and into Incubation @@ -50,7 +49,14 @@ The Backstage community is truly global with adopters and contributors from almo We asked a few contributors and maintainers to share their thoughts around this two-year milestone. - + Warms the heart, doesn’t it? Thanks again to all our contributors for making this possible. Seriously. We’re proud of what the community has accomplished and how we’ve accomplished it. All along, it’s your enthusiasm and warm/collaborative/positive vibes that have carried us and this project through. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-03-17-backstage-1.0.md b/microsite/blog/2022-03-17-backstage-1.0.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-03-17-backstage-1.0.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-03-17-backstage-1.0.mdx index a91aedf81f..6f9dd3ee09 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-03-17-backstage-1.0.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-03-17-backstage-1.0.mdx @@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/6010860?v=4 _TL;DR:_ If you’ve been waiting for Backstage to come out of beta, we’re excited to announce that Backstage 1.0 is here! - {/* truncate */} It’s been two years since Spotify [open sourced Backstage](https://backstage.io/blog/2020/03/16/announcing-backstage) so companies of all shapes and sizes — and in every industry all over the world — could build highly extensible and customized developer portals to best suit their organization’s needs and culture. Now hundreds of adopters are using Backstage as the single pane of glass for their core development, managing millions of components and technical documentation, and helping hundreds of thousands of developers be more productive and happy. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-05-13-techdocs-addon-framework.md b/microsite/blog/2022-05-13-techdocs-addon-framework.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-05-13-techdocs-addon-framework.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-05-13-techdocs-addon-framework.mdx index 73bba8be12..7f2a588834 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-05-13-techdocs-addon-framework.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-05-13-techdocs-addon-framework.mdx @@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ _This blog post is co-authored by Eric Peterson ([@iamEAP](https://github.com/ia _TL;DR:_ Introducing the TechDocs Addon Framework — a way for us all to contribute and share additional features, TechDocs Addons, on top of the base docs-like-code experience. - {/* truncate */} [TechDocs](https://backstage.io/docs/features/techdocs/) is a centralized platform for publishing, viewing, and discovering technical documentation across an entire organization. It's a solid foundation! But TechDocs doesn't solve higher order documentation needs on its own such as: How do you create and reinforce a culture of documentation? How do you build trust in the quality of technical documentation? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-07-19-releasing-backstage-search-1.0.md b/microsite/blog/2022-07-19-releasing-backstage-search-1.0.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-07-19-releasing-backstage-search-1.0.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-07-19-releasing-backstage-search-1.0.mdx index 9fef067388..1936dd4fc3 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-07-19-releasing-backstage-search-1.0.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-07-19-releasing-backstage-search-1.0.mdx @@ -13,7 +13,6 @@ We first released the Backstage Search Platform over a year ago. Backstage Searc Backstage Search Platform makes it possible for you to search across your entire software ecosystem. With a Search platform that is customizable and extendable, you can identify your needs within your organization and set up search to solve these problems. Whether it is to search through the Software Catalog or technical documentation generated by the TechDocs plugin. - {/* truncate */} ## So what is Backstage Search 1.0? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-08-23-backstage-security-audit.md b/microsite/blog/2022-08-23-backstage-security-audit.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-08-23-backstage-security-audit.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-08-23-backstage-security-audit.mdx index a36b9e87d2..6b9f2f6463 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-08-23-backstage-security-audit.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-08-23-backstage-security-audit.mdx @@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ authorURL: https://github.com/Rugvip As an [Incubating project](https://www.cncf.io/blog/2022/03/15/backstage-project-joins-the-cncf-incubator/) within the [Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF)](https://www.cncf.io/), Backstage was fortunate enough to take advantage of a sponsored security audit. The [Open Source Technology Improvement Fund (OSTIF)](https://ostif.org/) sponsored the audit as part of its ongoing efforts to secure the open source software ecosystem, and the audit itself was performed by [X41 D-Sec](https://x41-dsec.de/). Our goal with the audit was to evaluate and improve Backstage’s security posture, focusing on the core Backstage framework and plugins. - {/* truncate */} ## Report Findings and Fixes diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-09-08-fyi-plugin-analytics-api.md b/microsite/blog/2022-09-08-fyi-plugin-analytics-api.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2022-09-08-fyi-plugin-analytics-api.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-09-08-fyi-plugin-analytics-api.mdx index 7e3d1748b8..aff30752ec 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-09-08-fyi-plugin-analytics-api.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-09-08-fyi-plugin-analytics-api.mdx @@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/3496491?v=4 ![The Plugin Analytics API](assets/22-09-08/analytics-api-fyi.png) - {/* truncate */} ## What is the plugin analytics API? diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-10-28-backstagecon-kubecon-2022.md b/microsite/blog/2022-10-28-backstagecon-kubecon-2022.mdx similarity index 100% rename from microsite/blog/2022-10-28-backstagecon-kubecon-2022.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-10-28-backstagecon-kubecon-2022.mdx diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-11-15-linux-foundation-introduction-to-backstage-course.md b/microsite/blog/2022-11-15-linux-foundation-introduction-to-backstage-course.mdx similarity index 98% rename from microsite/blog/2022-11-15-linux-foundation-introduction-to-backstage-course.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-11-15-linux-foundation-introduction-to-backstage-course.mdx index 609545db10..e049c6f03a 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-11-15-linux-foundation-introduction-to-backstage-course.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-11-15-linux-foundation-introduction-to-backstage-course.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ Backstage continues to grow in [popularity and maturity](https://roadie.io/blog/ [![Introduction to Backstage: Developer Portals Made Easy (LFS142x): Enroll!](assets/22-11-15/Introduction-to-Backstage-Developer-Portals-Made-Easy-2-768x432.png)](https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-to-backstage-developer-portals-made-easy) - {/* truncate */} The course, [Introduction to Backstage: Developer Portals Made Easy (LFS142x)](https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-to-backstage-developer-portals-made-easy), starts discussing the benefits of adopting a Developer Portal. Then, it dives into what is Backstage, its main features (Catalog, Scaffolder, TechDocs), and how to map its capabilities to your organization. At last, it provides tips on how to connect with the community to ease up your adoption journey. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2022-12-19-backstage-wrapped-2022.md b/microsite/blog/2022-12-19-backstage-wrapped-2022.mdx similarity index 97% rename from microsite/blog/2022-12-19-backstage-wrapped-2022.md rename to microsite/blog/2022-12-19-backstage-wrapped-2022.mdx index 3425bec1f5..e92c9f2265 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2022-12-19-backstage-wrapped-2022.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2022-12-19-backstage-wrapped-2022.mdx @@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ Our community is full of people from across the globe who bring incredible engag But before anticipating too much, let’s share some stats of this amazing 2022. - {/* truncate */} ## We grew … a lot! @@ -41,7 +40,14 @@ All of these people driving the enormous growth and maturity of the project are Wow… that’s a lot of activity. We’ve generated this animation showing all of your contributions to the Backstage repository in 2022, look at this project grow: - + ## But wait… there’s more diff --git a/microsite/blog/2023-01-31-incremental-entity-provider.md b/microsite/blog/2023-01-31-incremental-entity-provider.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2023-01-31-incremental-entity-provider.md rename to microsite/blog/2023-01-31-incremental-entity-provider.mdx index 4306360d84..8138b8a39a 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2023-01-31-incremental-entity-provider.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2023-01-31-incremental-entity-provider.mdx @@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ At the heart of [Backstage](https://backstage.io/) is the [Backstage Software Ca ![catalog pipeline](assets/2023-01-31/catalog-pipeline.png) - {/* truncate */} A common use case is for an organization to want to surface ownership and metadata about repositories. Backstage provides a mechanism for discovering and transforming repository information into a standard data structure and persisting it into the Backstage [Catalog](https://backstage.io/docs/features/software-catalog/). This process is known as ingestion, where all data is transformed into a standard Backstage data structure known as an entity. Entities in the Catalog’s data store are accessible to the Backstage App via the REST API. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2023-02-06-whats-ahead-in-2023.md b/microsite/blog/2023-02-06-whats-ahead-in-2023.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2023-02-06-whats-ahead-in-2023.md rename to microsite/blog/2023-02-06-whats-ahead-in-2023.mdx index ef877a0868..b7dbe9119f 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2023-02-06-whats-ahead-in-2023.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2023-02-06-whats-ahead-in-2023.mdx @@ -10,7 +10,6 @@ authorURL: https://github.com/leemills83 Okay, everyone. Time to move on from all the 2022 reflections, Top 10 lists, and Wrapped(s), and turn our gaze in the other direction — towards 2023. As the Backstage team moves into the new year, we find ourselves asking those perennial questions: How can we continue to grow and enhance the Backstage community? How can we improve the experience for those adopting Backstage? How can we give the best support to Backstage contributors? - {/* truncate */} Well, we don’t have all the answers, but we do have some. So we wanted to share more on three ongoing initiatives aimed at moving the needle forward for these three distinct, yet interrelated, questions. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2023-02-15-backend-system-alpha.md b/microsite/blog/2023-02-15-backend-system-alpha.mdx similarity index 97% rename from microsite/blog/2023-02-15-backend-system-alpha.md rename to microsite/blog/2023-02-15-backend-system-alpha.mdx index 0b00314475..2aef5596a0 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2023-02-15-backend-system-alpha.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2023-02-15-backend-system-alpha.mdx @@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ For the past year, the Backstage maintainer team has been spending time to give We’re happy to announce that the [v1.11](https://backstage.io/docs/releases/v1.11.0) release includes the public alpha of the [new Backstage backend system](https://backstage.io/docs/backend-system/)! The system has already been available to use for some time, as some of you have already found, but this alpha release marks the point where we are finally ready to encourage widespread adoption by plugin builders. We still don’t recommend that you use this new system in your production setups just yet, more on that later. - {/* truncate */} ## History of the Backstage backend system @@ -38,9 +37,16 @@ A few months later as the RFC settled, we resumed work and followed up with an i We wrapped up this work just before KubeCon NA 2022, with the full system implemented. The state of the system at this point was presented in our talk on the topic, which you can see just below. Except for a few API tweaks, this is what the system still looks like today. - + -
+
The final stage was all about polish, which we picked up at the beginning of this year. By leaving a bit of space between the main implementation, or phase two, and the polish phase, phase three, it was much easier to properly scrutinize our past solutions. We forget a lot of the low level reasoning for changes, and it is easier to step back and reconsider parts of the system. For example, we found that our initial design of the `createServiceFactory` function was unnecessarily complex, and could be made much simpler for most usages. In addition to reviewing all the APIs, we also wrote more documentation to help users, ensured that the local development and testing experience was solid, and double checked that there was a smooth migration path from the old system. diff --git a/microsite/blog/2023-03-15-backstage-turns-3.md b/microsite/blog/2023-03-15-backstage-turns-3.mdx similarity index 94% rename from microsite/blog/2023-03-15-backstage-turns-3.md rename to microsite/blog/2023-03-15-backstage-turns-3.mdx index f5b04538b5..2c5cdf65d5 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2023-03-15-backstage-turns-3.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2023-03-15-backstage-turns-3.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/3645856?v=4 **TL;DR** Spotify released Backstage into open source three years ago today. Since then, the community has grown by leaps and bounds to stretch across the globe (and the Discord server!). Now that Backstage is a threenager, the growing pains are real. So, on this birthday, we want to cover our collective efforts to make it easier to adopt and contribute to Backstage. - {/* truncate */} ## They grow up so fast, don’t they? @@ -34,9 +33,29 @@ But, without a doubt, the best thing about the Backstage project is the people i Don’t take our word for it! Take a look at this birthday video we put together with a few community members. -
- +
+
## The growing pains are real diff --git a/microsite/blog/2023-04-26-kubecon-eu-2023.md b/microsite/blog/2023-04-26-kubecon-eu-2023.mdx similarity index 99% rename from microsite/blog/2023-04-26-kubecon-eu-2023.md rename to microsite/blog/2023-04-26-kubecon-eu-2023.mdx index bd07532793..7ee549c088 100644 --- a/microsite/blog/2023-04-26-kubecon-eu-2023.md +++ b/microsite/blog/2023-04-26-kubecon-eu-2023.mdx @@ -9,7 +9,6 @@ authorImageURL: https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1477424303192694785/qCfN6XW We had a blast talking all things Backstage at KubeCon EU 2023 in Amsterdam last week. In case you missed it, here’s a quick recap: - {/* truncate */} ## Backstage Project Meeting