ORCA · Open Robust Compartmentalization Alliance · a foundation of The Linux Foundation

ORCA Projects

The hosted project ecosystem of the Open Robust Compartmentalization Alliance.

About ORCA Projects

ORCA hosts projects that isolate and compartmentalize real systems across the stack — from languages and runtimes down to hardware. By giving these efforts a neutral, vendor-independent home, ORCA helps them come together, reinforce one another, and reach a wider audience than any one of them could alone.

Hosted projects receive technical guidance from the Technical Steering Committee (TSC), infrastructure and collaboration support, a recognized identity within the Alliance, and more — growing as the project matures. ORCA is now accepting its first projects at the Sandbox level.

The project ladder

Projects join ORCA at the Sandbox level and can grow through three maturity stages. Each stage has its own requirements (the “gives”) and benefits (the “gets”):

Sandbox
Work aligned with the ORCA mission that is either a novel approach for an existing area or addresses an unfulfilled need, with a diversified contributor base. Projects can get TSC technical guidance and basic infrastructure support, and may describe themselves as a sandbox or experimental project in ORCA.
Incubating
Projects with documented governance, an active and diverse community of maintainers across multiple organizations, and demonstrable adoption. Receives a custom ORCA logo, blog posts, and higher-priority support.
Graduated
Mature projects with proven governance, a documented roadmap, a consistent release cadence and coordinated vulnerability disclosure. Receives advanced infrastructure support, event booth space, security-audit budget, and top-priority support.

The full set of requirements and benefits at each level is defined in the Gives and Gets document.

Bring your project to ORCA

If you are building or researching ways to isolate and compartmentalize real systems, we invite you to bring your work to ORCA. The Call for Projects explains what we're looking for, what your project contributes, what it receives in return, and how to apply.

To apply, file an issue (tempate : ORCA application) in the ORCA TSC repository requesting to enter the Sandbox stage. If you'd like to discuss fit first, reach out at info@orca-lf.org.

Project documents

Key references for prospective and hosted projects:

  • Gives and Gets
    The requirements and benefits for each project maturity level (Sandbox, Incubating, Graduated).
  • Call for Projects
    Our announcement for new projects — what we're looking for and how to apply.
  • Conflict Resolution Policy Coming soon
    How ORCA handles conflicts within and between projects. This document is being finalized and will be linked here once published.

Current projects

ORCA is just opening its doors to projects, so there are none to list yet. Accepted projects will appear here — check back soon.

No projects have been accepted yet. ORCA is currently reviewing its first proposals at the Sandbox level.