What kinds of apps are available on Sandstorm?
Sandstorm is an open source platform for self-hosting web apps, and its own site points to four concrete examples: Etherpad for document editing and collaboration, Davros for file storage and sharing, Wekan for task and project management, and Rocket.Chat for chat. These are the app types the project itself highlights, so they are the safest starting point if you want to know what running Sandstorm actually looks like. Beyond those examples, Sandstorm apps are discovered and installed through an App Market, and the platform says many of them are open source.
The app categories Sandstorm names on its own site
The homepage groups its examples by what the app does, which makes it easy to map a need to a tool:
| Need | App named by Sandstorm | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Document editing | Etherpad | Create, edit, and collaborate on documents |
| File storage | Davros | Store files and share them with others |
| Task & project management | Wekan | Organize tasks and ideas |
| Chat | Rocket.Chat | Sync up with colleagues securely |
These four cover collaboration, storage, planning, and communication — a reasonable picture of the kind of general-purpose web apps the platform is built to run. The site also links to a fuller list under "Check out the apps available on Sandstorm," so treat the table as a sample rather than the full catalog.
How you find and install apps
Sandstorm's stated model is that installing an app works like installing an app on your phone: you find what you want in the App Market and start using it with a few clicks. Two consequences follow from that description:
- Discovery happens in the App Market, not by manually configuring each service.
- Updates are automatic once an app is installed, according to the site.
If you want to see the experience before committing to a self-hosted setup, the homepage offers an Online Demo alongside the "Get Sandstorm" option.
What all Sandstorm apps share
The platform's selling point is not any single app but the consistent layer underneath them. According to Sandstorm:
- Unified access control covers data from every app, and everything is private to you by default.
- Each item you create — a document, chat room, mailbox, notebook, blog, or anything else — is a "grain" containerized in its own secure sandbox that cannot talk to the world without express permission.
- You can mix and match apps from multiple developers, and add apps of your own as needed.
That last point matters if your interest is breadth: Sandstorm is not a single suite with a fixed feature set, but a host for apps from different sources that behave consistently once installed.
Choosing between Sandstorm apps and manual self-hosting
The relevant comparison is not "which app" but "who manages the plumbing." With manual self-hosting, you install and update each web app yourself and handle its access control separately. With Sandstorm, the site claims installing is as easy as a phone app install, updates are automatic, and one access-control system spans every app.
The trade-off to weigh: you get consistency and less per-app maintenance, but you are running apps within Sandstorm's grain and sandbox model rather than as standalone services you configure directly. If you need an app that is not available on Sandstorm, or need to tune a service at a level Sandstorm does not expose, manual hosting may still be the fit.
Where to go next
- Browse the App Market from the Sandstorm site to see the current catalog beyond the four examples.
- Try the Online Demo if you want to evaluate the install-and-use experience first.
- Check the project's Docs and Community pages for setup and app-specific questions.
One caveat: the homepage excerpt does not list pricing, hosting requirements, or a complete app inventory, so confirm those details on the linked pages before deciding.