wazero: the zero dependency WebAssembly runtime for Go developers

WebAssembly is a way to safely run code compiled in other languages. Runtimes execute WebAssembly Modules (Wasm), which are most often binaries with a .wasm extension.

wazero is a WebAssembly Core Specification 1.0 and 2.0 compliant runtime written in Go. It has zero dependencies, and doesn't rely on CGO. This means you can run applications in other languages and still keep cross compilation.

Import wazero and extend your Go application with code written in any language!

Example

The best way to learn wazero is by trying one of our examples. The most basic example extends a Go application with an addition function defined in WebAssembly.

Deeper dive

The former example is a pure function. While a good start, you probably are wondering how to do something more realistic, like read a file. WebAssembly Modules (Wasm) are sandboxed similar to containers. They can't read anything on your machine unless you explicitly allow it.

The WebAssembly Core Specification is a standard, governed by W3C process, but it has no scope to specify how system resources like files are accessed. Instead, WebAssembly defines "host functions" and the signatures they can use. In wazero, "host functions" are written in Go, and let you do anything including access files. The main constraint is that WebAssembly only allows numeric types. wazero includes imports for common languages and compiler toolchains.

For example, you can grant WebAssembly code access to your console by exporting a function written in Go. The below function can be imported into standard WebAssembly as the module "env" and the function name "log_i32".

_, err := r.NewHostModuleBuilder("env").
	ExportFunction("log_i32", func(v uint32) {
		fmt.Println("log_i32 >>", v)
	}).
	Instantiate(ctx, r)
if err != nil {
	log.Panicln(err)
}

The WebAssembly community has subgroups which maintain work that may not result in a Web Standard. One such group is the WebAssembly System Interface (WASI), which defines functions similar to Go's x/sys/unix.

The wasi_snapshot_preview1 tag of WASI is widely implemented, so wazero bundles an implementation. That way, you don't have to write these functions.

For example, here's how you can allow WebAssembly modules to read "/work/home/a.txt" as "/a.txt" or "./a.txt" as well the system clock:

_, err := wasi_snapshot_preview1.Instantiate(ctx, r)
if err != nil {
	log.Panicln(err)
}

config := wazero.NewModuleConfig().
	WithFS(os.DirFS("/work/home")). // instead of no file system
	WithSysWalltime().WithSysNanotime() // instead of fake time

module, err := r.InstantiateModule(ctx, compiled, config)
...

While we hope this deeper dive was useful, we also provide examples to elaborate each point. Please try these before raising usage questions as they may answer them for you!

Runtime

There are two runtime configurations supported in wazero: Compiler is default:

By default, ex wazero.NewRuntime(ctx), the Compiler is used if supported. You can also force the interpreter like so:

r := wazero.NewRuntimeWithConfig(ctx, wazero.NewRuntimeConfigInterpreter())

Interpreter

Interpreter is a naive interpreter-based implementation of Wasm virtual machine. Its implementation doesn't have any platform (GOARCH, GOOS) specific code, therefore interpreter can be used for any compilation target available for Go (such as riscv64).

Compiler

Compiler compiles WebAssembly modules into machine code ahead of time (AOT), during Runtime.CompileModule. This means your WebAssembly functions execute natively at runtime. Compiler is faster than Interpreter, often by order of magnitude (10x) or more. This is done without host-specific dependencies.

If interested, check out the RATIONALE.md and help us optimize further!

Conformance

Both runtimes pass WebAssembly Core 1.0 and 2.0 specification tests on supported platforms:

Support Policy

The below support policy focuses on compatability concerns of those embedding wazero into their Go applications.

wazero

wazero is an early project, so APIs are subject to change until version 1.0. To use wazero meanwhile, you need to use the latest pre-release like this:

go get github.com/tetratelabs/wazero@latest

wazero will tag a new pre-release at least once a month until 1.0. 1.0 is scheduled for Feb 2023, following the release of Go 1.20.

Meanwhile, please practice the current APIs to ensure they work for you, and give us a star if you are enjoying it so far!

Go

wazero has no dependencies except Go, so the only source of conflict in your project's use of wazero is the Go version.

To simplify our support policy, we adopt Go's Release Policy (two versions).

This means wazero will remain compilable and tested on the version prior to the latest release of Go.

For example, once Go 1.29 is released, wazero may use a Go 1.28 feature.

Platform

wazero has two runtime modes: Interpreter and Compiler. The only supported operating systems are ones we test, but that doesn't necessarily mean other operating system versions won't work.

We currently test Linux (Ubuntu and scratch), MacOS and Windows as packaged by GitHub Actions, as well FreeBSD via Vagrant/VirtualBox.

• Interpreter
  • Linux is tested on amd64 (native) as well arm64 and riscv64 via emulation.
  • FreeBSD, MacOS and Windows are only tested on amd64.
• Compiler
  • Linux is tested on amd64 (native) as well arm64 via emulation.
  • FreeBSD, MacOS and Windows are only tested on amd64.

wazero has no dependencies and doesn't require CGO. This means it can also be embedded in an application that doesn't use an operating system. This is a main differentiator between wazero and alternatives.

We verify zero dependencies by running tests in Docker's scratch image. This approach ensures compatibility with any parent image.

wazero is a registered trademark of Tetrate.io, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries