Bento office suite: one HTML file worth am?

Wetín Bento be

Bento na an office suite wey dey release as one HTML file. You download one file, open am for any modern browser, and that file be both the editor and the document. Installer no dey, and account no dey. MIT license cover am, the source dey for github.com/nyblnet/bento, and the first release come out on 21 July 2026. As of 27 October 2026, e don just pass three months old, and e don get 26 releases so far. The fact say e still young na the most important thing for this post, and na why the last section focus on evaluation instead of migration.

Wetin “fit dey inside one file” really mean

Self-hosted office suite normally na stack. Nextcloud na PHP wey dey behind web server, plus database, cache, and background job runner. The editor na another service beside am, like Collabora Online or ONLYOFFICE Docs, usually for im own container, and browser dey talk to am through HTTP. The document dey inside filesystem and one database row, while editing session dey inside editor service.

Bento remove the stack. The download na Bento_Slides.bento.html, about 659 KB for release v1.0.11 (27 July 2026), and about 706 KB for v1.2.7 (11 October 2026). Inside that one file dey:

• the editor, wey also be the viewer
• the presentation runtime wey dey show the deck full screen
• the fonts and images wey the deck use, embedded
• the document itself, as readable JSON block near the top of the file

The unusual part na how e dey save. The file rewrite im own data block. The page ask browser for write access through the File System Access API (browser interface wey allow page write back to file wey user pick), and for browsers wey no get that API, na download you go get instead. When you edit deck, e produce new copy of the same self-contained file. Nothing upload anywhere, because nothing dey to upload.

Na this detail people dey misunderstand when dem hear “single file”. E no be one server binary wey dey run your office suite as one process for your VPS. No process dey at all. Browser na the runtime, so VPS, if you use one, go serve static file and nothing else.

Wetin the Bento office suite get today

"Office suite" na the project ambition, e never be the full list of wetin dey inside. Na one application dey: bento/slides, wey be presentation editor. The roadmap mention bento/spaces for notes, bento/dash for sheets and tables, and bento/vault, with each one planned as separate self-contained .bento.html file. If you need word processor or spreadsheet today, Bento no get any.

Release pace fast. v1.0.6 for 21 July 2026 na the first release build, and v1.0.11 land for 27 July 2026, six releases for seven days. The pace still dey like that: v1.2.7 for 11 October 2026 na the 23rd release, and v1.2.10 for 24 October 2026 na the 26th. This show say the maintainers dey active, but e also warn you about the software. Anything wey dey move this fast still dey discover bugs, and the release notes show am: fixes for large text wey dey crash live collaboration, stylesheet duplication for saved files, and chart baselines for negative values. Five of the six releases from v1.2.5 to v1.2.10 close security issues wey the project own review find; na only v1.2.8 no do so.

Why one file dey suit small VPS

To publish a deck mean say you copy one file enter directory wey your web server already dey serve. Nothing dey to orchestrate, no container to keep running, and no database to migrate when you upgrade. Compare am with the editor services, using the minimum requirements wey each one publish:

[
  {
    "label": "bento/slides (no backend)",
    "min_ram_mb": 0
  },
  {
    "label": "Collabora Online CODE",
    "min_ram_mb": 1024
  },
  {
    "label": "ONLYOFFICE Docs, Debian package",
    "min_ram_mb": 2048
  },
  {
    "label": "ONLYOFFICE Docs, Docker",
    "min_ram_mb": 4096
  }
]

Those ones na published minimums; dem no be numbers wey dem measure on a running box. Collabora figure na the 1 GB system requirement wey Nextcloud publish for Collabora Online. E still add memory for every user wey connect, so 1,024 MB na the floor before your first user connect. ONLYOFFICE help center, wey dem check on 27 October 2026, ask for at least 2,048 MB from the Debian or Ubuntu package and 4,096 MB for Docker. Each one need at least 4 GB swap and 40 GB free disk. Bento editing backend need 0 MB because no editing backend dey. Under either editor service, you still dey run Nextcloud itself with its database and cache. So for 2 GB VPS, this difference decide wetin else you fit host.

Backup dey simpler for the same reason. To restore Nextcloud mean say you restore files and database wey agree with each other for the same point in time. To restore Bento deck mean say you restore one file. E still need proper backup with history, because the editor dey rewrite the file for the same place, and write for the same place fit fail: scheduled restic snapshot of that directory go cover am.

One optional server component dey. Live collaboration dey use wetin the project call blind relay, and you fit self-host am from server/sync-worker/ for the repository. Browser dey encrypt documents with AES-GCM (Galois/Counter Mode, an authenticated encryption mode). The room key no ever leave the file, and the relay dey hold ciphertext, connection timing, and hash of that key. If na only you dey edit, you no need relay.

Wetin you give up compared with Nextcloud and Collabora

Access control na the biggest gap. For Bento, dem create the collaboration key together with the document, and the key dey inside the file. So, anybody wey get the file become member of the session. To revoke person access, na to rotate the key. This model no get accounts, groups, single sign-on, or audit trail. Nextcloud give you users, share links wey get expiry dates, quotas, server-side version history, and mobile clients. If two people need different access levels for the same document, Bento no fit represent that.

Format interoperability na the second gap. Bento dey store its own JSON. Na exactly why the file easy to read and why script fit edit am. Collabora and ONLYOFFICE dey round-trip OOXML (the .docx and .pptx family) with high fidelity, because na the format wey the rest of the world go send you. Bento don start to close this gap: v1.2.6 (4 October 2026) add PowerPoint import, and v1.2.7 (11 October 2026) add one in-browser page to convert PowerPoint decks in and out. Both features still just few weeks old, so check the release notes to know wetin the version wey you download fit import and export before you build workflow wey assume say PowerPoint compatibility dey.

Maturity na the third gap. The project dey document its own rough edges plainly, and that one na point for its favour. Undo during live collaboration dey use snapshots, and e fit revert collaborator concurrent edit for the same property. Editing dey desktop first, while phones dey better for viewing and presenting than editing. The README still list both as known limitations. Phone support dey move fast: for v1.0.11, the save-as menu no fit show complete for phone screen; v1.0.12 make saving a copy possible from phone; and v1.0.19 add text editing by touch, which before then make deck effectively read-only for phone. Since e just pass three months old, unknown limitations still dey.

Make you trust real documents give am?

Divide the question based on wetin the document need. Conference talk, sales deck, or lecture wey you want open again in ten years na good fit, because the file carry its own editor and e no need the project to still dey exist for 2036. Contract wey get three reviewers, retention policy, and named approver no be good fit, because that document need accounts and server-side history.

Two practical protections. Keep decks for version control or backup wey get history, because file wey dey rewrite itself when you save fit also corrupt when you save am, and you go need yesterday copy. And treat a .bento.html from person wey you no know as program instead of document, because na so e be: web page wey get complete application inside am. Open am the same way you go open any untrusted web page. This same matter get another side for your own decks: every file carry its own copy of the editor, so when release note talk say "Security: update this file", as every release from v1.2.5 to v1.2.10 except v1.2.8 dey do, update the decks wey you share. v1.2.7 still ask anybody wey dey share decks live to use Reset access once after update, and v1.2.9 ask you to unlock and save each password-protected deck once.

The automation side really useful and e worth mention. Because the document na plain JSON inside the file, coding agent fit edit a .bento.html in place, and the project ships a Claude Code skill for that. E dey work with local open-weight models too, so box wey already dey run Ollama to serve your own model fit draft slides without sending anything comot from the machine.

Where Bento dey fit for small server

Bento dey belong with other single-purpose tools wey fit earn place for small VPS because dem remain small: self-hosted RSS reader or Actual Budget for personal finance. One job, small footprint, and data wey you fit read without the application. People wey dey replace their notes app with one of the self-hosted Notion alternatives dey make the same trade-off, and the wider guide to wetin you fit self-host cover the rest of that list.

If you need complete document platform wey get users, sharing, and version history, Nextcloud for VPS with Docker, TLS and backups still be the answer. Bento no dey compete for that position. Na the thing wey you send give person outside your server, as one file wey go open for dem without login or plugin.

FAQ

Bento na replacement for Nextcloud and Collabora?

No be for the same job. Nextcloud with Collabora or ONLYOFFICE gives you accounts, shared folders, permissions and server-side version history, and e need real server stack to provide dem. Bento gives you one portable file wey fit open anywhere and no need server. Use Bento when the document suppose self-contained. Use the Nextcloud stack when different people need different access to the same document over time.

Bento need server or VPS?

No. A .bento.html file fit open from local disk for any modern browser and e fit edit offline. VPS dey useful for two optional things: serving the file over HTTPS so other people fit download am, and running the sync relay for live collaboration. You fit self-host the relay from server/sync-worker/ for the project repository. E stores ciphertext plus connection metadata, so e never see your content.

Which format Bento dey use save documents?

Na im own JSON, written as readable block near the top of the HTML file, with fonts and images embedded alongside. Open the file for text editor and you fit read the document structure. Na why scripts and AI agents fit edit a deck in place. This also mean say the stored format no be OOXML. PowerPoint import arrive for v1.2.6 on 4 October 2026, but no assume say a .pptx workflow go survive until you don test import and export for the release wey you dey run.

How collaboration dey work if user accounts no dey?

The collaboration key dey minted when dem create the document and e dey inside the file. So anybody wey hold the file fit join the session. Edits merge with a CRDT (conflict-free replicated data type, a structure wey merge concurrent changes without central authority) and dem travel encrypted with AES-GCM. Presence names na claims, dem no be proof. So read the participant list as label, no be identity check. To revoke access, rotate the key and redistribute the file.

Bento ready for important documents?

E get MIT license and dem dey develop am in the open. E never reach two weeks old on 1 August 2026, with six releases for the first week. On 11 October 2026, e never reach three months old with 23 releases, and the last three close security issues. By 27 October 2026, e get 26 releases, and v1.2.9 and v1.2.10 close more security issues. Treat am as software wey you dey evaluate this month, no be software wey you go standardise on this quarter. Keep every deck for backup with history. Keep the file updated. Test the export path wey you depend on before you depend on am. Keep anything wey get compliance or retention requirement for system wey get accounts and version history.