RStudio Server Open Source (RSOS) - Introduction
RStudio Server Open Source is the free community version of Posit Workbench licensed under AGPLv3. This version is similar to the free version of RStudio Desktop.
Compared to Posit Workbench, RSOS lacks the following features:
- Centralized user authentication via AD, LDAP or similar
- Multiple concurrent sessions
- Multiple R versions
- Execution of remote background jobs (i.e., launcher jobs)
- No VSCode or Jupyter integration
RSOS requires local user management on the machine itself.
Our Opinion
RSOS can be a good addition alongside another Workbench installation for occasional users who use R only sporadically. Yet the need for local user management adds substantial administrational overhead and we do not recommend to use RSOS if user fluctuation is high. The lack of multiple R versions aggravates the challenges of (reproducible) project management, especially when collaborating with other users.