Paaster

Paaster is a self-hosted web application designed for the confidential sharing of code and text. It implements end-to-end encryption to ensure that pasted content remains private, encrypting data locally within the user browser before any information is transmitted to the server. This approach ensures that the server never has access to the decryption keys.

The application is deployed as a server-side service, commonly managed through Docker Compose. It requires a MongoDB instance for metadata management and S3-compatible object storage for the actual encrypted payloads. Users interact with the software through a web browser to create, share, and manage their pastes, making it suitable for developers and privacy-conscious users who need to transfer sensitive snippets.

Key features

• End-to-end encryption using libsodium functions
• Automatic or manual language detection for code snippets
• Paste history stored locally in IndexedDB
• Expiration settings to delete pastes after viewing or a set time
• File drag and drop support for quick uploads
• Sharing via QR codes for mobile access
• Custom themes and keyboard shortcuts for efficiency
• Support for i18n to enable multiple languages

The technical architecture relies on a zero-trust methodology. Encryption keys are transported via URI fragments, which are not sent to the server according to web standards. For storage, the software integrates with S3-compatible providers such as MinIO, Storj, or iDrive e2. To mitigate supply chain attacks, the project avoids dynamically loaded third party dependencies and utilizes package-lock.json in conjunction with Socket.dev during the build process.

Paaster is designed for users who require a private, encrypted method for sharing text and code snippets while maintaining full control over their own hosting infrastructure.