# Pitchfork

Preforking HTTP server for Rack applications, designed to share memory between worker processes through copy-on-write.


Source: https://findsoftware.frbit.cloud/pitchfork/
Last reviewed: 2026-10-30
Listed since: 2026-10-30

## Record

### Links

- repository: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork
- docs: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/docs/CONFIGURATION.md

### Identity

- status: active
- maintainer: Shopify Inc.
- maintainerType: company
- parent: unknown
- firstRelease: 2022
- hqCountry: unknown

### Kind

- category: web-server
- hosting: ruby
- language: ruby
- runtime: ruby
- runtimeMin: ruby 2.5
- basedOn: unicorn

### Content

- contentStore: not applicable
- databases: not applicable
- adminUi: not applicable
- headlessApi: not applicable
- templating: not applicable
- i18n: not applicable

### Rendering and deploy

- runsAs: always-on
- renderingModes: not applicable
- installMethod: Bundler (Gemfile)

### License

- licenseModel: open-source
- license: GPL-2.0+, Ruby 1.8-specific terms

### Releases

- currentMajor: 0
- latestReleaseDate: 2026-01-28

### Adoption

- githubStargazers: 837
- packagistDownloads: not applicable
- npmWeeklyDownloads: not applicable
- contributors: 53
- pluginCount: unknown
- packagistMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- ecosystemsMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- httpArchiveSites: unknown
- wordpressActiveInstalls: unknown
- dependentRepos: unknown
- dependentPackages: unknown

### Sources

- urls: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork (read 2026-10-30)
- urls: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- maintainer: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- maintainerType: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- category: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- language: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork (read 2026-10-30)
- runtime: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- runtimeMin: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/v0.18.2/pitchfork.gemspec (read 2026-10-30)
- runsAs: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- installMethod: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- installMethod: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)
- license: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/v0.18.2/pitchfork.gemspec (read 2026-10-30)
- license: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/v0.18.2/pitchfork.gemspec (read 2026-10-30)
- licenseModel: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/LICENSE (read 2026-10-30)
- currentMajor: https://rubygems.org/api/v1/versions/pitchfork.json (read 2026-10-30)
- latestReleaseDate: https://rubygems.org/api/v1/versions/pitchfork.json (read 2026-10-30)
- firstRelease: https://rubygems.org/api/v1/versions/pitchfork.json (read 2026-10-30)
- githubStargazers: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork (read 2026-10-30)
- contributors: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork (read 2026-10-30)
- basedOn: https://github.com/Shopify/pitchfork/blob/master/README.md (read 2026-10-30)

## Notes

Pitchfork is an HTTP server that preforks worker processes for Rack applications. Its workers share memory through copy-on-write, and the server runs as a long-lived process.

Applications install it with Bundler through the Gemfile, or with gem install. Shopify Inc. maintains it, and the source is hosted in the Shopify GitHub organization.

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Data licensed CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Attributes are recorded, never scored; absent means unknown.
Credit, in full: FindSoftware, CC BY 4.0