Elentis

Elentis is a lightweight, developer-first REST API framework built on the Deno runtime, designed to simplify backend development through folder-based routing, strong typing, and minimal abstraction overhead.

It aims to provide a clean balance between structure and flexibility, allowing developers to build scalable APIs without sacrificing control or clarity.

Why Elentis?

Modern backend frameworks often introduce heavy abstractions, complex configuration layers, or opinionated patterns that slow down iteration.

Elentis takes a different approach:

• Minimal but structured
• Explicit over magical
• Runtime-native for Deno
• Easy to reason about, easy to extend

The goal is not to replace full-featured frameworks, but to offer a solid, transparent foundation for REST APIs.

Core Concepts

Folder-Based Routing

Routes are derived directly from the filesystem structure.

api/
 ├─ users/
 │   ├─ index.ts        → /users
 │   └─ [id].ts         → /users/:id
 └─ auth/
     └─ login.ts        → /auth/login

This keeps routing intuitive, predictable, and close to the code it represents.

Strongly Typed Handlers

Each route exports a handler function with explicit request and response types.

export const GET = (req: Request): Response => {
  return new Response("Hello from Elentis");
};

This encourages:

• Type safety
• Clear contracts
• IDE-friendly development

Explicit HTTP Semantics

• Native Request``Response
• No hidden middleware chains
• No runtime magic

You always know:

• What enters the handler
• What leaves the system

Design Philosophy

Elentis is built around a few core principles:

• Simplicity scales better than abstraction
• Code should mirror the API surface
• Frameworks should stay out of your way
• The runtime is a feature, not a limitation

This makes Elentis especially suitable for:

• Internal APIs
• Microservices
• Experimental backends
• Educational or research-oriented systems

Use Cases

• REST APIs for web and mobile apps
• Lightweight backend services
• Microservice-style architectures
• Rapid prototyping with long-term maintainability

Tech Stack

• Runtime: Deno
• Language: TypeScript
• HTTP: Native Fetch API
• Architecture: File-system based routing
• Deployment: Deno Deploy, self-hosted Deno runtimes

Project Status

Elentis is currently under active development.

Planned improvements include:

• Middleware system
• Request context helpers
• Plugin architecture
• Improved error handling
• Documentation and examples

Vision

Elentis is not trying to be everything.

It is an attempt to explore how modern runtimes, strong typing, and simple conventions can lead to cleaner, more maintainable backend systems.

If you value clarity, control, and minimalism, Elentis is built for you.

Coming Soon

• Real-world usage examples
• Performance benchmarks
• Extended routing features
• Ecosystem utilities

Built with curiosity, not complexity.