The Executable as a Database: A Live Webserver That Stores Its Own State in SQLite

Queryable Executables

In a follow-up to his earlier post, Farid Zakaria demonstrates SELF, a format where an executable is a SQLite database. He introduces self-httpd, a proof-of-concept webserver that runs from a single database file, storing its own code, routes, and visitor logs. The server can be queried and modified with SQL while running, enabling transactional live edits, full-text search, and simple deployments via file copy. The approach collapses traditional filesystem state into one queryable file.