ChronoFrame vs Hydrus Network
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted photo management options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
ChronoFrame
Personal gallery application with online photo management, supporting
VS
Hydrus Network
Self-hosted tag-based media organizer and image database
| Feature | ChronoFrame | Hydrus Network |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Photo Management | Photo Management |
| License | MIT | WTFPL |
| Language | Vue | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker | bare-metal, binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,894 | ★ 3,148 |
| First released | 2026 | 2011 |
| Replaces | — | Google Photos, Eagle |
Why pick each one
Choose ChronoFrame if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.9k GitHub stars)
- Written in Vue
Frequently asked questions
Is ChronoFrame or Hydrus Network better?
Neither is universally better. Hydrus Network has the larger community, while ChronoFrame is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are ChronoFrame and Hydrus Network free and open-source?
Yes. ChronoFrame is licensed under MIT and Hydrus Network under WTFPL. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run ChronoFrame and Hydrus Network with Docker?
ChronoFrame: yes. Hydrus Network: check the project docs for container support.