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SafeSchool OS

Open-Source School Safety Platform | Alyssa's Law Compliant | Redundant by Design

SafeSchool OS is a free, open-source school safety management platform that integrates panic alarms, lockdown control, 911 dispatch, visitor management, threat analysis, transportation tracking, and mass notification into a single command center. Built to comply with Alyssa's Law and the PASS (Partner Alliance for Safer Schools) Guidelines.


Free & Open Source

SafeSchool OS is free to use, deploy, and modify under the AGPL-3.0 license. Every school deserves access to modern safety technology regardless of budget.

Business Model

Community (Free) Supported (Paid)
Full platform Included Included
All integrations Included Included
Self-hosted deployment Included Included
Community support GitHub Issues & Discussions Priority email & phone
Implementation assistance Self-service docs Dedicated onboarding engineer
Custom integrations DIY via adapter pattern Built by our team
SLA Best effort 99.9% uptime guarantee
Training Documentation & videos On-site & virtual training sessions
Compliance consulting Guides included Alyssa's Law compliance audit & certification
Grant writing support Grant finder tool Assistance with SVPP, COPS, BSCA applications
Hardware provisioning BYO hardware Pre-configured edge devices, shipped ready

Our philosophy: The software that keeps kids safe should never be locked behind a paywall. We charge for the expertise, support, and services that help schools deploy it successfully — not for the software itself.

For support plans and pricing, contact sales@safeschoolos.com.


Architecture: Redundancy First

SafeSchool is designed to never be a single point of failure:

                    +------------------+
                    |   Cloud Server   |
                    |   (Primary Hub)  |
                    +--------+---------+
                             |
                    Encrypted Sync (WebSocket + REST)
                             |
                    +--------+---------+
                    |  On-Site Mini PC  |
                    | (Local Failover)  |
                    +--------+---------+
                             |
          +------------------+------------------+
          |                  |                  |
    +-----------+     +-----------+     +-----------+
    |  Wearable |     |  Access   |     |  Visitor  |
    |  Panic    |     |  Control  |     |  Check-in |
    |  Devices  |     |  Systems  |     |  Kiosk    |
    +-----------+     +-----------+     +-----------+
  • Cloud Server: Primary management dashboard, alerting engine, data storage, remote management
  • On-Site Mini PC: Local fallback that operates independently if internet goes down; handles direct 911 integration, local access control, and real-time device communication
  • Dual-Path 911: Both cloud and on-site can independently trigger 911 dispatch
  • Cellular Failover: On-site unit has cellular modem backup if school network goes down

Alyssa's Law Compliance

Named after Alyssa Alhadeff, killed in the 2018 Parkland school shooting. Enacted in NJ, FL, NY, TX, OK, TN, VA, AZ, NC and expanding.

Requirement How SafeSchool Meets It
Silent panic alarm Wearable devices + app-based panic buttons with no audible alarm
Direct law enforcement notification Dual-path 911/PSAP integration via RapidSOS & Rave
Location data Room-level accuracy via BLE mesh + GPS
Immediate activation Single-button press on wearable or 2-tap on mobile app
Redundancy Cloud + on-site + cellular failover
Regular testing Built-in drill management and compliance reporting

Standards Compliance

  • UL 636 — Holdup Alarm Units and Systems
  • NFPA 3000 — Active Shooter/Hostile Event Response
  • NFPA 72 Ch.24 — Emergency Communications Systems
  • NENA i3 — Next Generation 911 interoperability
  • PASS Guidelines — Tiers 1-4 school security
  • FERPA — Student data privacy

Platform Modules

Panic Alert Engine

Receives panic signals from wearables, mobile apps, and fixed stations. Configurable alert levels (Medical, Lockdown, Active Threat, All-Clear) with auto-escalation and room-level location tracking.

911 Dispatch Integration

Dual-path redundant dispatch with automatic failover chain: RapidSOS, Rave 911 Suite, SIP direct dial, and cellular backup. Pushes floor plans, camera feeds, and entry points to responding officers.

Access Control & Lockdown

One-button building-wide or zone-based lockdown. Integrates with 10+ access control systems including Sicunet, Genetec, LenelS2, Brivo, Verkada, and more.

Visitor Management

Self-service kiosk with ID scanning, real-time sex offender database (NSOPW) screening, custom watchlists, pre-registration, and contractor management.

Threat Analysis & Intelligence

  • AI weapon detection — ZeroEyes, Omnilert (camera-based)
  • Gunshot detection — SoundThinking (formerly ShotSpotter)
  • Behavioral threat assessment — CSTAG-based scoring, Navigate360 integration
  • Social media monitoring — Bark for Schools, Gaggle
  • Anonymous tip line — Built-in submission portal with admin review

Mass Notification

Multi-channel alerts: SMS (Twilio), email (SendGrid), push notifications (FCM), PA/intercom integration, and 20+ configurable notification templates.

Video Surveillance

ONVIF-compatible camera discovery, VMS integration (Genetec, Milestone, Avigilon, Verkada), live feed sharing to first responders during incidents.

Emergency Operations & Reunification

Drill management with Alyssa's Law compliance tracking, parent-student reunification with barcode check-in, staging area management, and after-action reporting.

Student Transportation

Real-time bus GPS tracking, RFID student scanning, geofence-based route monitoring, and automated parent notifications (boarding, arrival, delays, missed bus alerts).


Project Structure

safeschool-os/
├── packages/
│   ├── core/                 # Shared types, logger, error classes
│   ├── activation/           # License key codec, validation, proxy table
│   ├── sync-engine/          # Bidirectional cloud sync, offline queue, conflict resolution
│   ├── runtime/              # EdgeRuntime orchestrator, Fastify API server
│   ├── cloud-sync/           # Cloud-side sync routes, fleet management, dashboard
│   ├── module-loader/        # Dynamic product module loading
│   ├── connector-framework/  # Base connector class, connector registry
│   └── setup-wizard/         # On-site setup wizard UI
├── modules/
│   └── safeschool/           # SafeSchool campus safety module
│       └── src/connectors/   # Lenel, Milestone, fire alarm, intrusion, intercom
├── deploy/
│   ├── safeschool/           # Gateway, appliance, and Windows deployment configs
│   └── safeschoolos/         # Ubuntu ISO builder, NanoPi gateway, Windows gateway
├── tests/
│   └── e2e/safeschool/       # Playwright end-to-end tests
├── Dockerfile                # Multi-stage Docker build
└── turbo.json                # Turborepo build config

Tech Stack

Component Technology
Runtime TypeScript, Node.js 20+
API Server Fastify 5
Real-time WebSocket (cloud sync + live events)
Sync Engine HMAC-signed REST + offline queue
Build Turborepo + npm workspaces
Deployment Docker, Docker Compose

EdgeRuntime

The on-site sync engine, offline queue, and conflict resolver. Handles:

  • Cloud sync — bidirectional data sync between the on-site mini PC and the central cloud
  • Offline queue — persisted queue that continues operations during connectivity loss
  • Conflict resolution — per-entity strategy (edge-wins, cloud-wins, last-write-wins)
  • Connector framework — pluggable adapters for access control, cameras, fire alarms, etc.
  • Federation — cross-product event sharing between edge devices
  • Activation keys — HMAC-verified license keys with cloud proxy routing
# Check EdgeRuntime health
curl http://localhost:8470/health

Getting Started

Prerequisites

  • Node.js 20+
  • Docker & Docker Compose (for deployment)

Local Development

# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/SafeSchoolOS/safeschool-os.git
cd safeschool-os

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build all packages
npm run build

# Set required environment variables
export EDGERUNTIME_HMAC_SECRET="your-hmac-secret-here"
export EDGERUNTIME_ACTIVATION_KEY="your-activation-key"

# Start the runtime
npm start

On-Site Edge Deployment

# Gateway mode (lightweight sync agent)
cd deploy/safeschool/gateway
cp .env.example .env   # Edit with your config
docker compose up -d

# Full appliance mode (complete local stack)
cd deploy/safeschool/appliance
cp .env.example .env
docker compose up -d

SafeSchoolOS ISO

Build a bootable Ubuntu-based appliance ISO:

cd deploy/safeschoolos/ubuntu-appliance
sudo ./build-iso.sh

Recommended Edge Hardware

Option Model Why
Recommended Intel NUC 13 Pro (i7, 32GB, 512GB SSD) vPro remote management, small form factor
Budget Beelink SER7 (Ryzen 7, 32GB, 500GB SSD) Great performance/price ratio
Enterprise Lenovo ThinkCentre M90q Tiny Enterprise support, vPro
Rugged OnLogic Helix 600 (fanless) No moving parts, 24/7 rated

Plus a UPS battery backup and cellular failover modem.


PASS Tier Alignment

Tier Description SafeSchool Coverage
Tier 1 Minimum recommended Panic alerts, basic access control, visitor management
Tier 2 Enhanced + Camera integration, mass notification, lockdown
Tier 3 Comprehensive + Threat analysis, weapon detection, reunification
Tier 4 Highest level + AI analytics, gunshot detection, full interoperability

Contributing

This is a safety-critical system. All contributions must include tests and undergo security review.

Key principles:

  • Adapter pattern for all integrations — never vendor-lock
  • Redundancy at every layer — no single points of failure
  • Privacy by default — FERPA compliant, minimal data collection
  • Test coverage required for all safety-critical paths

License

SafeSchool OS is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0. This means you can freely use, modify, and deploy it — but if you distribute a modified version or run it as a network service, you must make your source code available under the same license.


Contact

General info@safeschoolos.com
Sales & Pricing sales@safeschoolos.com
Support support@safeschoolos.com
Security Vulnerabilities security@safeschoolos.com
Website safeschoolos.com

Built with the goal of making every school safer. In memory of Alyssa Alhadeff and all victims of school violence.

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Open-source school safety platform — Alyssa's Law compliant. Free for every school.

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