It is based on Java OSGi technology, which allows components to be dynamically installed, started, stopped, updated, and uninstalled, and it eliminates component version conflicts.
In Carbon, this capability translates into a solid core of common middleware enterprise components, including clustering, security, logging, and monitoring, plus the ability to add components for specific features needed to solve a specific enterprise scenario.
WSO2 Carbon was introduced in 2009 and received InfoWorld's 2009 'Best of Open Source Software', or "Bossie", award.
[2] In February 2009, WSO2 introduced the WSO2 Carbon componentized framework based on the Open Source Gateway Initiative (OSGi), designed to serve as the basis for all WSO2 software products.
[3][4] Version 5.3.0 of the open-source WSO2 Carbon Kernel was released in December 2022 and updated in January 2023.