> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://bigbluebutton.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# BNX: BigBlueButton BN Experience

> Discover BNX, the extension layer that upgrades BigBlueButton in Moodle beyond core, and its DataHub and Insights sidecars.

BigBlueButton became part of Moodle core in 2021, giving every Moodle teacher a virtual classroom out of the box. That's a solid foundation, but core moves at the pace of a stable, broadly-used product. **BNX (BigBlueButton BN Experience)** is how Blindside Networks keeps pushing the experience forward, without forking or patching Moodle core.

BNX is a free Moodle subplugin (`bbbext_bnx`) available on the [Moodle Plugins directory](https://marketplace.moodle.com/plugins/bbbext_bnx). Install it alongside the core BigBlueButton activity and it upgrades the experience immediately, no migration, no fork, no risk to your existing setup.

## What BNX gives you today

BNX ships concrete, visible improvements to the day-to-day BigBlueButton experience in Moodle:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="PreSession Lobby" icon="door-open" href="/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/framework#presession-lobby-access">
    Replaces the confusing "Wait for Moderator" screen with a proper lobby, so participants always know where they stand.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Modernised recordings view" icon="table" href="/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/activity-view#enhanced-recordings-management">
    A responsive, searchable, sortable recordings table with inline editing, replacing the legacy YUI datatable.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Integrated reminders and lock settings" icon="lock" href="/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/framework#integrated-reminder-management">
    Consolidated administration for session reminders and BigBlueButton lock controls, in one place.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Improved group session handling" icon="users" href="/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/framework">
    Targeted fixes for reliability in courses that lean heavily on Moodle groups and groupings.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

For the full breakdown of what changed, see [BigBlueButton activity view with BNX](/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/activity-view) and [BNX framework and feature enhancements](/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/framework).

## Why BNX exists

Once BigBlueButton lived in Moodle core, every customer-driven enhancement had three uncomfortable options: fork core and lose upstream compatibility, patch core upstream and wait through a long, high-bar release cycle, or ship one-off plugins that don't scale once there are several of them competing for the same hooks.

BNX is the fourth option: **one safe place to extend and override core BigBlueButton behavior**, designed from day one to host additional capabilities on top of it. Moodle core stays clean, administrators get predictable upgrades, and new functionality plugs in as a **sidecar** — added, swapped, or scoped to a specific deployment without disturbing anything else.

## A framework, not just a feature pack

BNX is deliberately built as an extensible foundation. Anything shipped in BNX today, the PreSession Lobby, the recordings view, reminders, lock settings, is also a proof point for the same extend-don't-replace pattern that powers everything after it.

That extensibility is what unlocks the wider BNX family of **sidecars**, optional subplugins that build on the BNX framework to add capabilities Blindside Networks builds for customers who need to go further than usability polish, into analytics, reporting, and integrations.

## The BNX sidecar ecosystem

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="BNX Insights" icon="chart-line" href="/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/insights">
    Brings the Moodle course roster into the BigBlueButton session and surfaces relevant Moodle context as in-session alerts, so teachers see who's expected, not just who showed up.
  </Card>

  <Card title="BNX DataHub" icon="database" href="/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/datahub">
    Exposes session and recording data to downstream tools such as reporting, analytics, and other integrations, through a clean, secure interface.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

Sidecars are offered by Blindside Networks as complementary components for organizations that want more than the free, open-source BNX base plugin provides. Each sidecar has its own installation and licensing, and installs cleanly alongside BNX without affecting other sidecars or Moodle core.

## Get BNX

BNX is available now on the Moodle Plugins directory at [marketplace.moodle.com/plugins/bbbext\_bnx](https://marketplace.moodle.com/plugins/bbbext_bnx). Requirements: Moodle 5.1+ recommended, BigBlueButtonBN ≥ 2025100600.

<Note>
  BNX Insights and BNX DataHub are complementary components provided by Blindside Networks for organizations that want expanded analytics and integration capabilities. Contact [Blindside Networks](https://blindsidenetworks.com/contact-us/) to learn more about availability and licensing.
</Note>

## Related pages

* [BigBlueButton activity view with BNX](/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/activity-view)
* [BNX framework and feature enhancements](/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/framework)
* [BNX Insights](/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/insights)
* [BNX DataHub](/docs/integrations/moodle/bnx/datahub)