The second CKAN Extensions Demo Day brought another round of focused, real-world solutions for CKAN-based data portals. Each extension demo tackled persistent challenges—from upload validation and custom data listings to cloud-scale performance and system diagnostics.
On April 23, 2025, we hosted part two of the CKAN Extensions Demo Day, featuring four exciting new CKAN extensions developed by and for the community. Each project offers valuable tools to enhance CKAN’s functionality, security, and scalability. Here’s a quick recap for those who missed it — or want a fast-track to the innovations presented.
Presented by: Carl Antuar and William Dutton (Queensland Government)
What it does:
This extension strictly validates the type of files uploaded to CKAN. It ensures that uploaded files match their declared formats, enhancing security and minimizing errors. For example, if someone tries to upload a .exe file disguised as a .pdf, the system will detect the mismatch.
python-magic library for MIME type sniffing.Repository: github.com/qld-gov-au/ckanext-resource-type-validation (not yet public based on transcript; will update when available if released)
Presented by: João Demenech (Datopian)
What it does:
This extension allows CKAN to connect its DataStore API directly to Google BigQuery instead of using PostgreSQL.
datastore_search and datastore_search_sql on datasets stored in BigQuery.Repository: github.com/datopian/ckanext-datastore-bigquery
Note: Currently, resource linking is done via a custom metadata field (bq_table_name). Contributions for improved UI and better schema integration are welcome!
Presented by: Sergey Motornyuk (Link Digital)
What it does:
This is a flexible framework rather than a simple plugin. It helps developers manage large collections of similar items (like datasets, users, etc.) in CKAN with ease.
Key use cases: customized dashboards, specialized listings, data exports — all built faster and more reliably.
Repository: github.com/DataShades/ckanext-collection
Presented by: Yan Rudenko (Link Digital)
What it does:
Need to debug or monitor your CKAN instance but don’t have backend access? This extension gives you system info, logs, errors, and more — directly in the UI.
pip freeze equivalent from the UI).Future plans: job status monitoring, notifications (e.g., RAM alerts), and more.
Repository: github.com/DataShades/ckanext-selfinfo
The full recording is available on CKAN’s YouTube channel.
This CKAN Monthly Live session once again showcased the remarkable innovation happening across the CKAN community. Each extension addresses a real-world problem — from security and scalability to maintainability and usability.
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When we talk about data portals, we usually focus on their role in collecting and cataloguing data, improving its quality and making it more discoverable and shareable. But even with the very best data portal, it can still just be data sitting on a site.
The first CKAN Extensions Demo Day brought together developers and practitioners to showcase practical enhancements for CKAN-based data portals. Each extension directly addresses common operational challenges—improving usability, security, metadata management, and user interaction.