grav is a flat-file based content management system. this system does not use database to store the content, instead it uses a text (.txt) file or a markdown (.md) file to store the content. the flat-file part refers to the readable text and it handles the content in an easy way which can be simple for a developer.
grav was developed by the rocket theme team. it runs on php and is an open-source cms like joomla, wordpress or drupal.
why grav?
grav is now the fastest flat-file content management system. it is easier to publish and manage content with grav. it allows a developer to handle content very easily by storing content in files (such as text or markdown files) rather than in database.
grav helps you build a simple, manageable and a quick site. it costs less than the database driven cms and is useful with i/o for file handling, when you don't have enough resources.
features of grav
it is a fast, easy and powerful flat-file web platform.
it is used to build websites with no extra tools or html knowledge.
it uses text file or markdown file to store the content.
it doesn't use database, so this mitigates the instances of bottlenecking.
it uses php based template provided by twig which is parsed directly into php that makes it fast.
advantages
it is not based on database cms, so it's very easy to install and will be ready to use when you upload the files to the server.
it uses markdown text files to make things easy. using this, the content is dynamically converted to html and displayed in the browser.
in case of security, grav doesn't have admin area and database. so there is no chance of hacking into account or in the database to access the important data.
you can easily backup all the files to keep the backup copy of your website, since there is no database to backup.
it is a piece of software which doesn't require more time to learn.
disadvantages
you might come across instances where unauthorized users may access your content from the files directly as there is no database for the files.
it is difficult to build complex websites using grav cms.