Reddit reviews The Art Of Keeping Snakes (Advanced Vivarium Systems)

Essentially you are creating a live, cycling environment for your reptile that will break down waste in the substrate utilizing small insects, beneficial bacteria and fungi, just as it would in nature. You will need to ideally have it set up and running without the reptile in there for at least a month to give the plants and insects time to settle in and any mold blooms to die off/get eaten by springtails. There are various ways to do this, and you can make it as simple or as complex as you want it to be. See here for a good general idea. I also highly recommend this book as it goes into detail about different bioactive substrates and setups.

Bioactive setups are NOT completely self-sustaining, that is a myth. They work best for smaller animals since there is not as much waste to break down (so an anole would be a perfect candidate). You will still need to spot clean the decor, walls, etc. The substrate can go rotten (trust me, you will smell it) and in that case you'd need to replace it, but if you do things right you shouldn't need to replace it for a year or more. I also always put a pvc pipe in the corner of my enclosure to act as a drain, so if I overwater I can drain it (or I can directly water the drainage layer if needed).