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01 get started

Installation

Exolvra is a single .NET application. Install the SDK, clone the repo, and run one command — the dashboard is live on port 5079.

Prerequisites

You need the .NET 10 SDK on your machine. Anything before that won’t build. Check your version:

dotnet --version

If it doesn’t print 10.x.x or higher, grab the SDK from dot.net before continuing.

Everything else is optional:

  • Node.js LTS — only needed if you want to install community MCP servers that ship as Node packages. See MCP setup.
  • Python 3.10+ — same story, only for Python-based MCP servers.
  • Ollama — optional local model runtime if you don’t want to use cloud providers.

You do not need Docker, Redis, PostgreSQL, or any external services to run Exolvra. The default persistence is SQLite, stored under your user home directory.

Clone and build

git clone https://github.com/your-org/exolvra.git
cd exolvra
dotnet build Exolvra.slnx

The first build restores dependencies — it can take a couple of minutes. Subsequent builds are fast.

Run the gateway

dotnet run --project src/Exolvra.Gateway

When the gateway starts, it prints a line that looks like:

Now listening on: http://localhost:5079

Open that URL in your browser. On first run, Exolvra creates a default admin account and prints the bootstrap password to the console — copy it from the terminal window. You’ll change it on first login.

Data directory

Exolvra stores everything under ~/.exolvra/ on Linux and macOS, or %USERPROFILE%\.exolvra\ on Windows. That single folder contains the SQLite database, agent workspaces, generated files, and encrypted credentials. Back this folder up and you’ve backed up your entire instance.

To move an installation, copy the folder to the new machine and run the gateway there — it’ll pick up where the old host left off.

If you want the data directory somewhere else, set the EXOLVRA_DATA_DIR environment variable before starting the gateway:

# Linux / macOS
EXOLVRA_DATA_DIR=/srv/exolvra dotnet run --project src/Exolvra.Gateway

# Windows PowerShell
$env:EXOLVRA_DATA_DIR="D:\exolvra"; dotnet run --project src/Exolvra.Gateway

Stopping the gateway

Ctrl+C in the terminal where the gateway is running. On Windows, if the process ever gets stuck, force it down:

taskkill /F /IM Exolvra.Gateway.exe

Running Exolvra as a service

For a real deployment, you’ll want Exolvra to come back up automatically after reboots. Both approaches are conventional for .NET:

  • Linux — write a systemd unit that runs dotnet /path/to/Exolvra.Gateway.dll under a dedicated user with ~/.exolvra on persistent storage
  • Windows — register the gateway as a Windows Service (e.g., with sc create or NSSM) pointing at the published binary

A full self-hosted deployment guide with these recipes is a stub today — ping the team if you need it sooner.

Verifying the install

Once the dashboard is running, three quick smoke checks confirm everything is wired up:

  1. Visit http://localhost:5079/ → you should see the Exolvra landing page or the onboarding wizard.
  2. Visit http://localhost:5079/health → returns JSON with readiness status for the database, budget, and providers.
  3. Sign in with the bootstrap credentials, and from Config → AI Providers, paste an API key for one provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.). Save. Open Chat, pick the default agent, and send a message — if you get a reply, your install is live.

Next

  • First login — walk through the setup wizard and change your admin password
  • Your first agent — create a specialist from the dashboard and give it work
  • Admin overview — the five-minute admin checklist to harden a new instance