Quick Start

Get Elmo running on your infrastructure in under 5 minutes using the CLI.

Prerequisites

Docker — Docker Engine 24+ with Docker Compose v2

Node.js — 18.x or later (for the CLI)

At least one AI provider API key (OpenAI or Anthropic)

Install the CLI

npm install -g @elmohq/cli

Initialize Your Instance

Run the interactive setup wizard:

elmo init

The wizard walks you through:

Config directory — Where to store your elmo.yaml and .env files (default: ./elmo)

PostgreSQL — Run Postgres in Docker (recommended) or provide an existing DATABASE_URL

AI Providers — Configure scrapers (BrightData, Olostep, DataForSEO) and/or direct model APIs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, OpenRouter); see Providers for details

Start — Optionally start the stack immediately

Once complete, Elmo generates two files in your config directory:

File	Purpose
`elmo.yaml`	Docker Compose configuration for all services
`.env`	Environment variables, secrets, and API keys

Start Elmo

If you didn't start during init, bring everything up with:

elmo compose up -d

This pulls the Docker images and starts all services. Once they report healthy, open http://localhost:1515 in your browser.

System Architecture

Service	Role
Web	Dashboard UI and REST API
Worker	Background scheduler that drives prompt runs
Postgres	Shared database and job queue
LLM APIs	Direct API calls (OpenAI, Anthropic, OpenRouter)
LLM Scraper	Scrapers for ChatGPT, Claude, and Google AI Mode (Brightdata, Olostep)
Elmo CLI	Generates `elmo.yaml` + `.env` and runs `docker compose`

CLI Commands Reference

Once Elmo is running, these commands help you manage it:

# View live logs
elmo compose logs -f

# View logs for a specific service
elmo compose logs -f web

# Check service status
elmo compose ps

# Stop all services
elmo compose down

What's Next

With Elmo running, head to the User Guide to create your first brand, configure prompts, and start tracking AI visibility.

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