Getting Started
Prerequisites
Section titled “Prerequisites”- An LLM credential for one of three providers:
- Claude (Anthropic) — recommended primary, direct API. Prompt caching makes cache-heavy workflows the cheapest option per token of real work.
- Mistral — France/EU, OpenAI-compatible adapter. Lower list prices than Claude; pick it for sovereignty or for uncached workloads where the lower per-token rate dominates.
- Custom (OpenAI-compatible) — Ollama, LM Studio, OpenAI, Groq, vLLM, or any other OpenAI-compatible endpoint. Pick this for fully local inference. (LiteLLM as an Anthropic-compatible proxy is also supported via the separate
customprovider — see LLM Providers.)
The installer walks you through provider selection and credential entry. Most users start with Anthropic — you can switch anytime in Settings → Provider. A typical business day on Claude costs $1–5; local-only setups cost nothing per call. See LLM Providers for the per-provider matrix.
Install
Section titled “Install”npx installer (recommended)
Section titled “npx installer (recommended)”npx @lynox-ai/coreThe interactive installer checks prerequisites, asks for your AI provider and API key, generates docker-compose.yml, .env, and SearXNG config, then starts everything automatically. Your browser opens at localhost:3000 once the health check passes.
Requires: Node.js 22+, Docker + Docker Compose.
Manual Docker Compose
Section titled “Manual Docker Compose”If you prefer to set things up yourself:
# 1. Clone the repo (contains docker-compose.yml + SearXNG config)git clone https://github.com/lynox-ai/lynox.git && cd lynox
# 2. Create .env with your API keycp .env.example .env # then edit .env and set ANTHROPIC_API_KEY
# 3. Start lynox + SearXNG (web search)docker compose up -dOpen localhost:3000 and enter the access token from docker logs lynox.
First Run
Section titled “First Run”After setup, lynox opens at localhost:3000.
If you started without an API key (e.g. manual Docker Compose without .env), lynox starts in browse mode — you can explore the UI but not chat. A setup banner appears at the top with a provider-aware wizard (Anthropic / Mistral / Custom) where you enter your credentials. They’re stored encrypted in the local vault.
Try something:
- “Summarize this PDF” — drop a file into the chat
- “Monitor example.com every day and alert me if something changes”
- “Create a weekly report template for my team”
lynox remembers context across conversations. The more you use it, the more it learns about your business.
Verify Your Setup
Section titled “Verify Your Setup”- Container running —
docker psshowslynoxwith status(healthy) - Web UI loads — Open localhost:3000 and enter the token
- Status bar — Bottom of the page shows green dots for “Engine” and “API”
- Send a message — Type “Hello” and get an AI response
Common Issues
Section titled “Common Issues”“API Key Invalid” — Check your ANTHROPIC_API_KEY starts with sk-ant- and is active in console.anthropic.com.
Port 3000 in use — Map to a different port: docker run -p 8080:3000 ...
Wrong image — Use ghcr.io/lynox-ai/lynox:latest — it includes both Engine and Web UI.
Next Steps
Section titled “Next Steps”- Web UI Guide — Learn the interface
- Configuration — Model, cost limits, and more
- Docker Deployment — Production setup
- LLM Providers — Anthropic, Mistral, OpenAI-compatible, or local models
- Email (IMAP/SMTP) — Connect any email account for triage, search, and sending
- Google Workspace — Connect Gmail, Calendar, Drive