Installation — macOS

Automated Install

To start the ARI installation, open Terminal (⌘+Space, type "Terminal") and paste this command:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://ari.software/install)"

The installer will check your system, install any missing tools (Git, Node.js, pnpm, etc.) via Homebrew, clone the ARI repository, and guide you through database setup.

What the Installer Does

1. Installs required tools (Git, Node.js, pnpm) via Homebrew
2. Clones the ARI repository
3. Runs pnpm install to install dependencies
4. Asks you to choose a database option (see below)
5. Configures environment variables based on your choice
6. Initializes the database schema
7. Creates the ./ari CLI for daily use

After installation, the installer will display your admin credentials and instructions.

Database

The ARI installer offers three database options:

1. PostgreSQL (default)

   The simplest option. Uses a local PostgreSQL server directly — no Docker or Supabase required. The installer will check that PostgreSQL is running, create an ari database, and configure the connection automatically. A pgweb database UI is available at http://localhost:5050 for browsing your database.

   If you don't already have PostgreSQL installed, the installer will offer to install it for you via Homebrew.

2. Supabase Local

   Runs a full Supabase stack locally inside Docker containers. This gives you access to the Supabase Studio UI at http://127.0.0.1:54323 for browsing your database.

   Supabase local requires Docker Desktop for Mac to be installed and running. The first start will download the Supabase Docker images, which may take a few minutes.

3. Supabase Cloud

   Connect to a hosted Supabase project at supabase.com. Choose this if you want your database hosted online or plan to deploy ARI to production.

   During installation, the database connection is deferred — you will configure your Supabase project URL, anon key, service role key, and connection string through the Welcome Setup Wizard on first launch.

Welcome Setup Wizard

When you first open ARI in your browser, you will land on the /welcome page — an interactive setup wizard that walks you through:

1. Account — Create your admin email and password (this is the only account — public sign-up is disabled by default)
2. Personal — Set up your profile (name, title, company, location, timezone)
3. Download — Download your generated .env configuration file

For Supabase Cloud installations, there is an additional step to configure your Supabase project URL, keys, and connection string.

The setup wizard runs once on first launch. After completing it, you will be taken to your ARI dashboard.

Starting ARI

To start ARI, open Terminal, navigate to the project directory, and run:

./ari start

Or if you prefer to see full server logs, run it in verbose mode:

./ari start --verbose

What happens depends on your database mode:

Then open http://localhost:3000 in your browser.

Stopping ARI

Press Ctrl+C in the terminal to stop the development server.

If you are using Supabase Local, the database containers will continue running in the background. You can stop them from Docker Desktop if you need to free up resources.

CLI Reference

Requirements

Always required:

• Node.js v18+
• pnpm (package manager)
• Git (version control)
• Homebrew (recommended — used by the installer to install missing tools)

Additional requirements by database mode:

The automated installer handles all of these. If any are missing, the installer will offer to install them for you via Homebrew.

Managed Setup

Prefer not to deal with infrastructure? The Managed Setup plan includes full hosting on your own custom domain, daily backups, and professional setup. Contact hello@ari.software for details.

Next Steps

• Authentication — Secure your instance
• Settings — Customize your ARI instance
• Security — Harden your deployment