sencho/docs/getting-started/quickstart.mdx

---
title: Quickstart
description: Get Sencho running in under five minutes.
---

This walks you from a clean Docker host to a working Sencho cockpit. Five minutes if your Compose directory is already in the right place, ten if you need to lay it out first.

<Note>
  Sencho is currently in public beta on the path to v1.0. Core workflows are actively tested, but early users should review the [known limitations](https://github.com/studio-saelix/sencho/blob/main/KNOWN_LIMITATIONS.md) and avoid deploying it blindly on critical infrastructure without testing in their own environment first.
</Note>

## Prerequisites

- Docker and Docker Compose installed on the host.
- A directory where your Compose projects live (for example `/opt/compose`). Each subdirectory inside becomes one stack in Sencho.

## Run with Docker Compose

Drop this into a `docker-compose.yml` next to your Compose tree (or anywhere convenient) and bring it up:

```yaml
services:
  sencho:
    image: saelix/sencho:latest
    container_name: sencho
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "1852:1852"
    volumes:
      - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
      - /opt/compose:/opt/compose          # 1:1 path rule, see below
      - sencho_data:/app/data
    environment:
      - COMPOSE_DIR=/opt/compose

volumes:
  sencho_data:
```

```bash
docker compose up -d
```

<Accordion title="Prefer docker run?">

```bash
docker run -d \
  --name sencho \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  -p 1852:1852 \
  -v /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock \
  -v /opt/compose:/opt/compose \
  -v sencho_data:/app/data \
  -e COMPOSE_DIR=/opt/compose \
  saelix/sencho:latest
```

</Accordion>

<Tip>
  Sencho is mirrored on GitHub Container Registry at `ghcr.io/studio-saelix/sencho:latest` with the same tags and digests as Docker Hub. Pull from whichever registry your environment prefers.
</Tip>

<Note>
  `JWT_SECRET` is generated on first boot and persisted to the database. You do not need to provide one.
</Note>

## The 1:1 path rule

The Compose directory must be mounted at the **same path** inside and outside the container. The example above mounts `/opt/compose` to `/opt/compose`, which is correct. If your stacks live somewhere else, adjust both sides of the mount to match.

<Warning>
  This is the most common source of deployment problems. If the host and container paths differ, every relative volume in your Compose files will resolve to the wrong location once Sencho asks Docker to bring a stack up. See the [Configuration guide](/getting-started/configuration#compose-directory-the-11-path-rule) for the full explanation.
</Warning>

## First boot

Open `http://localhost:1852` in a browser. On a fresh install you land on the **Cold start** card, where Sencho asks you to create the first admin account.

<Frame>
  <img src="/images/quickstart/setup-cold-start.png" alt="Sencho first-boot Cold start card with Username, Password, and Confirm password fields, and an Initialize console button" />
</Frame>

Pick a username (the placeholder shows `admin`), choose a password, confirm it, and click **Initialize console**. The strength indicator under the password field expects at least eight characters.

<Note>
  The Cold start card only appears the first time you open Sencho. Once the admin account exists, every subsequent visit goes to the regular sign-in screen.
</Note>

## After signing in

You land on the dashboard. A status bar across the top tells you whether the fleet is healthy, the gauge strip below it shows CPU, memory, disk, and network at a glance, and the **Stack health** table sorts your stacks by load.

<Frame>
  <img src="/images/quickstart/dashboard.png" alt="Sencho dashboard with status bar across the top, CPU/MEMORY/DISK/NETWORK gauges, and a Stack health table sorted by load" />
</Frame>

The top nav (HOME, FLEET, RESOURCES, APP STORE, LOGS, AUTO-UPDATE, CONSOLE, AUDIT, SCHEDULES) is your map of the cockpit. The sidebar on the left lists every stack Sencho discovered under `COMPOSE_DIR`; on a fresh install it is empty until you create one.

Click **Create Stack** in the sidebar to deploy your first stack, or open **App Store** in the top nav for a one-click template.

## Where to next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Configuration" icon="sliders" href="/getting-started/configuration">
    Environment variables, volume mounts, reverse proxy, and the 1:1 path rule in detail.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Stack management" icon="layer-group" href="/features/stack-management">
    Deploy, edit, restart, update, and roll back stacks from the cockpit.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Multi-node" icon="server" href="/features/multi-node">
    Add a remote Sencho instance and manage it from the same console.
  </Card>
  <Card title="App Store" icon="grid-2" href="/features/app-store">
    Browse 190+ pre-configured templates and deploy in one click.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>