Self-host Axis
Self-hosting guide. Most people should start with Axis Cloud: your own server, live in about 30 seconds, used from any device with nothing to install. Read on if you want Axis running on a machine you own and manage.
Self-hosting means Axis runs on your own computer. You install it, keep the machine on, and set up your own private network if you want to reach it from other devices. This guide gets you to one working model connection and a ready project.
Real Axis UI with deliberately seeded, privacy-safe demonstration content.
What the installer does
Section titled “What the installer does”The installer is a small bootstrap rather than every runtime component in one file. It:
- verifies your account by email,
- activates this installation,
- downloads and verifies the runtime for your platform,
- opens the setup wizard,
- requires at least one working core agent provider before setup completes.
Optional browser components can download separately. Axis can reach its first usable workspace before every optional capability is ready.
What stays where
Section titled “What stays where”| Data | Boundary |
|---|---|
| Project files | Stay in the directories you choose; Axis does not relocate them |
| Axis project/session records | Stored on the machine running your Axis node |
| Session transcripts | Stored locally with the node |
| Provider credentials | Stored through the supported credential/keychain flow, not in project files |
| Model requests | The selected provider receives the prompt and context sent for that request |
| Remote-device traffic | Travels through the remote-access configuration you control |
Axis running locally does not mean a hosted model sees nothing. A hosted provider receives the context required to answer, under that provider’s terms. Use an appropriate provider and scope for sensitive work.
Install and activate
Section titled “Install and activate”- Download the build for your platform from tryaxis.so.
- Launch it and enter the email associated with your Axis account.
- Enter the fresh verification code from that email.
- Let the bootstrap verify and activate the runtime.
- Continue into provider setup.
Codes expire. If one is stale, request a new code rather than retrying the old one. Platform availability is shown on the download page; an unavailable build is not a local configuration problem.
Connect one core provider
Section titled “Connect one core provider”The setup wizard must verify at least one provider that can run an agent session. The exact choices depend on the installed Axis version and provider availability.
- Use the provider’s sign-in flow when offered.
- Use an API key only through the supported credential field.
- Keep secrets out of project files, AGENTS.md, prompts, and screenshots.
See Model providers for ongoing management.
Add a project, not a copy
Section titled “Add a project, not a copy”Choose an existing directory or create a new project. Axis works with that location in place. A project becomes the durable home for its Spaces, sessions, rules, memory, Routines, Docs, and evidence.
Updates and recovery
Section titled “Updates and recovery”Updates replace Axis runtime components without intentionally moving your project files or resetting the durable project/session record. If an update is interrupted, reopen Axis and follow the recovery state shown by the installer rather than deleting runtime or data directories manually.
For exact platform support, current download status, and version-specific behavior, use the release presented by the installer and the live download page.
Mission complete when
Section titled “Mission complete when”- Axis opens without an activation prompt.
- At least one core provider shows as usable.
- You can add or open a project.
- No secret was copied into the project itself.