Getting Started

Docker Quick Start

The fastest way to get LibreDiary running. Docker handles all dependencies automatically.

1. 1

   Create a project directory

   bashCopy

   mkdir librediary && cd librediary

2. 2

   Create a docker-compose.yml file

   docker-compose.ymlCopy

   version: "3.8"
   
   services:
     librediary:
       image: ghcr.io/akaal-creatives/librediary:latest
       container_name: librediary
       ports:
         - "3000:3000"
       environment:
         DATABASE_URL: postgres://libre:libre@db:5432/librediary
         SECRET_KEY: your-secret-key-here
         NODE_ENV: production
       depends_on:
         - db
       restart: unless-stopped
   
     db:
       image: postgres:15-alpine
       container_name: librediary-db
       environment:
         POSTGRES_USER: libre
         POSTGRES_PASSWORD: libre
         POSTGRES_DB: librediary
       volumes:
         - pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data
       restart: unless-stopped
   
   volumes:
     pgdata:

3. 3

   Start the services

   bashCopy

   docker compose up -d

4. 4

   Open LibreDiary in your browser

   textCopy

   http://localhost:3000

   LibreDiary will be available at http://localhost:3000. The first user to register will become the admin.

Manual Setup

For full control over your installation, follow these step-by-step instructions to set up LibreDiary from source.

1. 1

   Clone the repository

   bashCopy

   git clone https://github.com/Akaal-Creatives/LibreDiary.git
   cd LibreDiary

2. 2

   Install dependencies

   bashCopy

   pnpm install

3. 3

   Set up the database

   bashCopy

   # Create a PostgreSQL database
   createdb librediary
   
   # Run database migrations
   pnpm db:migrate

4. 4

   Configure environment variables

   bashCopy

   # Copy the example environment file
   cp .env.example .env
   
   # Edit the .env file with your settings
   # At minimum, set DATABASE_URL and SECRET_KEY

   See the Configuration section below for all available environment variables.

5. 5

   Start the development server

   bashCopy

   pnpm dev

   The application will start on http://localhost:3000 by default.

6. 6

   Build for production

   bashCopy

   pnpm build
   pnpm start

   For production deployments, use the build command followed by start.

Configuration

LibreDiary is configured through environment variables. Copy .env.example to .env and adjust the values to match your environment.

# Required
DATABASE_URL=postgres://user:password@localhost:5432/librediary
SECRET_KEY=change-me-to-a-secure-random-string

# Optional
NODE_ENV=production
PORT=3000
STORAGE_PROVIDER=local

# AI features (optional)
OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-your-key-here

System Requirements

LibreDiary is designed to be lightweight. Here are the minimum and recommended specifications for self-hosting.