Quick Start

This guide walks you through setting up ReArch locally and starting your first AI-powered coding session. By the end, you will have a running ReArch instance connected to a repository with an active conversation.

Time required: ~10 minutes

Prerequisites:

• Bun 1.3.10 or later
• Docker and Docker Compose
• A GitHub or Bitbucket account with at least one repository
• An API key from an LLM provider (Anthropic, Google, or OpenAI)

1. Clone and start ReArch

   git clone https://github.com/rearch-engineer/rearch.git
   cd rearch
   ./development.sh start

   This starts MongoDB, Redis, the backend API, the MCP proxy, and the frontend dev server. Wait until all services report as ready.

   Note

   On Windows, use development.cmd start instead.

2. Open the dashboard

   Navigate to http://localhost:4200 in your browser. Log in with the default admin credentials:

   • Email: admin@example.com
   • Password: change-me-strong-password

   Caution

   Change the default admin password immediately. Edit backend/.env and update ADMIN_EMAIL and ADMIN_PASSWORD, then restart the backend.

3. Configure an LLM provider

   Navigate to Administration > Settings > LLM Providers. Click Add Provider and enter:

   • Provider: Select your provider (e.g., Anthropic)
   • API Key: Paste your API key
   • Models: Select which models to enable (e.g., claude-sonnet-4-20250514)

   The API key is encrypted at rest using AES-256-GCM. See LLM Providers for details.

4. Connect a git provider

   Navigate to Resources > New and select your provider (GitHub or Bitbucket). Fill in the connection details:

   • For Bitbucket: workspace slug, email, clone username, and API token
   • For GitHub: organization, GitHub App installation ID, and private key

   See Repositories for detailed setup instructions per provider.

5. Import and enable a repository

   After connecting your provider:

   1. Open the resource you just created.
   2. Click Import and search for a repository.
   3. Select and import it.
   4. Open the repository settings and toggle Enabled.
   5. Select a template (start with Minimal for your first test).
   6. Choose a branch and click Build Docker Image.

   Wait for the build to complete. This takes 1-5 minutes depending on the repository size.

6. Start a conversation

   Navigate to Conversations > New. Select the repository you just enabled and click Start Conversation.

   ReArch provisions a container in the background. Once the container status shows Running in the session sidebar, type a message:

   Explain the structure of this project and list the main entry points.

   The AI agent reads your codebase, analyzes the structure, and responds with a detailed explanation. You can now describe tasks, request changes, and review the agent’s output.

What to do next

• Try a code change. Ask the agent to fix a bug, add a feature, or write tests. Review the diff in the session sidebar and create a pull request.
• Explore templates. Try the Node.js or Node.js + Browser templates for live application previews and visual verification.
• Add MCP servers. Go to Administration > MCP Servers and add tools like GitHub, Sentry, or Brave Search from the gallery. See MCP Servers.
• Invite your team. Create user accounts from Administration > Users. See Users.
• Deploy to production. When you are ready to move beyond local development, see the Self-Hosting guide.