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Install AIDA on Your Server

A complete guide to getting AIDA by Autafy running — from picking a server to your first conversation. No experience needed.

Try on Your Computer

You can run AIDA on your Windows or Mac computer before setting up a server. It takes about 5 minutes and is completely free.

This is a great way to explore AIDA — chat, Knowledge Base, Skills, Plugins, and integrations — without renting a server first.

Operating system

Windows 10/11 or macOS 12+

RAM

At least 8 GB

Disk space

20 GB free

Internet

Required for download and AI providers

Step 1 — Install Docker Desktop

Docker Desktop is a free app that lets your computer run AIDA. It is free for businesses with fewer than 250 employees.

Windows: Go to docker.com/products/docker-desktop — click Download for Windows, run the installer, and restart your computer when prompted.

Mac: Go to docker.com/products/docker-desktop — click Download for Mac. Choose Apple Chip for M1/M2/M3/M4, or Intel Chip for older Macs. Drag Docker to Applications and open it.

Wait until Docker Desktop shows Engine running (green icon in the system tray or menu bar).

Step 2 — Start AIDA

Open a terminal (Windows: PowerShell, Mac: Terminal) and paste this command:

docker run -d --name aida -p 3000:3000 ghcr.io/autafyai-code/aida:latest

The first time, it downloads AIDA (~1 GB). This takes a few minutes. After that, AIDA starts in seconds.

Step 3 — Open AIDA

Open your browser and go to:

http://localhost:3000

You will see the setup wizard. Create your admin account, enter your email, and your 7-day free trial starts automatically.

Step 4 — Add an AI Provider

AIDA works with any AI provider — OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or local models like Ollama. We recommend OpenRouter because one API key gives you access to hundreds of models. Create a free account, copy your API key, and paste it in AIDA under Settings.

Everything works on your computer

Chat, Knowledge Base, Skills, Plugins, Google & Microsoft 365, MCP tools, web search, and code execution all work locally. Features that need 24/7 uptime (WhatsApp/Telegram bots, scheduled tasks, mobile access) require a server.

Useful commands

Stop AIDA: docker stop aida

Start AIDA again: docker start aida

Update to latest version:

docker stop aida && docker rm aida
docker pull ghcr.io/autafyai-code/aida:latest
docker run -d --name aida -p 3000:3000 ghcr.io/autafyai-code/aida:latest

Updating removes local data

On Docker Desktop, updating removes your chats, settings, and uploaded documents. This is fine for trying things out. When you move to a server, the full install script preserves your data across updates automatically.

Ready for 24/7?

When you are ready to run AIDA around the clock, follow the server setup guide below. A $5–7/month VPS is all you need. Your license key works on both your computer and your server (one at a time).

Requirements

Before you install, make sure you have the following. If any of this is unfamiliar, skip to Get a VPS — we'll walk you through it.

Operating system

Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04, or 26.04 (64-bit)

RAM

Minimum 4 GB — 8 GB recommended

Disk space

Minimum 10 GB free

CPU architecture

AMD64 (x86) or ARM64 — both supported

Port 3000

Must be open and not in use

Root / sudo access

Required to install Docker

Internet access

Server must reach the internet

You do not need to install Docker manually.

The install script handles Docker installation automatically if it is not already present.

Get a VPS (Virtual Private Server)

AIDA runs on a VPS — a small computer in the cloud that stays on 24/7. Think of it like renting a dedicated machine for your AI agent. You pay monthly, usually $6–$14 CAD, and you own everything on it.

We recommend any of these providers. All work with AIDA out of the box:

DigitalOcean

Easiest to use. Great dashboard. From $6/mo USD.

Hetzner

Best price/performance. European provider. From ~$4/mo USD.

Best value

Vultr

Good global coverage. Simple pricing. From $6/mo USD.

Oracle Cloud

Free tier available — 4 GB RAM ARM64 VM at no cost.

Free option

Step-by-step: Create a VPS on DigitalOcean

If you've never done this before, follow these steps. Other providers work similarly.

Create a free account

Go to digitalocean.com and sign up. You'll need a credit card but won't be charged if you stay within the free trial credits.

Create a Droplet (their word for a VPS)

Click Create → Droplets. Choose Ubuntu 24.04. Pick the Basic plan, Regular CPU, $14/mo (4GB RAM) option.

Choose a region closest to you

Toronto or New York for Canada. This affects response speed.

Set up authentication

Choose Password for simplicity. Pick a strong root password and save it somewhere safe.

Click Create Droplet and wait 60 seconds

You'll see a public IP address appear — something like 143.198.112.45. Copy it. You'll need it shortly.

Open a terminal and SSH into your server

On Mac: open Terminal app. On Windows: open PowerShell or Windows Terminal. Then run: ssh root@YOUR-SERVER-IP — replace with your actual IP. Type yes when prompted, then enter your password.

Oracle Cloud Free Tier

Oracle offers a permanently free ARM64 VM with 4 GB RAM — enough to run AIDA at no cost. Go to oracle.com/cloud/free, create an account, and provision an Ampere A1 instance running Ubuntu 22.04. The process takes about 10 minutes.

Run the Installer

Once you're connected to your server via SSH, you're ready to install AIDA. The install script handles everything automatically — Docker, image download, startup, and health check.

One command — that's it

No separate account or install token needed. During setup the installer asks for your email to start a 7-day free trial (no credit card). Just paste the command below and it handles the rest automatically.

The install command

Copy and paste this single command into your server's terminal, then press Enter:

Run on your server (as root or with sudo)

curl -fsSL https://autafy.ca/aida-install.sh | sudo bash

By installing AIDA, you agree to our Terms of Service.

The script will walk you through the rest. Here's what it does automatically:

Pre-flight checks

Verifies your OS, available RAM, disk space, and that port 3000 is free. Stops with a clear error message if anything is missing.

Asks for your email

Enter your email address to start a 7-day free trial or activate an existing license.

Installs Docker (if needed)

Downloads and installs Docker automatically. If Docker is already installed, this step is skipped.

Downloads and starts AIDA

Pulls the AIDA Docker image (~800 MB) and starts the container. This may take 2–5 minutes depending on your server's internet speed.

Confirms AIDA is running

Runs a health check and prints your access URL when ready.

Asks about HTTPS (optional)

If you have a domain name pointed at your server, say yes and the installer will set up Caddy + HTTPS automatically. If not, skip it — you can always set it up later.

Expected install time: 3–6 minutes

Most of the time is spent downloading the Docker image. Do not close the terminal window during installation.

After the Installer Finishes

When the installer completes, it will print something like:

✓ AIDA is running at http://143.198.112.45:3000
  Open that URL in your browser to complete setup.

Open that URL in your browser. You'll see the Setup Wizard — the next section walks you through it.

Your browser may show "Not Secure"

This is expected. AIDA runs on plain http:// by default. It's fine for personal use on a private server. To get HTTPS, see Set Up HTTPS below.

Setup Wizard

The first time you open AIDA, you'll be guided through a two-step setup wizard. This only runs once.

Create your admin account

Choose a username and a strong password (minimum 8 characters). This is your personal AIDA account — save the credentials somewhere safe. There is no password recovery email, so don't lose it.

Activate your license or start your free trial

If you have a license key, paste it here. Otherwise click Start 7-day Free Trial — no credit card required. You'll have full access to every feature for 7 days. After that, purchase a license to continue.

After the wizard completes, you'll be taken to the login page. Sign in with the credentials you just created.

Add Your AI API Key

AIDA is a frontend for AI models — it needs an API key to talk to them. You bring your own key, which means you're billed directly by the AI provider at their rates (usually fractions of a cent per message).

We recommend OpenRouter — one key gives you access to every major AI model (Claude, GPT, Gemini, Llama, and more) in one place.

Get an OpenRouter API key (free, takes 2 minutes)

Create a free account

Go to openrouter.ai and sign up.

Generate an API key

Go to Keys in the sidebar → Create Key. Copy the key — it starts with sk-or-v1-.

Add it to AIDA

In AIDA, go to Settings → Providers. Paste your key in the OpenRouter field and click Save. You'll see a green Connected badge appear.

Pick a model and start chatting

Go to Settings → Model and choose a model. Claude Haiku 5.5 or GPT-6-luna are great starting points. Then click New Chat — AIDA is ready.

Add a small credit to start

OpenRouter lets you add as little as $5 USD. That's enough for thousands of messages. You only pay for what you use — no monthly fee.

Set Up HTTPS (Optional but Recommended)

By default AIDA is accessible over plain http://. This is fine for personal use, but if you want a clean domain URL and the padlock icon in your browser, you'll need a domain name and HTTPS.

The installer can set this up for you

At the end of the install, AIDA asks "Do you have a domain name?" If you say yes and your DNS is already pointed at your server, it will install Caddy and configure HTTPS automatically. If you skipped that step, follow the manual instructions below.

What you need

A domain name pointed at your server's IP address. You can buy a domain from Namecheap or Cloudflare Registrar. A .com costs about $15 CAD/year.

Point your domain at your server

Log into your domain registrar, find DNS settings, and add an A record:

Type

Name

aida (or @ for root domain)

Value

Your server's public IP address

TTL

3600 (or leave as default)

DNS changes take 5 – 30 minutes to propagate. You can check at dnschecker.org.

Install Caddy (the web server)

Run these commands on your server one at a time:

Install Caddy

sudo apt install -y debian-keyring debian-archive-keyring apt-transport-https
curl -1sLf 'https://dl.cloudsmith.io/public/caddy/stable/gpg.key' | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/caddy-stable-archive-keyring.gpg
curl -1sLf 'https://dl.cloudsmith.io/public/caddy/stable/debian.deb.txt' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/caddy-stable.list
sudo apt update
sudo apt install caddy

Create the Caddy config

sudo nano /etc/caddy/Caddyfile

Replace the contents with this (swap aida.yourdomain.com for your actual domain):

/etc/caddy/Caddyfile

aida.yourdomain.com {
      reverse_proxy localhost:3000
}

Save with Ctrl+O, then Ctrl+X to exit. Then restart Caddy:

Start Caddy

sudo systemctl reload caddy

Caddy automatically fetches an SSL certificate from Let's Encrypt. Within 60 seconds, https://aida.yourdomain.com should load AIDA with a valid HTTPS certificate.

Don't want to deal with this?

The Autafy Setup service ($697) includes full HTTPS configuration, domain setup, and Google and Microsoft account connections — all done for you.

Moving AIDA to a New Server

Already running AIDA and changing hosts? The move takes about ten minutes (plus about fifteen if your AIDA has its own domain), your current AIDA keeps working the whole time, and nothing is deleted on either server. The short version is below; the full page with every screen and message is at autafy.ca/docs/move-to-new-server.

Do not stop or switch off your old server during the move

The new server keeps its bots, reminders and briefings off until your licence is activated there, so nothing ever runs twice — and the old server has to be running for step 5 to work.

What you need

New server

Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04, any provider, Intel/AMD or ARM

Licence key

The same lifetime key — the full key is in your purchase email

Sign-in

Your current AIDA admin username and password

DNS access

Only if your AIDA has its own domain — you change one record in step 6

Download your backup on the old server

Open Settings → Move to a new server. Choose a passphrase (at least 10 characters), type it twice and write it down — AIDA does not store it and it is the only way to open the backup. Tick Include generated files if you want your profile picture and the files AIDA has made for you. Click Download backup; you get one .aidamove file. Nothing changes on the old server.

Install AIDA on the new server

Log in to the new server and run the normal install command from Run the Installer above. If it asks about HTTPS or a domain, answer N for now — that comes in step 6. When it finishes, open the http://…:3000 address it prints (open port 3000 in your provider's firewall if the page does not load).

Restore the backup in the browser

On the welcome screen choose the tab Moving from another server, pick your .aidamove file, type the passphrase and click Restore. AIDA unpacks the backup and restarts itself in under a minute.

The screen says Welcome back — sign in to continue. Use the same username and password as before. Your chats, settings, API keys, plugins and knowledge base are already there.

Enter your licence key — and finish the move on the old server

Type the same key and click Activate license. If AIDA says the licence is already in use on another server, go back to the old AIDA → Settings → Move to a new server, click Finish move and type MOVE — this releases the licence and pauses the old server — then click Activate license on the new one again. Telegram and Discord work straight away.

Point your domain at the new server (only if you have one)

In your DNS provider, edit the existing record for your AIDA domain so it points at the new server. Do not add a second record — when you are done the name must have exactly one record. Then run the install command on the new server once more: it sees AIDA is installed and offers HTTPS — answer y and type your domain. Because the domain is the same, WhatsApp, Google sign-in and Microsoft sign-in resume by themselves; nothing to change in Meta, Google or Azure.

Changed your mind?

The old server is untouched until you press Finish move; after that, Cancel move on the old server brings it back. Lost the passphrase? Download a new backup with a new one. Everything else, including the terminal route and the after-move checklist, is on the full move page.

Troubleshooting

The install script fails at the pre-flight check

Check which check failed — the script will tell you. Common causes:

Not enough RAM: Upgrade to a VPS with at least 4 GB RAM.
Port 3000 already in use: Run sudo lsof -i :3000 to see what's using it and stop that process.
Not a supported Ubuntu version: AIDA is tested on Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04, and 26.04. Re-provision with one of these.

The installer asks for my email

Your email is used to activate your 7-day free trial. One trial per email address.

The installer hangs or the image download is very slow

The AIDA Docker image is ~800 MB. On a slow connection this can take 10+ minutes. Do not close the terminal. If it appears stuck for more than 20 minutes, press Ctrl+C and run the install command again — Docker resumes partial downloads.

I can't reach http://my-ip:3000 in the browser

Most likely your VPS firewall is blocking port 3000.

On DigitalOcean: Go to Networking → Firewalls and add an inbound rule for TCP port 3000.
On Oracle Cloud: Go to your VCN → Security Lists → add an ingress rule for port 3000.
On the server itself: Run sudo ufw allow 3000 if UFW is active.

The setup wizard doesn't appear — I see the login page instead

This means the wizard was already completed. If you need to reset and start fresh, SSH into your server and run:

sudo docker stop aida
sudo rm ~/aida-data/config.db
sudo touch ~/aida-data/config.db && sudo chown 1000:1000 ~/aida-data/config.db
sudo docker start aida

Then reload the page — the wizard will appear again. Caution: this deletes all your settings and chat history.

AIDA is running but chat messages aren't working

Almost always caused by a missing or incorrect API key. Go to Settings → Providers and make sure your key shows a green Connected badge. If the badge is missing, re-enter your API key and save.

My trial expired and I entered my license key but AIDA is still locked

Make sure you're entering the full key exactly as it appeared in your email — including the dashes (format: AIDA-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX). If the key is still rejected, email hello@autafy.ca with your key and we'll investigate.

How do I move AIDA to a new server (migrate)?

Use the built-in move: download a backup from Settings → Move to a new server on the old server, install AIDA on the new one, restore through the Moving from another server tab, then press Finish move on the old server when the new one asks for your licence key. Same domain, same key. The steps are in Moving AIDA to a New Server above and in full at autafy.ca/docs/move-to-new-server. If the key will not activate, email hello@autafy.ca.

How do I restart AIDA if something goes wrong?

SSH into your server and run:

sudo docker restart aida

To check if it's running: sudo docker ps
To see recent logs: sudo docker logs aida --tail 50

How do I update AIDA to a new version?

AIDA has one-click updates built in. Go to Admin Panel → System and click Check for Updates. If a new version is available, click Update Now — AIDA will download the update and restart automatically within 60 seconds. Your data in ~/aida-data/ is never touched during updates.

Support

If you're stuck on anything not covered here, we're happy to help.

Email support

Send us a message at hello@autafy.ca and we'll get back to you within 24 hours, usually faster.

Email Us →

Autafy Setup — done for you

Don't want to deal with any of this? We install and configure everything for $697 one-time. Includes HTTPS and Google and Microsoft integrations.

Learn More →