Quickstart

Get started with Tako in minutes: install the CLI, run local HTTPS development, and deploy your first app to your own server.

Install Tako, run your app locally, and deploy it to your own server.

Local setup

Install the CLI:

curl -fsSL https://tako.sh/install.sh | sh

Verify installation:

tako --version

If you install Tako another way and use image optimization locally on macOS:

brew install vips

From an existing app directory, initialize the project:

tako init

tako init detects the runtime and preset, writes tako.toml, installs the SDK for JavaScript and Go projects, and updates .gitignore for the encrypted secrets file. It asks for an app name and production route, offers SSL credential setup for wildcard routes, and offers coding-agent setup. For Rust, use the Rust SDK skill. Follow Framework Integration if your framework needs an adapter.

Start local HTTPS development in a terminal:

tako dev

On your first tako dev run, Tako asks for your sudo password to set up local no-port HTTPS and custom *.test URLs. This happens once and is reused for other apps.

Open the URL shown in the terminal header. By default, Tako uses {app}.test, where {app} is your app name. The longer {app}.tako.test form is always available as a fallback.

After first-time local setup, agents should inspect tako dev list --json before starting another session, then use tako dev --background --json or the tako_dev MCP tool for finite startup. Request the returned URL to verify the app. See Local Development for lifecycle details.

Remote setup

Remote deploys require Tailscale or NetBird, including self-hosted networks. Install your preferred VPN and its CLI on your workstation and deployment host, connect both to the same network, and allow SSH and TCP port 9844 between them in its access policies.

From your developer machine, add the server by its VPN hostname or IP:

tako servers add admin-user@my-server

Setup asks which VPN to use. Connected providers appear first with a detected hint, and the first option is preselected. For scripts, pass --vpn tailscale or --vpn netbird. The choice is saved per server and reused for repair and upgrades. Existing server entries default to Tailscale. See Servers for NetBird examples, noninteractive selection, and direct installation.

The admin-user@host form tells Tako which admin SSH user to use if install or repair is needed. Tako stores the VPN host and uses its first label as the server name. Before saving the server in your global config.toml, Tako checks the selected private network, verifies tako SSH recovery access, records target metadata, and verifies signed private management.

If tako-server is missing or access needs repair, that shorthand bootstraps the host with the provided admin user. Tako starts the service with default listener settings, enrolls the SSH key used for signed management, and installs the libvips runtime used by the image optimizer.

Check remote access:

tako status

To install from the host itself, run the server installer as root and enter your workstation SSH public key when prompted:

sudo sh -c "$(curl -fsSL https://tako.sh/install-server.sh)"

The installer bootstraps the host and starts tako-server. Run tako servers add from your developer machine to verify access and save it locally.

First deployment

Run the following commands from your app directory.

The app already has a tako.toml from local setup. Check its production route and server mapping, and set the app’s required Secrets and Storage bindings before deploying.

tako servers list --json

Run tako agents anytime to set up or refresh agent support; see Coding agents. If multiple servers exist, map the desired names in [envs.production].servers; see Deployment.

tako dev uses {app}.test by default. Add [envs.development] only when you want custom local routes.

Deploy:

tako deploy --env production

Inspect tako status --json, request the deployed hostname, and check finite app logs. See Deployment for build and rollout behavior and Operations for status, logs, scaling, and rollback.