Deploy OpenCircle on Railway

Railway is the shortest hosted path into OpenCircle. The official template creates the full structure in your Railway workspace. The signed CLI then verifies the project, adopts it into durable local custody, starts the services in order, and opens first-owner setup.

Get your API keys ready

Start with one key: Venice, OpenRouter, or OpenAI. You can install and claim the Server before adding it. The recommended set for every documented function adds ElevenLabs, Tavily, Browser Use, and CloudConvert; you can add missing services later without creating another Server.

Before you begin

You need a Railway account that can create projects in the paying workspace, a browser, a password manager, and the current signed OpenCircle CLI. You do not need a Railway token, Docker, DNS, or an SSH key.

Deploy the official template

Open the official OpenCircle template, pick the workspace that will own and pay for the Server, name the project, and deploy it. The template creates OpenCircle, Logto, two PostgreSQL services, persistent volumes, and managed HTTPS domains — held rather than started, on purpose, until the CLI releases them safely.

Verify before changing anything

opencircle --version
opencircle host adopt --backend railway

Complete Railway sign-in in the browser. The read-only check confirms the intended workspace and project, verifies the template structure, and reports that nothing has been changed yet.

Adopt and claim the first owner

opencircle host adopt --backend railway --yes --finish guide

This records the project in protected local custody, starts the identity service and OpenCircle in dependency order, verifies HTTPS readiness, and opens the Server Guide. If the terminal or network is interrupted, do not deploy a new template — continue with opencircle host resume --backend railway, then follow Create the first owner.

Configure intelligence and prove it works

Sign in as an Owner or Admin, open Server admin → API Keys, add your keys, and send one real test message. Sign out and back in as the same owner to confirm the Server Guide, not a dead end, is where administration continues.

Operate or remove this exact Server

Use host inspect, host upgrade, host resume, and host destroy from the signed CLI against the protected local receipt. Closing a terminal or browser tab does not stop Railway billing. host upgrade is the only maintenance entry point that creates coordinated backups and an encrypted portable recovery copy — see Railway upgrade and recovery before your first one.