This guide takes you from creating an account to running your first node. It follows the real screens in the app, in order. If you would like the bigger picture first, read the Overview.
1. Create your account
- Go to the sign-up page and enter your email and a password. Passwords need at least 8 characters, including a number and a special character, with no spaces.
- Click Sign Up.
- If you are asked to confirm your email, open the message we send you and click the confirmation link. If you do not see it, you can request another from the confirmation page.
Already have an account? Go to the login page instead.
2. Sign in
Enter your email and password and click Login. Once you are in, the top navigation gives you Nodes, Projects, Docs, and your Profile (your name and avatar in the top right).
3. Set up an organization
An organization represents your team and holds everything you create. If you do not already belong to one:
- Go to Orgs and click Create Organization.
- Enter an Organization Name and an Organization Code (a short identifier, 4 to 20 lowercase letters, numbers, or dashes).
- Click Create Organization.
You become the owner of the organization. See Organizations for members and limits.
4. Create a project
A project is a workspace inside your organization. You need one before you can request nodes.
- Go to Projects and click Add Project.
- Choose your Organization.
- Enter a Project Name and a Project Code (2 to 8 lowercase letters or numbers, for example
web-prodbecomeswebprod). - Click Create Project.
5. Request your first node
Nodes are created in groups called pools. To request one:
- Go to Nodes and click New Request (or Request first node).
- Select a project — choose the project you just created.
- Choose apps — optionally add software to install on the nodes. You can skip this; nodes will start with just the agent.
- Where to run — choose a provider, then fill in the machine settings it offers, such as CPU, memory, and operating system.
- Name your pool — use lowercase letters, numbers, and dashes (for example,
worker-pool-1). - Submit — review your choices and click Create Pool.
ORC8R now starts creating your nodes.
6. Watch your nodes come online
Go back to the Nodes page. Your new pool appears as a card, and its nodes move through several states as they start up. Watch for the state to reach online — that means a node is ready. If a node stays stuck, open it and check its Logs tab. The full list of states is in Nodes.
7. Manage your nodes
From the Nodes page you can:
- Scale a pool — click the Size badge on the pool card, set a new number, and click Apply. ORC8R adds or removes nodes to match.
- Open a node — click its name to see its Logs, a browser Terminal for troubleshooting, and its Audit history.
- Rebuild or terminate a node — use the action in the node's row.
- Export — download a CSV of the nodes currently shown.
See Pools and Nodes for details.
8. Automate with an API key (optional)
If you want to manage ORC8R from a script instead of the web app, create an API key from your Profile. See API keys.
Troubleshooting
- A node is stuck and not reaching "online." Open the node and read its Logs tab. Also check that your organization has not hit its limits (see Organizations).
- You cannot create a project or add nodes. Your organization may have reached a limit, or you may not have permission. An organization owner can raise limits or grant access.