Solel//dev docs

Try it on your own server

You can install an app you're working on straight onto your own and use it like any other. This page covers installing it, trying new versions as you go, and finding out what went wrong.

Who can install

  • Admins install apps for everyone, or just for themselves.
  • Adults install apps for themselves when the household rule Adults can install apps for themselves is on. See Household rules.
  • Children ask a parent, and guests can't install apps.

Don't have a server yet? See Install with one line.

Get it ready

If your app has a back end, build its image, push it somewhere your server can download it from, and find its digest:

docker build -t ghcr.io/example/notes:dev .
docker push ghcr.io/example/notes:dev
docker inspect --format '{{index .RepoDigests 0}}' ghcr.io/example/notes:dev

The last command prints ghcr.io/example/notes@sha256:…. Put that in backend.image in your solel-app.json.

Install it

  1. Open Settings › Apps and choose Install an app.
  2. Under From, choose A file and pick your solel-app.json. Or choose Its address and paste the manifest's https address. Solel won't fetch a manifest from itself or your local network, so an address has to be on the internet.
  3. If you're an admin, choose Just me under Who it's for while you work on it.
  4. Choose Next, check what it asks to use, and choose Install.
  5. Open it from the dock, or with Open on its page in Settings › Apps.

Try a new version

  • From a file, install the new solel-app.json the same way. Keep the same id. The version can stay the same while you work, but never go lower.
  • From an address, choose Check for an update on the app's page.
  • A new image digest replaces the container. Grants already approved carry over, and you're asked about new ones.

To do this from a script, make a key in Settings › API keys that may Install apps for you (see API keys) and send the manifest to the core. This installs it for you alone, approving every grant it asks for:

jq '{manifest: ., grants: .grants}' solel-app.json \
  | curl -sS https://home.example.com/api/apps \
      -H "Authorization: Bearer $SOLEL_API_KEY" \
      -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
      --data-binary @-

The answer is 201 for a new install and 200 for an update, with the install as JSON.

See how it's doing

  • Its page in Settings › Apps says Starting, Running, Not answering, Stopped working or Couldn't start, with the error when there is one. After Stopped working, fix it and choose Try again.
  • Its logs are in Settings › Health, under Logs, for admins: choose your app in Logs from. See Back ends and workers.

Start afresh

Choose Remove… on the app's page. Tick Delete what it saved too to start with empty data next time. Until that's finished, the app can't be installed again.