PaperClipAI/doc/DOCKER.md

Docker Quickstart

Run Paperclip in Docker without installing Node or pnpm locally.

All commands below assume you are in the project root (the directory containing package.json), not inside docker/.

Building the image

docker build -t paperclip-local .

The Dockerfile installs common agent tools (git, gh, curl, wget, ripgrep, python3) and the Claude, Codex, and OpenCode CLIs.

Build arguments:

Arg	Default	Purpose
USER_UID	1000	UID for the container node user (match your host UID to avoid permission issues on bind mounts)
USER_GID	1000	GID for the container node group
CLI_TOOLS_CACHE_EPOCH	empty	Refresh the CLI-install layer; CI supplies the current ISO week
PAPERCLIP_BUILD_VERSION	empty	Runtime version when Git metadata is unavailable
PAPERCLIP_BUILD_COMMIT	empty	Source commit written into the server build stamp and runtime environment

Changing the build version or commit preserves the CLI-install cache. The tool layer refreshes when its weekly epoch, base image, installation command, or earlier build inputs change. Local builds can set a new epoch explicitly to refresh tools without clearing the entire build cache.

docker build -t paperclip-local \
  --build-arg USER_UID=$(id -u) --build-arg USER_GID=$(id -g) .

Standard images and downstream composition

The Docker workflow publishes the standard production target for Linux AMD64 and ARM64. Canonical master pushes also publish ghcr.io/paperclipai/paperclip:sha-<FULL_SHA> and a GitHub/Sigstore attestation for its immutable multi-platform digest. Downstream services can compose their own images from this public base without rebuilding Core.

Stamped standard images include the build-owned remote provider pack at /opt/paperclip-runner/provider-pack and set PAPERCLIP_RUNNER_REMOTE_PROVIDER_PACK_PATH to that directory. Downstream compositions and the explicit cloud target inherit both. The pack is required on the controller for remote OpenCode and ACPX runs, even when the sandbox has preinstalled providers; setting the environment variable alone cannot repair an image that omits the pack. Rebuild and redeploy from a standard image containing the pack if runs fail with runner_remote_provider_artifact_incompatible.

Local Docker builds must supply a full PAPERCLIP_BUILD_COMMIT to include a qualified pack. Unstamped builds remain usable for local adapters and skip pack generation. The pack stays root-owned and readable by remapped runtime UIDs.

The legacy recurring public -cloud publisher is retired. Master pushes, release tags, and manual Docker dispatches no longer build that variant. Existing -cloud tags and digests remain in the registry for rollback; their release-channel aliases no longer advance. This change deletes no images, cache tags, or migrator artifacts.

The cloud Dockerfile target remains available for explicit preview builds. Those requests still publish a full-SHA -cloud tag when needed. They do not advance a release channel or replace downstream private composition.

A published image alone does not prove source tests or migration compatibility. Downstream deployment tooling must verify source proof, the standard image attestation, the exact-source migrator, and its own composed image before rollout. Resolve immutable digests instead of deploying mutable tags.

One-liner (build + run)

docker build -t paperclip-local . && \
docker run --name paperclip \
  -p 3100:3100 \
  -e HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e PAPERCLIP_HOME=/paperclip \
  -e BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32) \
  -e PAPERCLIP_TOOL_ACTION_SIGNING_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32) \
  -v "$(pwd)/data/docker-paperclip:/paperclip" \
  paperclip-local

Open: http://localhost:3100

Data persistence:

• Embedded PostgreSQL data
• uploaded assets
• local secrets key
• local agent workspace data

All persisted under your bind mount (./data/docker-paperclip in the example above).

Docker Compose

Quickstart (embedded SQLite)

Single container, no external database. Data persists via a bind mount.

BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32) \
PAPERCLIP_TOOL_ACTION_SIGNING_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32) \
  docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.quickstart.yml up --build

Defaults:

• host port: 3100
• persistent data dir: ./data/docker-paperclip

Optional overrides:

PAPERCLIP_PORT=3200 PAPERCLIP_DATA_DIR=../data/pc \
  docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.quickstart.yml up --build

Note: PAPERCLIP_DATA_DIR is resolved relative to the compose file (docker/), so ../data/pc maps to data/pc in the project root.

If you change host port or use a non-local domain, set PAPERCLIP_PUBLIC_URL to the external URL you will use in browser/auth flows.

Pass OPENAI_API_KEY and/or ANTHROPIC_API_KEY to enable local adapter runs.

Full stack (with PostgreSQL)

Paperclip server + PostgreSQL 17. The database is health-checked before the server starts.

BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32) \
  docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.yml up --build

PostgreSQL data persists in a named Docker volume (pgdata). Paperclip data persists in paperclip-data.

Untrusted PR review

Isolated container for reviewing untrusted pull requests with Codex or Claude, without exposing your host machine. See doc/UNTRUSTED-PR-REVIEW.md for the full workflow.

docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.untrusted-review.yml build
docker compose -f docker/docker-compose.untrusted-review.yml run --rm --service-ports review

Authenticated Compose (Single Public URL)

For authenticated deployments, set one canonical public URL and let Paperclip derive auth/callback defaults:

services:
  paperclip:
    environment:
      PAPERCLIP_DEPLOYMENT_MODE: authenticated
      PAPERCLIP_DEPLOYMENT_EXPOSURE: private
      PAPERCLIP_PUBLIC_URL: https://desk.koker.net

PAPERCLIP_PUBLIC_URL is used as the primary source for:

• auth public base URL
• Better Auth base URL defaults
• bootstrap invite URL defaults
• hostname allowlist defaults (hostname extracted from URL)

For fresh authenticated/private Docker or appliance-style installs, the first admin can now be claimed entirely from the browser after sign-in. Open the Paperclip URL, sign in or create an account, then choose Claim this instance on the setup screen. This browser claim is disabled for authenticated/public; public deployments should run the high-entropy CLI invite fallback instead:

pnpm paperclipai auth bootstrap-ceo

Granular overrides remain available if needed (PAPERCLIP_AUTH_PUBLIC_BASE_URL, BETTER_AUTH_URL, BETTER_AUTH_TRUSTED_ORIGINS, PAPERCLIP_ALLOWED_HOSTNAMES).

Set PAPERCLIP_ALLOWED_HOSTNAMES explicitly only when you need additional hostnames beyond the public URL host (for example Tailscale/LAN aliases or multiple private hostnames).

Optional Vercel Connect credentials

Vercel Connect's backend integration is retained for controlled testing and existing Vercel-backed connections, but its new-connection UI is currently withheld from Apps → Browse. Setting PAPERCLIP_VERCEL_CONNECT_ENABLED=true does not expose a customer-facing setup entry. Native provider setup screens remain unchanged. Vercel-hosted deployments use the workload OIDC token Vercel injects. Other hosted and self-hosted deployments can provide PAPERCLIP_VERCEL_CONNECT_ACCESS_TOKEN as a deployment bootstrap secret only when that token type is accepted by the live Connect API:

services:
  paperclip:
    environment:
      PAPERCLIP_VERCEL_CONNECT_ENABLED: "true"
      PAPERCLIP_VERCEL_CONNECT_ACCESS_TOKEN: ${PAPERCLIP_VERCEL_CONNECT_ACCESS_TOKEN}

Do not save that access token in a company secret or connection config. It is instance bootstrap authority for the operator-selected Vercel account. A token's long expiry and broad Vercel scope do not prove Connect compatibility; validate it with connector metadata before rollout. Workload OIDC takes precedence when both authorities are present. Turning the feature flag off hides new Vercel-backed setup; existing connections keep resolving while workload OIDC or the bootstrap token remains available. Missing or invalid authority fails closed. See the Vercel Connect operator guide.

Claude + Codex Local Adapters in Docker

The image pre-installs:

• claude (Anthropic Claude Code CLI)
• codex (OpenAI Codex CLI)
• python3 (used to run local subscription sign-in in a pseudo-terminal)

Start the container, then open Apps → Connections to connect a Claude or Codex subscription in your browser. You can also enter a provider API key there. You do not run a shell command or configure a CLI home.

docker run --name paperclip \
  -p 3100:3100 \
  -e HOST=0.0.0.0 \
  -e PAPERCLIP_HOME=/paperclip \
  -v "$(pwd)/data/docker-paperclip:/paperclip" \
  paperclip-local

Notes:

• The image provides the CLI and Python prerequisites for local subscription sign-in.
• Adapter environment checks in Paperclip surface missing authentication or CLI prerequisites.

Podman Quadlet (systemd)

The docker/quadlet/ directory contains unit files to run Paperclip + PostgreSQL as systemd services via Podman Quadlet.

File	Purpose
docker/quadlet/paperclip.pod	Pod definition — groups containers into a shared network namespace
docker/quadlet/paperclip.container	Paperclip server — joins the pod, connects to Postgres at 127.0.0.1
docker/quadlet/paperclip-db.container	PostgreSQL 17 — joins the pod, health-checked

Setup

1. Build the image (see above).

2. Copy quadlet files to your systemd directory:

   # Rootless (recommended)
   cp docker/quadlet/*.pod docker/quadlet/*.container \
     ~/.config/containers/systemd/
   
   # Or rootful
   sudo cp docker/quadlet/*.pod docker/quadlet/*.container \
     /etc/containers/systemd/
   

3. Create a secrets env file (keep out of version control):

   cat > ~/.config/containers/systemd/paperclip.env <<EOL
   BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32)
   PAPERCLIP_TOOL_ACTION_SIGNING_SECRET=$(openssl rand -hex 32)
   POSTGRES_USER=paperclip
   POSTGRES_PASSWORD=paperclip
   POSTGRES_DB=paperclip
   DATABASE_URL=postgres://paperclip:paperclip@127.0.0.1:5432/paperclip
   # OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...
   # ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-...
   EOL
   

4. Create the data directory and start:

   mkdir -p ~/.local/share/paperclip
   systemctl --user daemon-reload
   systemctl --user start paperclip-pod
   

Quadlet management

journalctl --user -u paperclip -f        # App logs
journalctl --user -u paperclip-db -f     # DB logs
systemctl --user status paperclip-pod    # Pod status
systemctl --user restart paperclip-pod   # Restart all
systemctl --user stop paperclip-pod      # Stop all

Quadlet notes

• First boot: Unlike Docker Compose's condition: service_healthy, Quadlet's After= only waits for the DB unit to start, not for PostgreSQL to be ready. On a cold first boot you may see one or two restart attempts in journalctl --user -u paperclip while PostgreSQL initialises — this is expected and resolves automatically via Restart=on-failure.
• Containers in a pod share localhost, so Paperclip reaches Postgres at 127.0.0.1:5432.
• PostgreSQL data persists in the paperclip-pgdata named volume.
• Paperclip data persists at ~/.local/share/paperclip.
• For rootful quadlet deployment, remove %h prefixes and use absolute paths.

Onboard Smoke Test (Ubuntu + npm only)

Use this when you want to mimic a fresh machine that only has Ubuntu + npm and verify:

• npx paperclipai onboard --yes completes
• the server binds to 0.0.0.0:3100 so host access works
• onboard/run banners and startup logs are visible in your terminal

Build + run:

./scripts/docker-onboard-smoke.sh

Open: http://localhost:3131 (default smoke host port)

Useful overrides:

HOST_PORT=3200 PAPERCLIPAI_VERSION=latest ./scripts/docker-onboard-smoke.sh
PAPERCLIP_DEPLOYMENT_MODE=authenticated PAPERCLIP_DEPLOYMENT_EXPOSURE=private ./scripts/docker-onboard-smoke.sh
SMOKE_DETACH=true SMOKE_METADATA_FILE=/tmp/paperclip-smoke.env PAPERCLIPAI_VERSION=latest ./scripts/docker-onboard-smoke.sh

Notes:

• Persistent data is mounted at ./data/docker-onboard-smoke by default.
• Container runtime user id defaults to your local id -u so the mounted data dir stays writable while avoiding root runtime.
• Smoke script defaults to authenticated/private mode so HOST=0.0.0.0 can be exposed to the host.
• Smoke script defaults host port to 3131 to avoid conflicts with local Paperclip on 3100.
• Smoke script also defaults PAPERCLIP_PUBLIC_URL to http://localhost:<HOST_PORT> so bootstrap invite URLs and auth callbacks use the reachable host port instead of the container's internal 3100.
• In authenticated mode, the smoke script defaults SMOKE_AUTO_BOOTSTRAP=true and drives the real bootstrap path automatically: it signs up a real user, runs paperclipai auth bootstrap-ceo inside the container to mint a real bootstrap invite, accepts that invite over HTTP, and verifies board session access.
• Run the script in the foreground to watch the onboarding flow; stop with Ctrl+C after validation.
• Set SMOKE_DETACH=true to leave the container running for automation and optionally write shell-ready metadata to SMOKE_METADATA_FILE.
• Set SMOKE_CONTAINER_NAME to fix the container's name up front. Automation that has to collect diagnostics when the script fails needs a name it already knows, rather than one it can only read back out of a successful run. Defaults to the image name.
• The container's logs are dumped to SMOKE_LOG_FILE (default $TMPDIR/<container name>.log) before the script tears the container down, so a run that never became ready still leaves its logs behind.
• The image definition is in docker/Dockerfile.onboard-smoke.

General Notes

• The docker-entrypoint.sh adjusts the container node user UID/GID at startup to match the values passed via USER_UID/USER_GID, avoiding permission issues on bind-mounted volumes.
• Paperclip data persists via Docker volumes/bind mounts (compose) or at ~/.local/share/paperclip (quadlet).

Native Runner build cache

The image compiles the native Runner in runner-build, before copying the application source. A pinned cargo-chef generates a dependency recipe in runner-plan. The separate runner-deps stage compiles that recipe with the package-owned Rust compiler. Both the dependency build and the real binary use the release profile and locked Cargo dependencies. The recipe stage never modifies source in the checkout.

Changes to Rust source or embedded protocol inputs rebuild the real binary but can reuse compiled dependencies when the recipe is unchanged. Dependency manifests, the Cargo lockfile, target metadata, or compiler changes invalidate the relevant cache. Ordinary server or UI changes can reuse the entire native build through the existing registry cache (mode=max). Each platform gets its own native build; no cross-architecture binary is reused. No additional GitHub Actions cache is created. A cold build also installs the recipe generator and compiles dependencies, so the savings apply after those layers are available.

Cloud builds import one registry cache: the first available full-SHA cache in the current commit's ten-entry first-parent ancestry, with the legacy cache as a final fallback. Each build still exports its own SHA cache with mode=max. In fresh-builder checks, importing several historical manifests missed native layers that a single matching manifest reused. The selector inspects metadata after Docker login, stops at the first available cache, and permits a cold build if no cache can be read.

The application build inherits that stage and still runs the normal server build, including Cargo, binary staging, and generated-contract checks. Rust input file times are normalized in both stages so fresh checkouts do not force Cargo to rebuild unchanged source. Changes made by build scripts still reach Cargo's normal validation. The final application copy excludes Cargo's target directory as before. Cache misses only cost compilation time.

Pull requests that change the Dockerfile, Docker ignore rules, or Runner native inputs also build the isolated runner-build target in Docker Runner check. The check runs bash scripts/check-docker-runner-cache.sh against a disposable copy of tracked source and the actual Docker ignore rules. It compiles a baseline and exports a local cache, removes that builder, changes a Rust metadata constant, and rebuilds on a fresh builder using only the exported cache. It requires a cached dependency build, an unchanged dependency recipe, and changed metadata from the real binary. It also verifies that a dependency declaration change alters the recipe. The probe exports small metadata results instead of importing a large test image into the Docker daemon. Temporary builders and cache files are removed afterward. It catches missing embedded inputs before the post-merge build. It uses a GitHub-hosted runner with read-only repository access and never publishes images or registry caches. Allow up to 20 minutes for its cold build and source rebuild.