Onboarding Wizard
When you first log in to Companion Hub, the setup wizard helps you configure your local AI, pick a few self-hosted apps, and connect secure remote access — all on a single scrolling page, with one Finish setup button at the bottom that installs everything and completes setup.
The wizard only appears once — after finishing it you’ll go straight to the dashboard on future logins. Everything you choose here can be changed later in Settings.
AI Setup
The first section configures your local intelligence:
- Agent Framework — Choose the personal AI agent that powers your system: OpenClaw (the recommended open-source coding & computer-use agent) or Hermes (an advanced reasoning assistant). Pick the default model the agent uses and how you’ll reach it remotely (Private VPN via Tailscale, or Web via Cloudflare).
- Inference Backend — Companion Hub runs models locally with Ollama by default. (vLLM and Lemonade are shown for context and will be selectable in a future release.)
- Recommended Models — Models matched to your detected hardware, each tagged (Fast, Balanced, Best for agents…) with its memory and disk footprint. Recommended models are pre-selected; toggle any on or off.
- System Overview — A summary of the hardware the Hub detected (OS, CPU, RAM, GPU, VRAM), with any GPU runtime guidance.
- Advanced — Browse additional local models or add Cloud API keys (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, GitHub Copilot) if you’d rather use a hosted provider.
If your hardware can’t run local models, the wizard surfaces the Cloud API keys section so you can configure a provider instead.
Local Apps
Companion Hub inspects the Docker services already running on your machine and recommends open-source alternatives as a grid of app icons. Click a tile to select it (hover to see what it replaces); your running count appears in the Finish bar.
Private VPN
Connect your Hub to Tailscale for secure remote access from anywhere:
- Click Log In with Tailscale
- Authenticate in the popup (create a free account if needed)
- Your Hub joins your Tailscale network automatically
- Install Tailscale on your other devices to reach your Hub remotely
This section is optional — you can connect Tailscale later in Settings → Network.
Learn more in the Tailscale documentation.
Finish setup
When you’re ready, click Finish setup. The Hub installs your selected apps and pulls your AI models, showing per-item progress.
Once everything is queued you’ll see a summary. Apps and models keep installing in the background — click Go to App Store to finish.
On mobile
The whole flow is responsive: sections and the app grid reflow to a single column, and the Finish bar stays pinned to the bottom.
Re-running the wizard
The setup wizard is a one-time experience. Afterwards you can install more apps anytime from the App Store, and adjust AI, models, and networking in Settings.
Service detection only finds Docker containers running at the time of the scan. If you start new services later, you can find alternatives manually in the App Store’s Alternatives section.