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SAM Docs

Quickstart

This guide covers two paths: using a hosted instance (if someone has already deployed SAM) or self-hosting your own.

Using a Hosted Instance

Section titled “Using a Hosted Instance”

If SAM is already deployed (e.g., at app.example.com):

1. Sign In

Section titled “1. Sign In”

Open the web UI and click Sign in with GitHub. Authorize the GitHub App when prompted.

2. Add Your Hetzner Token

Section titled “2. Add Your Hetzner Token”

Go to Settings and add your Hetzner API token. This token stays encrypted in the database — it’s never stored as an environment variable.

3. Install the GitHub App

Section titled “3. Install the GitHub App”

In Settings, click Install GitHub App on the repositories you want to use with SAM. This grants SAM read/write access to repository contents.

4. Create a Workspace

Section titled “4. Create a Workspace”

From the Dashboard, click New Workspace and select:

  • Repository — from your installed GitHub App repos
  • VM Size — Small (2 vCPU, 4GB), Medium (4 vCPU, 8GB), or Large (8 vCPU, 16GB)

Click Create Workspace. Provisioning takes 2-5 minutes.

5. Use It

Section titled “5. Use It”

Once running, click the workspace to open a browser-based terminal. The devcontainer includes git, Docker, and your repo cloned and ready.

To start Claude Code:

Terminal window
claude login    # Authenticate with your Claude subscription
claude          # Start coding

Self-Hosting

Section titled “Self-Hosting”

To deploy your own SAM instance:

Prerequisites

Section titled “Prerequisites”
  • A domain with DNS managed by Cloudflare
  • A Cloudflare account (free tier works)
  • A GitHub account

Quick Deploy

Section titled “Quick Deploy”
  1. Fork the SAM repository
  2. Create a GitHub Environment named production in your fork’s Settings
  3. Add the required secrets — see the Self-Hosting Guide for the full list
  4. Push to main — deployment is automatic via GitHub Actions + Pulumi

The deployment workflow:

  • Provisions Cloudflare infrastructure (D1, KV, R2, DNS)
  • Deploys the API Worker and Web UI
  • Builds and uploads VM Agent binaries
  • Runs database migrations
  • Verifies with a health check

For detailed step-by-step instructions, see the Self-Hosting Guide.

Next Steps

Section titled “Next Steps”