> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.mergewatch.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Manual Install

> Deploy MergeWatch with individual docker run commands — for environments where Docker Compose is not available.

## When to use manual install

Use this guide if you:

* Cannot use Docker Compose (minimal Docker installations, orchestration platforms that run individual containers)
* Want individual control over each container's lifecycle
* Need to integrate MergeWatch containers into an existing infrastructure setup

<Note>
  For most users, the recommended path is Docker Compose. See the [install guide](/self-hosting/install) for the simpler setup.
</Note>

***

## Prerequisites

* Docker installed and running
* A GitHub App configured with the [required permissions](/github-app/permissions)
* Your GitHub App credentials: App ID, private key (`.pem` file), and webhook secret
* An API key or endpoint for your chosen LLM provider

***

## Deployment steps

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create a Docker network">
    All MergeWatch containers must communicate over a shared network.

    ```bash theme={null}
    docker network create mergewatch-net
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Start Postgres">
    MergeWatch requires a Postgres database for storing installation and review data.

    ```bash theme={null}
    docker run -d \
      --name postgres \
      --network mergewatch-net \
      -e POSTGRES_USER=mergewatch \
      -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mergewatch \
      -e POSTGRES_DB=mergewatch \
      -v mergewatch-pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data \
      -p 5432:5432 \
      postgres:16-alpine
    ```

    <Tip>
      The `-v mergewatch-pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data` flag creates a named volume so your data persists across container restarts.
    </Tip>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Start the MergeWatch server">
    Run the MergeWatch server container, passing all required environment variables via `-e` flags.

    ```bash theme={null}
    docker run -d \
      --name mergewatch \
      --network mergewatch-net \
      -e GITHUB_APP_ID=your_app_id \
      -e GITHUB_PRIVATE_KEY="$(cat private-key.pem)" \
      -e GITHUB_WEBHOOK_SECRET=your_webhook_secret \
      -e DATABASE_URL=postgresql://mergewatch:mergewatch@postgres:5432/mergewatch \
      -e LLM_PROVIDER=anthropic \
      -e ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-your-key \
      -p 3000:3000 \
      ghcr.io/santthosh/mergewatch:latest
    ```

    <Warning>
      Replace the placeholder values with your actual credentials. The `DATABASE_URL` hostname `postgres` matches the `--name` of the Postgres container on the shared network.
    </Warning>

    For other LLM providers, replace the provider-specific variables:

    <AccordionGroup>
      <Accordion title="Bedrock">
        ```bash theme={null}
        -e LLM_PROVIDER=bedrock \
        -e AWS_REGION=us-east-1 \
        -e AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your_access_key \
        -e AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=your_secret_key \
        ```
      </Accordion>

      <Accordion title="LiteLLM">
        ```bash theme={null}
        -e LLM_PROVIDER=litellm \
        -e LITELLM_BASE_URL=http://litellm:4000 \
        -e LITELLM_API_KEY=your_litellm_key \
        ```
      </Accordion>

      <Accordion title="Ollama">
        ```bash theme={null}
        -e LLM_PROVIDER=ollama \
        -e OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://ollama:11434 \
        ```
      </Accordion>
    </AccordionGroup>
  </Step>

  <Step title="(Optional) Start the dashboard">
    ```bash theme={null}
    docker run -d \
      --name dashboard \
      --network mergewatch-net \
      -e DEPLOYMENT_MODE=self-hosted \
      -e DATABASE_URL=postgres://postgres:postgres@postgres:5432/mergewatch \
      -e GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id \
      -e GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret \
      -e NEXTAUTH_SECRET=$(openssl rand -base64 32) \
      -e NEXTAUTH_URL=http://localhost:3001 \
      -p 3001:3001 \
      ghcr.io/santthosh/mergewatch-dashboard:0.1.0
    ```

    The dashboard reads directly from the MergeWatch Postgres database, so no `NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL` is required.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Update the GitHub App webhook URL">
    Go to your GitHub App settings and set the **Webhook URL** to your server's publicly accessible URL (e.g. `https://mergewatch.example.com/webhook`).

    For local development, use a tunnel:

    ```bash theme={null}
    ngrok http 3000
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Install the GitHub App">
    Navigate to your GitHub App's public page and install it on the repositories you want MergeWatch to review.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Verify the deployment">
    Check that all containers are running:

    ```bash theme={null}
    docker ps --filter network=mergewatch-net
    ```

    Check the MergeWatch server logs:

    ```bash theme={null}
    docker logs mergewatch
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

***

## Managing containers

| Task               | Command                                                                                                        |
| ------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| View logs          | `docker logs -f mergewatch`                                                                                    |
| Restart server     | `docker restart mergewatch`                                                                                    |
| Stop all           | `docker stop mergewatch dashboard postgres`                                                                    |
| Remove all         | `docker rm mergewatch dashboard postgres`                                                                      |
| Pull latest images | `docker pull ghcr.io/santthosh/mergewatch:latest && docker pull ghcr.io/santthosh/mergewatch-dashboard:latest` |

To upgrade, pull the latest images and recreate the containers:

```bash theme={null}
docker pull ghcr.io/santthosh/mergewatch:latest
docker stop mergewatch && docker rm mergewatch
# Re-run the docker run command from Step 3
```

***

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Docker Compose Install" icon="bolt" href="/self-hosting/install">
    Use Docker Compose for a simpler setup experience.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Environment Variables" icon="key" href="/reference/env-vars">
    Full reference for all environment variables.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>