THE ZELA FIELD GUIDE
Good infrastructure
starts with clear docs.
From your first dashboard to a cluster you can depend on. Start with the basics, or go straight to what you need.
Start the manager
Explore safely in Demo mode or start a live manager.
02 / DEPLOYRun your first app
Connect a worker and open a sample website.
03 / OPERATEKeep it running
Check health, back up state, and maintain workers.
A first look, safely.
Run these commands in your terminal. The demo uses simulated workers and does not change real hosts.
git clone https://github.com/nexusrun/zela.git
cd zela
go run ./cmd/zela-server --demoRequires Go 1.25+. In a second terminal in the project folder, run cat data-demo/admin-token, then sign in at http://127.0.0.1:8080. Keep that token private.
Find your next step.
Getting started
Choose Demo or Live mode, start the manager, and sign in.
Start hereBrowser management
Connect your first worker, deploy a website, and manage it in the dashboard.
Start herePlain-language glossary
Learn the words you will see in Zela, without the jargon.
Deploy & operateInstallation
Install services, configure PostgreSQL, and connect Linux workers.
Deploy & operateNetworking
Configure the mesh, worker networks, service names, and application routes.
Deploy & operateOperations & recovery
Back up, upgrade, maintain workers, and investigate failures.
Deploy & operateSecurity & access
Protect credentials, SSH identities, transport, and integration access.
Deploy & operateHigh availability
Run active/standby managers with PostgreSQL and readiness-aware routing.
Build & integrateAI assistants & MCP
Connect cloud or local assistants with read or management permissions.
Build & integrateCommand-line interface
Use profiles, verified TLS, JSON output, and remote administration.
Build & integrateArchitecture
Understand managers, workers, state, and how the pieces connect.
Build & integrateConfiguration reference
Look up flags, environment variables, files, and defaults.
Build & integrateAdministrator & API reference
Read detailed gateway, provisioning, storage, and API behavior.
Supported platforms
Managers run on Linux or macOS, on amd64 or arm64. Building requires Go 1.25+. Automatically provisioned workers use supported systemd Linux distributions: RHEL, Rocky, AlmaLinux, CentOS Stream, Ubuntu LTS, and Debian. PostgreSQL is optional for one manager and required for HA.
The encrypted mesh needs live Linux agents, WireGuard support, Docker Engine 28+, and permitted worker-to-worker traffic.
Check installation prerequisites →New to the vocabulary?
A worker is a server. A replica is a copy of an app. The glossary explains the rest.
Open the glossary