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Setup wizard

After the stack's first start, the first-run wizard runs in your browser. It opens automatically when you visit the server URL.

https://your-domain.tld

(or the IP, if no domain is configured — Vesana always starts over HTTPS, even without your own certificate, see Self-hosting → SSL/TLS)

Steps

1 — Language

German or English. Changeable later per user in preferences.

2 — Design

Choose a colour scheme (dark/light) and one of several bundled themes. The choice becomes the instance default — every new user starts with it. On first login each user may pick their own design once or keep the default; it can be changed any time later in their own settings.

3 — Server URL

The URL Vesana is reachable at (the BASE_URL environment variable from your installation). The wizard shows what's actually configured as BASE_URL and whether your input matches it — so a typo or a forgotten .env change stands out immediately, before you continue. This check doesn't set the URL anew, it only reports what the server actually sees.

4 — Administrator

Username and password for the first super admin (at least 8 characters, with a strength indicator to help). The username is a free-form name — admin is fine, no email address required. This account can't be deleted later unless another super admin exists.

5 — License (optional)

Enter a license key, or skip for community mode. Licenses can be added later at any time under Admin → Maintenance → License.

6 — Tenant

First tenant (organization). For MSP use: one tenant per customer. For single-org use, one tenant is enough.

Add more tenants later: Admin → Access → Tenants → New.

7 — Size (sizing)

Four profiles to choose from — Small / Medium / Large / Extra large (XL), roughly staged by expected service count. Details on the concrete values per profile: Resources → Performance.

The choice is saved and, on finishing the wizard, applied immediately on a best-effort basis (container restart with the matching values). If the responsible background service isn't reachable at that moment, the choice stays saved as a recommendation — you then apply it manually under Admin → Maintenance → Resources → Performance.

8 — SMTP (optional)

For email notifications (alerts, reports):

Field Example
Host smtp.example.com
Port 587 (STARTTLS) or 465 (SMTPS)
User noreply@example.com
Password app password, not a personal password
Sender Vesana <noreply@example.com>
TLS/STARTTLS on/off

If SMTP is skipped, alert emails stay off. 2FA (authenticator app and security key, see 2FA) and push notifications keep working independently of this.

9 — Summary

All inputs are summarised, then "Start Vesana". Vesana waits until the services are back up after the sizing step and the Active Collector is running, then logs you in — you land directly on the dashboard. There Vesana asks exactly once whether it should set up the network automatically (network scan + task list) or whether you start manually.

What the wizard no longer asks

One former wizard step is gone from the first-run flow, because it has a safe default and rarely needs changing:

  • Admin access mode (open / IP allowlist / dedicated container) — always starts with the open default, configurable under Admin access & split container

A separate "localhost monitoring" step, which used to optionally create a few checks on the stack itself, is also no longer part of the wizard.

Setup was skipped — resuming it

If the wizard was accidentally interrupted, you can revisit it at https://your-domain.tld/setup as long as no admin has been created yet.

Once an admin exists, /setup redirects automatically to the login page.

Tester mode

Tester mode

With tester mode active, the wizard automatically skips the license step. All features are unlocked, and the server registers itself with the licence portal as a tester instance.

Details: Self-hosting → Tester mode.

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