This page explains the setup options that exist in the repository today and which one to pick.

For most newcomers, start with the manual path.

• .NET 10 SDK
• PostgreSQL
• Git

git clone https://github.com/jihadkhawaja/Egroo.git
cd Egroo

CREATE DATABASE egroo_local;
CREATE USER egroo_local_user WITH PASSWORD 'change-me';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE egroo_local TO egroo_local_user;

Edit src/Egroo.Server/appsettings.Development.json.

{
  "ConnectionStrings": {
    "DefaultConnection": "Server=localhost;Port=5432;User Id=egroo_local_user;Password=change-me;Database=egroo_local;"
  },
  "Secrets": {
    "Jwt": "development-jwt-secret-at-least-32-characters"
  },
  "Encryption": {
    "Key": "12345678901234567890123456789012",
    "IV": "1234567890123456"
  }
}

dotnet build src/Egroo.slnx --configuration Debug

Terminal 1:

dotnet watch --project src/Egroo.Server/Egroo.Server.csproj

Terminal 2:

dotnet watch --project src/Egroo/Egroo/Egroo.csproj

• Web app: http://localhost:5068
• API Swagger: http://localhost:5175/swagger

After sign-in, the client can publish a device encryption key for end-to-end encrypted message delivery. If you clear browser storage later, regenerate the device key from the app settings on that device.

The repository includes src/Egroo.Server/docker-compose.yaml, which starts:

• PostgreSQL
• the API container built from src/Egroo.Server/Dockerfile

Run it from src/Egroo.Server:

docker compose up --build

Notes:

• this compose file is centered on the API, not the full end-user stack
• it exposes the API on http://localhost:5175
• it uses a development-style PostgreSQL setup and should be reviewed before using it outside local experiments

The root docker-compose-egroo.yml uses:

• jihadkhawaja/egroo-server-prod:latest
• jihadkhawaja/egroo-client-prod:latest

Important caveats:

• it does not provision PostgreSQL
• it assumes an external Docker network named internal
• it is better suited to an environment where networking, reverse proxying, and persistent configuration are already managed

If you use it:

1. Create the external network:

docker network create internal

2. Make sure the required application configuration is provided to the containers.

3. Start the stack:

docker compose -f docker-compose-egroo.yml up -d

From the repository root:

docker build -f src/Egroo.Server/Dockerfile -t egroo-server .
docker build -f src/Egroo/Egroo/Dockerfile -t egroo-web .

This is useful when you want local images without pulling from a registry.

Your setup is ready when all of these are true:

1. PostgreSQL is reachable with the connection string you configured.
2. http://localhost:5175/swagger opens in development.
3. http://localhost:5068 loads the UI.
4. You can sign up and sign in.
5. You can send a message successfully after sign-in.

• Continue with Configuration to understand every setting.
• Continue with Development Setup if you plan to change code.
• Continue with Deployment if you are preparing a hosted environment.