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

# Quickstart

> Install Open Index, run the bundled example brain, and open the explorer.

## Install

```bash theme={null}
pip install -e '.[all]'          # core + UI (Streamlit) + MCP server
```

The `[all]` extra pulls in the Streamlit explorer and the MCP server. For a
narrower install, pick the extras you need — `[ui]`, `[mcp]`, `[serve]`,
`[semantic]`, `[opensearch]`.

## Try the bundled example

The repo ships a **support brain** (products, issues, segments, comments) you can
run immediately.

```bash theme={null}
open-index index --brain examples/support-brain
open-index ui    --brain examples/support-brain      # open the Map tab, pick an anchor
```

<Tip>
  Three runnable examples ship in `examples/`: `support-brain`, `infra-brain`, and
  `personal-brain`. Each is a complete brain you can index, search, and explore.
</Tip>

## Start your own brain

<Steps>
  <Step title="Scaffold a brain">
    ```bash theme={null}
    open-index init my-brain
    ```

    This writes `brain.yaml`, a `doc_types/` folder, an `entities/` folder, and
    optional Claude Code conveniences (`.mcp.json`, `CLAUDE.md`, an editing skill).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Define a concept">
    ```bash theme={null}
    open-index add-doc-type customer --brain my-brain
    ```

    Edit the generated `doc_types/customer.yaml` to declare the fields you want to store.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add entities">
    Author one JSON per entity under `my-brain/entities/**/*.json`, or import in bulk:

    ```bash theme={null}
    open-index import customers.csv --doc-type customer --brain my-brain
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Index and explore">
    ```bash theme={null}
    open-index index --brain my-brain
    open-index ui    --brain my-brain
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

## A brain on disk

```
my-brain/
  brain.yaml            # name + storage/search backend
  doc_types/*.yaml      # one schema per doc_type (fields, boosts, display color)
  entities/**/*.json    # entities, with related_to edges
  connectors/*.py       # optional ingestion scripts (MCP → entities)
```

Storage defaults to **SQLite + FTS5** (zero external services). The backend sits
behind a pluggable interface with two implementations: SQLite (default, local/dev)
and **OpenSearch** (select with `search.backend: opensearch`).

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Core concepts" icon="diagram-project" href="/concepts">
    Understand doc\_types, entities, and the relationship graph.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Creating a brain" icon="brain" href="/guides/creating-a-brain">
    Define schemas and author entities step by step.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Connect an agent" icon="plug" href="/agents/mcp">
    Wire the brain into Claude Code, Claude Desktop, or Cursor over MCP.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Deploy a shared brain" icon="server" href="/deployment">
    Run the brain remotely for a team, cloud agents, or CI.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>