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Quickstart

This guide creates your first SnapVM workspace using the web console. No SnapVM CLI is required.

Prerequisites

Section titled “Prerequisites”
  • A SnapVM account, invitation, or private beta access for your deployment
  • A modern browser with WebSocket support
  • An organization where you can create machines

Create your first machine

Section titled “Create your first machine”
  1. Open the SnapVM console and sign in.
  2. Select an organization, or create one if the console prompts you.
  3. Go to Machines and choose New.
  4. Enter a machine name using lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens.
  5. Choose the runtime or template your deployment exposes.
  6. Confirm the form and wait for the machine to become reachable.

Machine creation provisions the runtime, records it in the SnapVM control plane, and starts the agent that the console uses for terminal access.

Open the terminal

Section titled “Open the terminal”

From the machine row or detail page, open Terminal. The console connects to the machine agent over a WebSocket PTY session.

Try a few commands:

Terminal window
pwd
uname -a
mkdir -p ~/projects/hello
cd ~/projects/hello
printf 'hello from snapvm\n' > README.md

If you close the browser tab, return to the machine and open the terminal again. Recent session output can be replayed, and the filesystem changes remain on the machine.

Serve an HTTP app

Section titled “Serve an HTTP app”

Most deployments route a machine HTTPS URL to an HTTP port inside the machine. If your deployment uses the default application port, you can start a server like this:

Terminal window
cd ~/projects/hello
python3 -m http.server 8080

Then open the machine URL from the console. The URL usually follows this shape:

https://<machine-name>.snapvm.app

Your operator may configure a different domain or default port.

Stop or hibernate

Section titled “Stop or hibernate”

When you are done, stop the machine from the console if your deployment exposes a stop action. Persistent files, packages, and repositories remain available for the next wake-up. Interactive shell processes are not a substitute for services; define a service for processes that should restart after hibernation.

Keep reading

Section titled “Keep reading”