> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://mercure-technologies.gitbook.io/xprem/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://mercure-technologies.gitbook.io/xprem/installation-guide/overview.md).

# Overview

{% hint style="info" %}
This installation guide covers the control plane, the recommended way to run xprem. For a stateless deployment, follow the [stateless mode documentation](/xprem/stateless-mode/overview.md) instead.
{% endhint %}

xprem is configured entirely through environment variables, which gives you fine-grained control over storage, authentication, and update behavior. The installation takes several steps.

Along the way, you'll collect a number of values and credentials: keys, URLs, secrets: that become environment variables in your final deployment.

**Keep them somewhere safe as you go: you'll need all of them at the end.**

{% hint style="info" %}
If you use an AI coding assistant, connect it to the xprem documentation MCP server. It can then answer setup and troubleshooting questions against the current docs instead of guessing:

```shellscript
https://mercure-technologies.gitbook.io/xprem/~gitbook/mcp
```

{% endhint %}

### **Quick start**

If you're setting up a server for the first time, start here:

```bash
npx eoas server:init
```

It then generates a configuration in your current directory, containing only the variables your choices actually need:

* Docker or binary deployments get a single **.env.xprem file**.
* Helm deployments get an **xprem-helm/** directory with two files: **values.yaml**, which holds the chart configuration and is safe to commit, and **secrets.yaml**, which holds every sensitive value and belongs in your .gitignore.