DocuMind

Getting Started

Clone the repo, run backend + frontend dashboard, and bootstrap DCLI with reproducible paths.

Watch the Product Walkthrough

Before diving into setup, watch this walkthrough to see DocuMind in action from document ingestion to intelligent retrieval and search.

Clone Repo & Project Map

Start from the official source so every path in this page makes sense.

1

Clone DocuMind

git clone https://github.com/mdkaifansari04/documind.git

Official repository for backend API, frontend dashboard, CLI, MCP server, and documentation.

2

Enter repository root

cd documind

All next commands on this page assume you are in this repo root.

Repo layout you will use

documind/
  backend/        # FastAPI, ingestion, retrieval, observability, DCLI, MCP
  frontend/       # Next.js dashboard to manage instances/KB/resources/query
  documentation/  # This docs site

Prerequisites

  • Python 3.10+
  • Bun (for frontend dashboard)
  • pipx (recommended for global DCLI install)
  • Local Actian Vector setup used by backend

Backend Quick Start (FastAPI)

3

Go to backend

cd backend

Backend service code and runtime wiring live here.

4

Create and activate venv

python -m venv .venv && source .venv/bin/activate

Keeps backend dependencies isolated.

5

Install pip packages

pip install -r requirements.txt

Installs API, ingestion, retrieval, and supporting dependencies.

6

Run backend server

uvicorn app.main:app --reload --port 8000

Backend starts at http://localhost:8000.

Quick check

Open http://localhost:8000/health. If it returns OK, backend is up.

Frontend Quick Start (Dashboard)

The dashboard is your control center: create instances, manage knowledge bases, ingest resources, and run search/ask flows.

7

Open frontend directory

cd ../frontend

Run this from backend directory. If you are at repo root, use `cd frontend`.

8

Install dependencies with Bun

bun install

Installs Next.js dashboard dependencies.

9

Set API URL for frontend

echo 'NEXT_PUBLIC_API_URL=http://localhost:8000' > .env

Frontend uses this to call the local backend.

10

Run frontend

bun run dev

Dashboard starts at http://localhost:3000.

DCLI Quick Start

11

Install DCLI from repo backend package

pipx install ./backend

Run this from repo root. Installs `dcli`, `documind`, and `DCLI` commands.

12

Point DCLI to local backend

export DOCUMIND_API_URL="http://localhost:8000"

DCLI needs backend URL for all operations.

13

Initialize namespace context

dcli init --namespace-id company_docs

Sets active context so instance/namespace are remembered.

14

Run a retrieval check

dcli context-show && dcli search-docs --qr "deploy command" --top-k 5

If this returns results, CLI and retrieval path are good.

Run Order & Sanity Checks

Recommended order

  1. Start backend server first.
  2. Start frontend dashboard second.
  3. Run DCLI init/search checks third.
Health checks
curl -s http://localhost:8000/health
open http://localhost:3000

Next Steps

Once backend + dashboard + CLI are running, move to architecture and component docs for deeper system understanding.

Architecture

How data moves end-to-end

Components

Backend services + dashboard modules