Installation

GridNMS self-hosted runs as a small Docker Compose stack on your own infrastructure. It phones home to the GridNMS platform over a single outbound HTTPS connection for licensing, notices, and software updates — no inbound connections are required. You’ll need the license key from your approval email.

Easiest: the desktop app

Prefer a GUI? The GridNMS Server desktop app installs and runs the whole stack with Docker — paste your license key and click Start. Requires Docker Desktop.

macOS .dmg · Windows .msi · Windows .zip

Or follow the Docker Compose steps below.

Prerequisites

• A host on amd64 (x86-64) or arm64 (aarch64) — Linux, macOS, or Windows 10/11.
• Docker: Docker Engine 24+ (Linux) or Docker Desktop (macOS/Windows, WSL2 backend), running.
• ~4 vCPU / 8 GB RAM / 40 GB disk for a starter deployment.
• Outbound HTTPS (443) to platform.gridnms.io and images.gridnms.io.
• Your license key (from the approval email).

The installer auto-detects your architecture and pulls the matching images. The web UI and API are served by one container on a single port (default 3001).

Install

Linux

1. Ensure Docker Engine and the Compose plugin are installed (docker compose version) and the daemon is running.

2. Download and unpack the bundle, then run the installer:

   curl -fLO https://images.gridnms.io/gridnms-selfhosted-bundle.tar.gz \
     && tar xzf gridnms-selfhosted-bundle.tar.gz \
     && cd gridnms-selfhosted-bundle \
     && ./install.sh

3. Paste your license key when prompted and confirm the URL users will reach the instance at. The installer generates secrets, pulls the images, starts the stack, and waits for health (logging to install.log).

4. Open http://<host>:3001 and continue to First run.

macOS

1. Install Docker Desktop for Mac and launch it (wait for the whale icon to settle / “Engine running”). Apple Silicon and Intel are both supported.

2. In Terminal, run the same one-liner as Linux:

   curl -fLO https://images.gridnms.io/gridnms-selfhosted-bundle.tar.gz \
     && tar xzf gridnms-selfhosted-bundle.tar.gz \
     && cd gridnms-selfhosted-bundle \
     && ./install.sh

3. Paste your license key when prompted. Open http://localhost:3001 when it reports healthy.

Note

macOS uses bash 3.2 — the installer is written for it. If you reach the UI via a hostname other than localhost, set that URL at the prompt so passkeys work.

Windows

1. Install Docker Desktop for Windows — it enables WSL2 (accept the prompts; reboot if asked). Launch it and wait for Engine running. The Linux images run inside Docker Desktop’s WSL2 VM.

2. Download the Windows bundle (.zip), then right-click it in File Explorer → Extract All…

3. Open the extracted gridnms-selfhosted-bundle folder, hold Shift and right-click an empty spot → Open PowerShell window here (or Open in Terminal), then run:

   powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File .\install.ps1

4. Paste your license key when prompted. The installer generates the rest, pulls the images, and starts the stack.

5. Open http://localhost:3001 and continue to First run.

Note

If Windows SmartScreen warns about the script, it’s because the file came from the internet; the -ExecutionPolicy Bypass flag runs it for this one invocation only.

Next steps

• First run — complete the setup wizard and create your admin login.
• Add more collectors for other sites and network segments.
• Collectors & source IPs — make syslog and traps show the real sending device.
• Configuration reference — every .env value explained.
• Updates and air-gapped deployments.

Support: support@gridnms.io or your customer portal.