Thirty-minute path

This is the short path. You learn three ideas, write no main.yaml by hand and finish with a passing mainsdk check. The quickstart builds a larger app once you are through.

The three ideas

• Interface. One standard way to do a job, such as sign-in (auth), data (db) or model calls (ai). Your code calls the interface, never the provider.
• Driver. The provider behind an interface. In development it is a local one that needs no account or key. You swap it later by editing one line.
• The check. mainsdk check reads your project and fails on mistakes, such as a key in code or an action anyone can call. It says how to fix each one.

Everything else is optional and has a name in the glossary.

1. Create an app and initialise

npx create-next-app@latest hello --ts --app
cd hello
npx mainsdk init

init writes a main.yaml with the local auth, db and files drivers, logging and a deny-by-default network (the indie preset, the default). It asks no questions. For the bare four-key file, run init --preset minimal.

2. Add what you need

npx mainsdk add auth
npx mainsdk add ai

Each add uses a local driver, writes one example test and runs the check.

3. Check

npx mainsdk doctor
npx mainsdk check

doctor looks at your machine and project. check looks at your code. Both name the fix for every problem.

Let your agent do it

Point your agent at mainsdk check --json --agent. It gets the file and the fix for each finding. After three tries on the same finding it is told to ask you instead of weakening the check.

What runs when

Nothing is published to npm yet. You can run the parts marked Building from the repository today with pnpm install and pnpm mainsdk <command>; the rest is the planned design. Each row says the milestone that makes it run.

The installation page has the setup for each framework.