### Introduction to LibreChat

LibreChat serves as a centralized hub for AI conversations, offering a familiar ChatGPT-like user experience enriched with advanced features and extensive customization capabilities.

#### Key Features

- **Multi-Provider Support:** Connect to OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Groq, Mistral, and more  
- **Multimodal Conversations:** Upload images, analyze documents, and chat with files  
- **Advanced Agents:** Create AI assistants with custom tools and API actions  
- **RAG Integration:** Chat with your documents using the built-in RAG pipeline  
- **MCP Support:** Integrate with Model Context Protocol servers  
- **Web Search:** Enable AI models to search the web for current information  
- **Plugin System:** Extend functionality with built-in and custom plugins

#### Why Self-Host LibreChat?

- **Data Privacy:** Keep all conversations on your own infrastructure  
- **Cost Control:** Use your own API keys without platform markup  
- **Customization:** Full control over features, endpoints, and branding  
- **No Usage Limits:** Avoid rate limits imposed by hosted solutions

### Prerequisites and Requirements

#### Server Requirements

| Resource | Minimum | Recommended |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CPU | 1 vCPU | 2+ vCPU |
| RAM | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| Storage | 20 GB SSD | 40+ GB NVMe |
| OS | Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | Ubuntu 24.04 LTS |

**Note:** With all features enabled (RAG, MeiliSearch, multiple endpoints), 4GB RAM is recommended for smooth operation.

#### Required Software

- Git: For cloning the LibreChat repository  
- Docker Engine: Container runtime (v24.0+)  
- Docker Compose: Container orchestration (v2.0+)  
- Nginx: Reverse proxy for SSL termination  
- Certbot: SSL certificate management with Let's Encrypt

#### API Keys

You will need API keys from one or more AI providers: OpenAI, Anthropic, Google AI, Groq, Mistral, OpenRouter, etc.

### RamNode VPS Setup

Log in to your RamNode account at vps.ramnode.com, deploy a new server with Ubuntu 24.04 LTS and at least 2GB RAM.

#### Initial Server Configuration

Connect and update system  
```
ssh root@your-server-ip  
apt update && apt upgrade -y  
```

Create non-root user  
```
adduser librechat  
usermod -aG sudo librechat

# Configure SSH key for new user  
mkdir -p /home/librechat/.ssh  
cp ~/.ssh/authorized_keys /home/librechat/.ssh/  
chown -R librechat:librechat /home/librechat/.ssh  
chmod 700 /home/librechat/.ssh  
chmod 600 /home/librechat/.ssh/authorized_keys

su - librechat
```

### Docker Installation

Install Docker dependencies  
```
sudo apt install -y ca-certificates curl gnupg lsb-release

# Add Docker GPG key  
sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings  
curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg | \  
  sudo gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg  
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg
```

Add Docker repository and install  
```
echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) \
  signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.gpg] \
  https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu \
  $(lsb_release -cs) stable" | \  
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

sudo apt update  
sudo apt install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io \  
docker-buildx-plugin docker-compose-plugin
```

Post-installation setup  
```
# Add user to docker group  
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER  
newgrp docker

# Verify installation  
docker --version  
docker compose version

# Enable on boot  
sudo systemctl enable docker  
sudo systemctl enable containerd
```

### LibreChat Deployment

Clone repository  
```
cd ~  
git clone https://github.com/danny-avila/LibreChat.git  
cd LibreChat
```

Configure environment  
```
cp .env.example .env

# Generate secure credentials  
openssl rand -hex 32  # For CREDS_KEY  
openssl rand -hex 16  # For CREDS_IV  
openssl rand -hex 32  # For JWT_SECRET  
openssl rand -hex 32  # For JWT_REFRESH_SECRET
```

#### Edit .env file

Essential environment variables  
```
# Server Configuration  
HOST=0.0.0.0  
PORT=3080

# Credentials (REQUIRED)  
CREDS_KEY=your-32-byte-hex-key-here  
CREDS_IV=your-16-byte-hex-iv-here

# JWT Secrets  
JWT_SECRET=your-jwt-secret-here  
JWT_REFRESH_SECRET=your-jwt-refresh-secret-here

# Domain Configuration  
DOMAIN_CLIENT=https://chat.yourdomain.com  
DOMAIN_SERVER=https://chat.yourdomain.com

# MongoDB  
MONGO_URI=mongodb://mongodb:27017/LibreChat

# User Registration  
ALLOW_REGISTRATION=true  
ALLOW_EMAIL_LOGIN=true

# API Keys (add yours)  
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-openai-key  
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-your-anthropic-key  
GOOGLE_KEY=your-google-ai-key
```

**Warning:** Never commit your .env file to version control. It contains sensitive credentials.

Start LibreChat  
```
docker compose up -d

# Verify containers  
docker compose ps

# Check logs  
docker compose logs -f api
```

Access LibreChat at `http://your-server-ip:3080`. The first user to register will automatically be granted admin privileges.

### Nginx Reverse Proxy with SSL

Install Nginx and Certbot  
```
sudo apt install -y nginx certbot python3-certbot-nginx
```

Create Nginx configuration  
```
# /etc/nginx/sites-available/librechat  
server {  
    listen 80;  
    server_name chat.yourdomain.com;  
    return 301 https://$server_name$request_uri;  
}

server {  
    listen 443 ssl http2;  
    server_name chat.yourdomain.com;

ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/chat.yourdomain.com/fullchain.pem;  
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/chat.yourdomain.com/privkey.pem;  
    ssl_protocols TLSv1.2 TLSv1.3;  
    ssl_prefer_server_ciphers on;

client_max_body_size 100M;

location / {  
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:3080;  
        proxy_http_version 1.1;  
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;  
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";  
        proxy_set_header Host $host;  
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;  
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;  
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;  
        proxy_read_timeout 600s;  
    }  
}
```

Enable site and obtain SSL  
```
sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/librechat /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/  
sudo nginx -t  
sudo certbot --nginx -d chat.yourdomain.com  
sudo systemctl reload nginx
```

### Security Hardening

#### Security Best Practices

- Use strong, unique passwords for all credentials  
- Enable rate limiting for login and registration  
- Restrict registration to invited users only if needed  
- Keep Docker images updated regularly  
- Configure firewall rules with UFW

Configure UFW firewall  
```
sudo ufw default deny incoming  
sudo ufw default allow outgoing  
sudo ufw allow ssh  
sudo ufw allow 80/tcp  
sudo ufw allow 443/tcp  
sudo ufw enable
```

### Troubleshooting
### View container logs
### Restart services
### Update LibreChat
### LibreChat Deployed Successfully!

Your self-hosted AI chat platform is now running. Access it at your configured domain and start chatting with multiple AI providers through a unified interface.