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Getting started
Run Willow on your own computer, sign in as the owner and finish setup.
Willow runs on your own computer with one command, and the same checkout can later go to your own Cloudflare account. It is free and open source under the MIT licence, and it needs no provider account to start.
Install rer
Willow uses rer, the Run Edit Run command, to install, start, back up and deploy it. Install it once per computer:
curl -fsSL https://runeditrun.com/install.sh | shOr, if you already use npm: npm install -g @runeditrun/rer. Willow needs Node 22 or later and pnpm 10.12.4 on macOS, Linux or Windows with WSL2; rer picks the exact versions the checkout pins.
Get Willow and start it
git clone https://github.com/just-every/run-willow.git willow
cd willow && rer devThe first start installs everything and can take a few minutes. When Willow is ready, rer dev prints RER_READY with the local address and RER_OPEN, a link that opens Willow signed in as the owner. Open that link on the same computer and keep it to yourself: it carries this checkout's private key.
To set up the real owner mailbox instead of the local test owner, run rer setup before rer dev and answer its prompt. Willow sends no email while it runs locally: sign-in messages wait in a local outbox on your computer.
Finish setup
- Open the
RER_OPENlink. Willow shows Finish setup with the owner's name and email. - Tick I confirm this owner account is ready to use. and press Finish setup.
- Willow asks for Your employer: its name, time zone, country and currency. Press Save.
| Step | Where |
|---|---|
| Install rer | Your terminal, once per computer |
| Get Willow and start it | Your terminal, in the folder you choose |
| Finish setup | Your browser, at /setup |
| Your employer | Your browser, the first page of the app |
Your installation's own front page shows a Sign in button once setup is finished. Everyone signs in with an emailed link; there are no passwords to keep.
Stop and start again
Stop Willow with rer dev --stop (or Ctrl-C) and start it again with rer dev. Your records stay in the checkout's local data until you choose to reset them. Next, set Willow up for your team.