Start a project

Self-hosting

Run the engine on your own server.

Clone it, build it, set a secret, and the API, the command line and the MCP server are yours. Content stays plain files in Git on your disk. The web Studio, AI help and live collaboration come with Moteur Cloud.

The engine on GitHubStart a project

terminal

git clone https://github.com/moteurio/moteur.git
cd moteur
pnpm install
pnpm run build
pnpm run cli -- auth create-user
pnpm run server
From the engine’s README: build it, create the first person, start the server.

Try it

Write your .env

Tick what your server needs, and the file writes itself, with the names the engine reads.

What your server needs

.env

# Required: signs people's sessions. Long and random.
JWT_SECRET=change-me-to-a-long-random-string

# Where projects, people and settings live
DATA_ROOT=/srv/moteur
PORT=3000

# Sites allowed to call the API from a browser
CORS_ORIGINS=https://www.example.com

Then

pnpm run build
pnpm run server

The variable names are the engine’s own. The rest are in docs/Configuration.md in the repository.

Your server or ours

What you run, and what Cloud adds

The same engine either way. What differs is who runs it, and what comes around it.

  • Yours

    The API and its channels

    Every model, entry and page, served through channels with read-only keys, documented at /docs.

    • OpenAPI per channel
    • Webhooks, signed

  • Yours

    The command line and MCP

    The moteur command for people and scripts, and the MCP server for agents, signed in the same way.

    • Everything the API does
    • Agents review-only by default

  • Yours

    Content in Git, on your disk

    Each project is a folder of JSON files and a Git repository. No database to install.

    • Node 22 or newer, and Git
    • Back up a folder

  • Cloud

    The web Studio

    Writing, reviews, media, pages and the Inbox in the browser, in English and French.

    • Comes with Moteur Cloud
    • Not in the repository

  • Cloud

    AI help and live collaboration

    Writing and translation help, and seeing who’s in which field, are private plugins Moteur Cloud runs.

    • Off until an admin turns them on
    • A self-hosted API has no /ai routes

  • Cloud

    Running it for you

    Plans, limits and billing per project, and someone else keeping the server running.

    • From free
    • Limits by plugin, if you host

Questions about self-hosting

An agency owner asksDo we get the Studio?

MoteurNo. The web Studio comes with Moteur Cloud. On your own server you work through the API, the command line and MCP.

A developer asksWhat does it need?

MoteurNode 22 or newer, Git, and a disk. No database: content is files, with an index Moteur can rebuild.

A developer asksIs there a Docker image?

MoteurThere’s a Dockerfile in the repository. No image is published yet.

A CTO asksHow do we back it up?

MoteurBack up the data folder. Each project in it is also a Git repository. Keep the encryption key with it, or stored secrets, like webhook secrets and Git tokens, can’t be read back.

Keep reading

Run it yourself, or let us.

Clone the engine for your own server, or start a free project on Moteur Cloud.

The engine on GitHubStart a project