--- title: Full development environment sidebar_label: Full development tags: - development - contributor - backend - frontend - docker --- import ExecutionEnvironment from "@docusaurus/ExecutionEnvironment"; import TabItem from "@theme/TabItem"; import Tabs from "@theme/Tabs"; ## Prerequisites Before you begin, ensure you have the following tools installed: - [Python](https://www.python.org/) (3.13 or later) - [uv](https://docs.astral.sh/uv/getting-started/installation/) (Latest stable release) - [Go](https://go.dev/) (1.24 or later) - [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/en) (24 or later) - [PostgreSQL](https://www.postgresql.org/) (16 or later) - [Docker](https://www.docker.com/) (Latest Community Edition or Docker Desktop) - [Docker Compose](https://docs.docker.com/compose/) (Compose v2) ## 1. Setting Up Required Services authentik depends on several external services: - [Redis](https://redis.io/) for caching - [PostgreSQL](https://www.postgresql.org/) for database storage - [Zenko CloudServer (S3)](https://www.zenko.io/cloudserver/) for object storage - [Sentry Spotlight](https://spotlightjs.com/) for error tracking and visualization ### Option A: Using Docker Compose (Recommended) The easiest way to set up these services is using the provided Docker Compose configuration: ```shell docker compose -f scripts/docker-compose.yml up -d ``` ### Option B: Using local installations Alternatively, you can install and run these services directly on your system. :::info If using locally installed databases, ensure the PostgreSQL credentials provided to authentik have `CREATE DATABASE` and `DROP DATABASE` permissions, because authentik creates temporary databases for testing. ::: ## 2. Installing Platform-Specific Dependencies Install the required native dependencies on macOS using Homebrew: ```shell brew install \ libxmlsec1 \ libpq \ krb5 \ pkg-config \ uv \ postgresql \ redis \ node@24 \ golangci-lint ``` For Debian/Ubuntu-based distributions: ```shell pip install uv && \ sudo apt-get install -y \ libgss-dev \ krb5-config \ libkrb5-dev \ postgresql-server-dev-all \ postresql \ redis ``` For other distributions (Red Hat, SUSE, Arch), adjust the package names as needed. Install `golangci-lint` by following the [official installation instructions](https://golangci-lint.run/welcome/install/#other-ci). We're currently seeking community input on running the full development environment on Windows. If you have experience with this setup, please consider contributing to this documentation. ## 3. Set up the backend :::info All `make` commands must be executed from the root directory of your local authentik Git repository. ::: ### Install dependencies Install all required JavaScript and Python dependencies and create an isolated Python environment: ```shell make install ``` ### Generate development configuration Create a local configuration file that uses the local databases for development: ```shell make gen-dev-config ``` ### Understanding the architecture authentik is primarily a Django application running under gunicorn, proxied by a Go application that serves static files. For better code navigation, most functions and classes have type hints and docstrings. We recommend installing a Python Type-checking Extension in your IDE. ## 4. Set up the frontend Even if you're not planning to develop the UI, you need to build the frontend as no compiled bundle is included by default. ### Running database migrations First, apply all database migrations: ```shell make migrate ``` ### Generating schema files Generate the required schema files and TypeScript client: ```shell make gen ``` :::info After making changes to the authentik API, you must re-run `make gen` to update the API library used by the UI. ::: ### Building the UI You have several options for building the UI: #### One-time build ```shell make web-build ``` #### Live development mode For real-time feedback as you make changes: ```shell make web-watch ``` #### Formatting frontend code After making changes: ```shell make web ``` ## 5. Running authentik Now that the backend and frontend have been set up and built, you can start authentik. Start the server by running the following command in the same directory as your local authentik git repository: ```shell make run-server # Starts authentik server ``` Start the worker by running the following command in the same directory as your local authentik git repository: ```shell make run-worker # Starts authentik worker ``` Both processes need to run to get a fully functioning authentik development environment. authentik will be accessible at http://localhost:9000. ### Initial setup To set a password for the default admin user (**akadmin**): 1. Navigate to http://localhost:9000/if/flow/initial-setup/ in your browser. 2. Follow the setup wizard to create your admin account. :::info To define a password for the default admin (called **akadmin**), you can manually enter the `/if/flow/initial-setup/` path in the browser address bar to launch the initial flow. Example: http://localhost:9000/if/flow/initial-setup/. In case of issues in this process, feel free to use `make dev-reset` which drops and restores the authentik PostgreSQL instance to a "fresh install" state. ::: ### Hot-reloading When `AUTHENTIK_DEBUG` is set to `true` (the default for the development environment), the authentik server automatically reloads whenever changes are made to the code. However, due to instabilities in the reloading process of the worker, that behavior is turned off for the worker. You can enable code reloading in the worker by manually running `uv run ak worker --watch`. ## End-to-End (E2E) Setup To run E2E tests, navigate to the `/tests/e2e` directory in your local copy of the authentik git repo, and start the services by running `docker compose up -d`. You can then view the Selenium Chrome browser via http://localhost:7900/ using the password: `secret`. Alternatively, you can connect directly via VNC on port `5900` using the password: `secret`. :::note When using Docker Desktop, host networking needs to be enabled via **Docker Settings** > **Resources** > **Network** > **Enable host networking**. ::: ## 6. Contributing code ### Before submitting a pull request Ensure your code meets our quality standards by running: 1. **Code linting**: ```shell make lint ``` 2. **Generate updated API documentation**: ```shell make gen ``` 3. **Format frontend code**: ```shell make web ``` You can run all these checks at once with: ```shell make lint gen web ``` ### Submitting your changes Once your code passes all checks, you can submit a pull request through [GitHub](https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/pulls). Be sure to: - Provide a clear description of your changes - Reference any related issues - Follow our code style guidelines - Update any related documentation - Include tests for your changes where appropriate Thank you for contributing to authentik!