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Deploying a source-code agent

You bought a source-code license — the full codebase is yours to self-host, customise and run on your own infrastructure. This guide takes you from "downloaded the zip" to "agent running in production". It assumes basic comfort with a terminal; if you'd rather not do it yourself, most source-code listings offer a paid setup plan (see the end of this guide) or a done-for-you option.

Hosted (subscription) agent instead? You don't deploy anything — see the Buyer Guide. This page is only for agents you bought as source code.

Before you start

You'll typically need:

  • Node.js 18+ (most agents) and git, on your machine.
  • A place to run it long-term: a small VPS, or a managed host like Railway / Render / Fly.
  • Any third-party accounts the agent integrates with — the listing's tech-stack tags and running-cost panel tell you which (e.g. a WhatsApp Business (Meta) number, MongoDB Atlas, Redis, an LLM API key).

Open the listing's running-cost section before you begin so the monthly hosting + per-message costs aren't a surprise.

1. Download the code

From My purchases → your purchase:

  • Click Download source code to get the zip (the link is valid 24 hours; each generation counts against your download allowance).
  • Click Setup & deploy guide (PDF) if the seller attached one — it has the agent-specific steps that override anything generic here.

Unzip it somewhere sensible. You should see a README.md and a .env.example. If a download link expires, just generate a new one.

2. Configure your environment

  1. Copy the template: cp .env.example .env
  2. Open .env and fill in every required value. These are your own keys and secrets — they live only on your server. Common ones:
    • LLM key (e.g. your Anthropic/Claude API key) — create it in your own provider dashboard.
    • Database URL — a free MongoDB Atlas cluster is usually enough to start.
    • Messaging credentials — e.g. WhatsApp Business API token + phone-number id from Meta, or a Telegram bot token from BotFather.
  3. Never commit .env to git. The repo's .gitignore should already exclude it — keep it that way.

The README lists exactly which variables this agent needs and where to get each one. If a variable is unclear, ask in your Support thread on the purchase page.

3. Run it locally first

npm install        # or: pnpm install / yarn
npm run dev        # check the README for the exact script

Watch the logs. A clean start with no missing-variable errors means your .env is right. Send a test message / trigger the agent the way the README describes and confirm it responds. Fixing config locally is far easier than debugging it in production.

4. Deploy to production

Railway (quickest):

  1. Push the code to a private GitHub repo.
  2. Create a new Railway project → Deploy from GitHub repo.
  3. Add every variable from your .env under Variables.
  4. Set the start command (usually npm start) if Railway doesn't detect it.
  5. Add any managed plugins the agent needs (e.g. Redis) and copy their connection strings into your variables.

Your own VPS: clone the repo, set the environment variables, install dependencies, and run it under a process manager (pm2, systemd, or Docker) so it restarts on reboot/crash.

For agents that receive webhooks (WhatsApp, Telegram, payment callbacks), point the third-party's webhook URL at your deployed agent's public URL once it's live.

5. Go live and verify

  • Trigger one real end-to-end action and confirm the outcome (a message sent, a row written, a report generated).
  • Set up basic monitoring/log alerts so you notice if it stops.

That's it — you own it. No recurring marketplace fee; you only pay your own hosting and any per-use third-party costs.

Your license

Your purchase page shows what your license permits — how many production deployments (single / multi / unlimited) and whether you may resell or embed it. Stay within those terms; they're the seller's, not the platform's, to set.

Updates & new versions

Sellers can publish new versions of the codebase. When one ships, you'll get a notification and an "update available" prompt on your purchase page — you can download the new version (it uses a download slot) while still keeping access to the version you originally bought. Use the Feature requests tab on your purchase page to ask the seller for improvements and upvote what other owners want.

If you get stuck

  • Support thread (purchase page) — message the seller directly; the listing's support window and response SLA are shown there.
  • Buy a setup plan — many sellers offer paid, guided setup (one-time, per-session, or managed). Buy it from your purchase page and the seller helps you get live. You still enter your own keys — the seller never sees your secrets.
  • Refund — if the code doesn't work as described, you can request a refund from the purchase page.

See the Buyer Guide for how purchases, downloads, support and refunds work across all agent types.