gbrain/docs/operations/headless-install.md

Headless install: Docker, CI, postinstall

gbrain init --pglite in a non-TTY context (Docker RUN, CI step, postinstall hook) exits 1 when no embedding-provider API key is present in the environment. This is a deliberate fail-loud — the alternative is a silent-broken state where init succeeds with a default that doesn't match any real key.

Three patterns work for headless installs. Pick whichever fits your image lifecycle.

Pattern 1: Provider key available at image build time

If your CI / Docker pipeline can inject the API key as a build-time env var, set it before gbrain init:

# Multi-stage Dockerfile sketch
FROM oven/bun:1 AS builder

# Inject key at build via --build-arg or `--env` from CI.
ARG OPENAI_API_KEY
ENV OPENAI_API_KEY=$OPENAI_API_KEY

RUN bun install -g github:garrytan/gbrain#latest-stable
RUN gbrain init --pglite  # auto-picks OpenAI, persists config

# GitHub Actions equivalent
- name: Initialize gbrain
  env:
    OPENAI_API_KEY: ${{ secrets.OPENAI_API_KEY }}
  run: |
    bun install -g github:garrytan/gbrain#latest-stable
    gbrain init --pglite

Init writes ~/.gbrain/config.json with the resolved embedding_model + embedding_dimensions. Subsequent runs (in the same image / runner) read from that config and don't re-resolve.

Pattern 2: Provider key only at runtime (deferred-setup)

If the API key is a runtime secret (Kubernetes secret, runtime env injection, end-user-supplied), use --no-embedding at build time and configure the provider when the container actually runs:

FROM oven/bun:1
RUN bun install -g github:garrytan/gbrain#latest-stable

# Build the brain shape without a provider — schema lands at the default
# width, but no embed callsite will actually run until runtime config.
RUN gbrain init --pglite --no-embedding

# At container start (entrypoint), provide the real provider:
ENTRYPOINT ["/bin/sh", "-c", "\
  gbrain config set embedding_model openai:text-embedding-3-large \
  && gbrain init --force --pglite \
  && exec gbrain serve"]

The gbrain init --no-embedding opt-in writes embedding_disabled: true to config. Every embed callsite (gbrain import, gbrain embed, the runEmbedCore library entry point) checks this and refuses cleanly with a gbrain config set embedding_model <id> hint rather than proceeding with a silent default.

The runtime gbrain init --force re-runs the init flow against the now-populated env, which:

• Removes embedding_disabled from config.
• Resolves the provider via env detection.
• Re-templates the PGLite schema if dim differs from the build-time default.

Pattern 3: No key, ever (keyless mode)

--no-embedding isn't only a deferral — it's also the install shape for keyless mode, a first-class supported end state (not a broken one). With zero provider keys, gbrain runs keyword-only (BM25) search and takes memory from agent-authored ## Facts fences and write ops; embedding and extraction paths refuse cleanly instead of failing silently.

FROM oven/bun:1
RUN bun install -g github:garrytan/gbrain#latest-stable
RUN gbrain init --pglite --no-embedding   # keyless install — done; no runtime re-init needed

gbrain bootstrap verify (and the agent-bootstrap flow generally) prints an honest capability report for this posture — a "keyless mode" banner, per-touchpoint lines, and the one-key upsell (src/core/capability.ts). Keyless installs for the agent-bootstrap path are covered in docs/guides/bootstrap.md; this doc covers the Docker/CI shape. Adding a single provider key later upgrades in place via Pattern 2's runtime gbrain init --force.

Since every embedding cost gate is structurally moot with no key, none of docs/operations/spend-controls.md applies until you add one.

What WON'T work

# Don't do this — silent default leaves you with vector(1280) ZE column
# and 1536d OpenAI provider at runtime, mismatched.
RUN gbrain init --pglite

If an older image used this pattern, gbrain doctor will surface the mismatch on first run after upgrade and print a paste-ready repair command — gbrain init --force --pglite --embedding-model <model> --embedding-dimensions <dims> for brains with no embeddings yet, gbrain migrate embeddings --to <model> --dim <dims> for non-empty brains.

Verifying a headless install

After init, run gbrain doctor --json to verify state:

gbrain doctor --json | jq '.checks[] | select(.name=="embedding_provider")'

The embedding_provider check returns status: 'ok' when:

• Config has a persisted embedding_model.
• Config has a persisted embedding_dimensions.
• Live provider probe returns the configured dim.
• DB column width matches.

If you used Pattern 2's deferred-setup path, the check shows Skipped (no provider credentials) until the runtime config is populated. That's expected.