Getting Started

Choose your path: Host it yourself or join a community.

eScriptorium is open-source software, meaning there is no single “login” page for everyone. Instead, it is a decentralized ecosystem. To get started, you must decide whether to run the platform yourself or join an existing instance.

Option A: Host Your Own Instance

Best for: Institutions and technically proficient researchers.

Self-hosting gives you complete control. This is the preferred route if you have the hardware resources and are comfortable with system administration, or if your project operates under strict legal constraints.

Why host it yourself?

  • Data Privacy & Copyright: If your material is sensitive, under strict copyright, or contains private data that cannot legally be transferred to third-party servers, a local instance ensures your data never leaves your infrastructure.
  • Total Control: Configure the environment to your exact needs, manage your own GPU resources, and control user access without relying on external administrators.
  • Integration: Seamlessly connect eScriptorium to your institution’s internal authentication systems or storage networks.

Prerequisites

You don’t need a supercomputer to start, but for production workloads (especially training), we recommend:

  • OS: Linux or macOS
  • RAM: Minimum 8GB (16GB+ recommended for training)
  • GPU: A Nvidia GPU is not obligatory but will greatly accelerate model training.
  • Docker: The easiest way to deploy eScriptorium is via Docker containers.

Quick Install (Docker)

Get an instance running on your local machine in minutes:

# 1. Get the code
git clone https://gitlab.com/scripta/escriptorium.git
cd escriptorium

# 2. Configure environment
cp variables.env_example variables.env

# 3. Launch
docker-compose up -d --build

Once complete, navigate to http://localhost:8080 to see your fresh installation.

Documentation

For advanced deployment (GPU configuration, separate workers), please consult our technical docs.

Option B: Join a Community Instance

Best for: Individual scholars, students, and small teams.

If you do not have the resources to manage a server, or if you want to collaborate specifically within a research domain, using an existing hosted instance is the ideal solution.

Why join an existing instance?

  • Zero Maintenance: No servers to manage, update, or debug. Focus entirely on your documents.
  • Shared Resources: Access to shared computing power and GPUs for faster training.
  • Collaboration: Easier sharing of models and ground truth data within your specific field.

Where to look?

  1. Check our lists of instances or ask in the community chat
  2. Check your institution: Contact your university library or digital humanities department. Many universities and research infrastructure providers host their own eScriptorium instances.