quickstart.mdx

title	Quickstart
description	Get started with Routstr in minutes

Quickstart Guide

This quickstart guide will help you integrate Routstr into your application quickly.

Choose Your Path

I want to use AI models through Routstr I want to offer my AI models on Routstr

For Users: Quick Integration

Purchase AI credits directly with Lightning or on-chain Bitcoin:

```bash
# Visit the Routstr token purchase page
https://routstr.com/tokens
```

No account or sign-up required. Simply make a Lightning payment to receive your token.

After payment, you'll receive a Cashu token to use as your API authorization key:

```
ROUTSTR_TOKEN=cashuA1DkpMbgQ9VkL6U...
```

This token contains pre-paid credits for API usage.

Use the token in your API calls with our OpenAI-compatible endpoint:

```bash
curl -X POST https://api.routstr.com/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer cashuA1DkpMbgQ9VkL6U..." \
  -d '{
    "model": "gpt-4",
    "messages": [
      {
        "role": "user", 
        "content": "Hello"
      }
    ]
  }'
```

For Providers: Quick Setup

Deploy our self-hosted proxy in front of any OpenAI-compatible endpoint with a simple Docker command:

```bash
docker run -p 8080:8080 ghcr.io/routstr/proxy
```

Configure your Cashu mint or Lightning node to accept pre-paid tokens. No need for Stripe or KYC:

```bash
# Edit the proxy configuration file
nano config.json

# Add your payment configuration
{
  "payments": {
    "lightning": {
      "address": "your@lightning.address"
    },
    "cashu": {
      "enabled": true
    }
  }
}
```

Track usage, set custom pricing, and join the relay network to get discovered by users automatically:

```bash
# Announce your provider to the Nostr network
routstr-proxy announce --name "Your Provider" --models "gpt-4,llama-3"

# Monitor usage statistics
routstr-proxy stats
```

System Architecture

Next Steps

Detailed API endpoint documentation Learn about all provider configuration options Learn about Routstr's privacy and routing features View the Routstr Improvement Proposals (RIPs)