CoCalc Star on your own computer

Why run CoCalc Star on your own computer?

If you tried CoCalc and want the same kind of browser-based workspace on your own hardware, run CoCalc Star locally. It is especially useful when you want:

• a very private CoCalc instance that stays on your laptop or desktop server,
• very low latency because the server is physically near you,
• to use a powerful laptop, workstation, or home server you already own,
• to keep working while flying or away from reliable internet, or
• to experiment with CoCalc Star without renting a cloud server.

Use Docker Desktop

CoCalc Star runs in one Docker container. Install Docker Desktop (macOS or Windows) or Docker Engine with cgroup v2 (Linux), then follow the quick start in the CoCalc Star guide. You open CoCalc in your normal browser at http://localhost:8170.

Everything Star stores is in one Docker volume, so stopping the container frees its memory and CPU, and removing the container and volume removes it completely.

Earlier versions of this page described running Star inside a Lima virtual machine. Docker replaces that path: it is simpler to install, to upgrade, and to undo.