OpenRAG

OpenRAG is a comprehensive Retrieval-Augmented Generation platform that enables intelligent document search and AI-powered conversations. Users can upload, process, and query documents through a chat interface backed by large language models and semantic search capabilities. The system utilizes Langflow for document ingestion, retrieval workflows, and intelligent nudges, providing a seamless RAG experience. Built with Starlette, Next.js, OpenSearch, and Langflow integration.

📋 Table of Contents

• Quick Start
• TUI Interface
• Configuration
• Docker Deployment
• Development
• Troubleshooting

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Docker or Podman with Compose installed
• Make (for development commands)

1. Environment Setup

# Clone and setup environment
git clone <repository-url>
cd openrag
make setup  # Creates .env and installs dependencies

2. Configure Environment

Edit .env with your API keys and credentials:

# Required
OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key
OPENSEARCH_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
LANGFLOW_SUPERUSER=admin
LANGFLOW_SUPERUSER_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
LANGFLOW_CHAT_FLOW_ID=your_chat_flow_id
LANGFLOW_INGEST_FLOW_ID=your_ingest_flow_id
NUDGES_FLOW_ID=your_nudges_flow_id

3. Start OpenRAG

# Full stack with GPU support
make dev

# Or CPU only
make dev-cpu

Access the services:

• Frontend: http://localhost:3000
• Backend API: http://localhost:8000
• Langflow: http://localhost:7860
• OpenSearch: http://localhost:9200
• OpenSearch Dashboards: http://localhost:5601

🖥️ TUI Interface

OpenRAG includes a powerful Terminal User Interface (TUI) for easy setup, configuration, and monitoring. The TUI provides a user-friendly way to manage your OpenRAG installation without complex command-line operations.

Launching the TUI

# Install dependencies first
uv sync

# Launch the TUI
uv run openrag

TUI Features

The TUI provides several screens and capabilities:

Welcome Screen

• Quick Setup Options: Choose between basic setup (no authentication) or advanced setup (with OAuth)
• Service Monitoring: Check if containers are running and their status
• Quick Actions: Access diagnostics, logs, and configuration screens

Configuration Screen

• Environment Variables: Easy-to-use forms for setting up required configuration
• API Keys: Secure input for OpenAI API keys with validation
• OAuth Setup: Configure Google and Microsoft authentication
• Document Paths: Set up document ingestion directories
• Auto-Save: Automatically generates and saves .env file

Service Monitor

• Container Status: Real-time view of all OpenRAG services
• Resource Usage: Monitor CPU, memory, and network usage
• Service Control: Start, stop, and restart individual services
• Health Checks: Built-in health monitoring for all components

Log Viewer

• Real-time Logs: Live streaming of container logs
• Service Filtering: View logs for specific services (backend, frontend, Langflow, OpenSearch)
• Log Levels: Filter by log levels (DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR)
• Export Options: Save logs to files for analysis

Diagnostics

• System Check: Verify Docker/Podman installation and configuration
• Environment Validation: Check required environment variables
• Network Testing: Test connectivity between services
• Performance Metrics: System resource availability and recommendations

TUI Navigation

• Arrow Keys: Navigate between options and screens
• Tab/Shift+Tab: Move between form fields and buttons
• Enter: Select/activate options
• Escape: Go back to previous screen
• Q: Quit the application
• Number Keys (1-4): Quick access to main screens from welcome

Benefits of Using the TUI

1. Simplified Setup: No need to manually edit configuration files
2. Visual Feedback: Clear status indicators and error messages
3. Integrated Monitoring: Everything in one interface
4. Cross-Platform: Works on Linux, macOS, and Windows
5. No Browser Required: Fully terminal-based interface

⚙️ Configuration

Environment Variables

OpenRAG uses environment variables for configuration. All variables should be set in your .env file.

Required Variables

Variable	Description
OPENAI_API_KEY	Your OpenAI API key
OPENSEARCH_PASSWORD	Password for OpenSearch admin user
LANGFLOW_SUPERUSER	Langflow admin username
LANGFLOW_SUPERUSER_PASSWORD	Langflow admin password
LANGFLOW_CHAT_FLOW_ID	ID of your Langflow chat flow
LANGFLOW_INGEST_FLOW_ID	ID of your Langflow ingestion flow
NUDGES_FLOW_ID	ID of your Langflow nudges/suggestions flow

Ingestion Configuration

Variable	Description
DISABLE_INGEST_WITH_LANGFLOW	Disable Langflow ingestion pipeline (default: false)

• false or unset: Uses Langflow pipeline (upload → ingest → delete)
• true: Uses traditional OpenRAG processor for document ingestion

Optional Variables

Variable	Description
LANGFLOW_PUBLIC_URL	Public URL for Langflow (default: http://localhost:7860)
GOOGLE_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID / GOOGLE_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET	Google OAuth authentication
MICROSOFT_GRAPH_OAUTH_CLIENT_ID / MICROSOFT_GRAPH_OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET	Microsoft OAuth
WEBHOOK_BASE_URL	Base URL for webhook endpoints
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID / AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY	AWS integrations
SESSION_SECRET	Session management (default: auto-generated, change in production)
LANGFLOW_KEY	Explicit Langflow API key (auto-generated if not provided)
LANGFLOW_SECRET_KEY	Secret key for Langflow internal operations

🐳 Docker Deployment

Standard Deployment

# Build and start all services
docker compose build
docker compose up -d

CPU-Only Deployment

For environments without GPU support:

docker compose -f docker-compose-cpu.yml up -d

Force Rebuild

If you need to reset state or rebuild everything:

docker compose up --build --force-recreate --remove-orphans

Service URLs

After deployment, services are available at:

• Frontend: http://localhost:3000
• Backend API: http://localhost:8000
• Langflow: http://localhost:7860
• OpenSearch: http://localhost:9200
• OpenSearch Dashboards: http://localhost:5601

🔧 Troubleshooting

Podman on macOS

If using Podman on macOS, you may need to increase VM memory:

podman machine stop
podman machine rm
podman machine init --memory 8192   # 8 GB example
podman machine start

Common Issues

1. OpenSearch fails to start: Check that OPENSEARCH_PASSWORD is set and meets requirements
2. Langflow connection issues: Verify LANGFLOW_SUPERUSER credentials are correct
3. Out of memory errors: Increase Docker memory allocation or use CPU-only mode
4. Port conflicts: Ensure ports 3000, 7860, 8000, 9200, 5601 are available

🛠️ Development

For developers wanting to contribute to OpenRAG or set up a development environment, please see our comprehensive development guide:

📚 See CONTRIBUTING.md for detailed development instructions

The contributing guide includes:

• Complete development environment setup
• Local development workflows
• Testing and debugging procedures
• Code style guidelines
• Architecture overview
• Pull request guidelines

Quick Development Commands

make help                    # See all available commands
make setup                   # Initial development setup
make infra                   # Start infrastructure services
make backend                 # Run backend locally
make frontend                # Run frontend locally