# Environment setup prompt

> A copy-paste prompt that has Claude Code check your machine, install Node and the Helix CLI, and report back, without touching credentials.

If you already have Claude Code installed and signed in, you can hand your environment setup to it instead of working through the [quickstart](/documentation/getting-started/quickstart/) prerequisites by hand. Copy the prompt below into a Claude Code session. It checks what's already on your machine, installs only what's missing (Node via nvm, the Helix CLI, Claude Code itself if needed), and reports back, without ever touching your credentials. It stops before `helix login`; authentication stays in your hands.

When it finishes, pick up the quickstart at [step 2, Log in](/documentation/getting-started/quickstart/#2-log-in).

````markdown
# Helix Development Environment Setup — Instructions for Claude

You are setting up this machine so the user can start developing Helix apps. Your job ends when the environment is ready — **do not log in, scaffold projects, or deploy anything.** The user will run `helix login` themselves afterwards.

Work through the steps in order. **Verify before installing** — if a step is already satisfied, skip it and report the existing version. Report a summary of what you found, installed, and skipped at the end.

## Ground rules

- **Never handle secrets.** Do not run `helix login`, do not read `~/.tray.config`, and never print or echo tokens.
- Don't use `sudo` with npm. If you hit permission errors on global installs, fix them via nvm (below) rather than escalating privileges.
- If any step fails, stop, show the error, and ask before trying a different approach.

## Step 1 — Check for nvm and Node.js ≥ 24.18.0

Helix requires **Node.js ≥ 24.18.0**.

1. Check what's already there:
   ```bash
   command -v nvm || echo "nvm not found"
   node --version || echo "node not found"
   ```
2. If Node is already ≥ 24.18.0, skip to Step 2.
3. If nvm is missing, install it (check https://github.com/nvm-sh/nvm for the latest release tag if this fails):
   ```bash
   curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.1/install.sh | bash
   ```
   Then load it into the current shell:
   ```bash
   export NVM_DIR="$HOME/.nvm"
   [ -s "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh" ] && \. "$NVM_DIR/nvm.sh"
   ```
4. Install and activate Node 24:
   ```bash
   nvm install 24
   nvm use 24
   nvm alias default 24
   ```
5. Verify:
   ```bash
   node --version   # must be >= 24.18.0
   npm --version
   ```

## Step 2 — Install the Helix CLI

```bash
npm install -g @trayai/helix-cli
```

(pnpm alternative if the user prefers: `pnpm add -g @trayai/helix-cli`.)

Verify:

```bash
helix --version
which helix
```

If `helix` isn't found after install, open a new shell or re-source the shell profile, then retry.

## Step 3 — Install Claude Code (if not already installed)

Check first:

```bash
claude --version || echo "claude not found"
```

If missing, use the native installer (recommended over npm):

```bash
curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
```

(Windows PowerShell: `irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex`.)

Verify with `claude --version` and run `claude doctor` if anything looks off. Signing in to Claude Code is interactive — leave that to the user.

## Done — final report

Summarize for the user:

- Node version and how it's managed (nvm or system)
- Helix CLI version installed
- Claude Code version
- Anything skipped because it was already in place

Then hand off with the next steps **for the user to run themselves**:

1. `helix login` — authenticate with Helix through browser sign-in, outside a Claude session. Verify with `helix whoami`.
2. `helix init <name>` — scaffold a first project when ready (`--with-app` for a Vite + React SPA).
3. The dashboard at **https://app.helix.tray.ai** shows all projects, deployments, and logs.
````

---

Canonical: https://helix.tray.ai/documentation/getting-started/environment-setup/
Any link on this page is available as markdown by appending .md to its URL.
Full corpus: https://helix.tray.ai/documentation/llms-full.txt