> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://ventstream.dev/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Install the engine binary

> Install and run the standalone VentStream engine on Linux or macOS without Docker or Fleet.

VentStream is distributed as one native engine binary for:

* Linux AMD64 and ARM64
* macOS AMD64 and Apple silicon

Linux archives target the Ubuntu 22.04 runtime baseline (glibc 2.35 or newer),
and macOS archives target macOS 12 or newer. Windows users should run the OCI
image until a native Windows build is qualified.

The native binary runs in standalone mode. It reads `ventstream.yaml`, resolves
secret references from the local environment, and connects directly to the
configured source, sink, and optional NATS infrastructure. It does not require
the Fleet control plane or an enrollment token.

## Install with curl

The installer detects the operating system and CPU architecture, downloads the
matching release archive, verifies it against the release `SHA256SUMS`, checks
the binary version, and installs it under `~/.local/bin`.

```bash theme={null}
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -fsSL \
  https://github.com/ventstream/ventstream/releases/latest/download/ventstream-installer.sh \
  | sh
```

It also installs a non-secret example at
`~/.config/ventstream/ventstream.example.yaml`. Existing configuration files
are never overwritten.

Install a specific version or directory:

```bash theme={null}
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -fsSL \
  https://github.com/ventstream/ventstream/releases/latest/download/ventstream-installer.sh \
  | VENTSTREAM_VERSION=0.1.12 \
    VENTSTREAM_INSTALL_DIR="$HOME/bin" \
    sh
```

## Configure and run

Copy the example into a workload directory:

```bash theme={null}
cp ~/.config/ventstream/ventstream.example.yaml ./ventstream.yaml
```

The packaged example is PostgreSQL CDC to OpenSearch. Supply its referenced
values through the environment:

```bash theme={null}
export VS_PG_HOST=127.0.0.1
export VS_PG_USER=ventstream
export VS_PG_PASSWORD='replace-me'
export VS_PG_DATABASE=app
export VS_PG_PUBLICATION=ventstream_publication
export VS_PG_SLOT=ventstream_app_slot
export VS_OS_ENDPOINT=http://127.0.0.1:9200
```

Validate the complete configuration without opening connector sockets:

```bash theme={null}
VS_ENGINE_CONFIG=./ventstream.yaml ventstream --validate-config
```

Then start the engine:

```bash theme={null}
VS_ENGINE_CONFIG=./ventstream.yaml ventstream
```

Use the source guides for [PostgreSQL](/docs/connectors/sources/postgres),
[Neo4j](/docs/connectors/sources/neo4j), [MongoDB](/docs/connectors/sources/mongodb),
[MySQL/MariaDB](/docs/connectors/sources/mysql), and
[Kafka/Redpanda](/docs/connectors/sources/kafka). Native WebSocket and GraphQL roles
use the same binary and are covered by the
[real-time guide](/docs/concepts/real-time-subscriptions).

## Download an archive manually

Release archives are also available as ordinary HTTPS downloads:

```bash theme={null}
VERSION=0.1.12
ARTIFACT="ventstream-$VERSION-linux-amd64.tar.gz"
BASE="https://github.com/ventstream/ventstream/releases/download/v$VERSION"
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -fLO "$BASE/$ARTIFACT"
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -fLO "$BASE/SHA256SUMS"
grep "  ./$ARTIFACT\$" SHA256SUMS | sha256sum --check
tar -xzf "$ARTIFACT"
./ventstream --version
```

On macOS, replace `sha256sum --check` with `shasum -a 256 --check`.

## Verify provenance

The installer has a GitHub build-provenance attestation. Users who require
provenance verification before execution can download and verify it instead of
piping it directly to the shell:

```bash theme={null}
gh release download v0.1.12 \
  --repo ventstream/ventstream \
  --pattern ventstream-installer.sh
gh attestation verify ventstream-installer.sh \
  --repo ventstream/ventstream
```

Every native archive also has GitHub build-provenance and SBOM attestations.
Verify the archive against this repository before installation:

```bash theme={null}
gh attestation verify "ventstream-$VERSION-$PLATFORM.tar.gz" \
  --repo ventstream/ventstream
```

`SHA256SUMS` detects transfer corruption or substitution relative to the
published release record. Attestation verification additionally proves that the
archive was produced by this repository's release workflow.

## Standalone boundary

The standalone process retains cursor and projection state locally. Stop the
process to pause it and restart it to resume. Fleet-wide CLI inventory, remote
configuration, centralized pause/resume, and agent health require a separate
[Fleet-managed deployment](/docs/fleet/overview); a running standalone process
cannot be enrolled in place.