deer-flow/backend/docs/SETUP.md

Setup Guide

Quick setup instructions for DeerFlow.

Configuration Setup

DeerFlow uses a YAML configuration file that should be placed in the project root directory.

Steps

1. Navigate to project root:

   cd /path/to/deer-flow
   

2. Copy example configuration:

   cp config.example.yaml config.yaml
   

3. Edit configuration:

   # Option A: Set environment variables (recommended)
   export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-key-here"
   
   # Option B: Edit config.yaml directly
   vim config.yaml  # or your preferred editor
   

4. Verify configuration:

   cd backend
   python -c "from src.config import get_app_config; print('✓ Config loaded:', get_app_config().models[0].name)"
   

Important Notes

• Location: config.yaml should be in deer-flow/ (project root), not deer-flow/backend/
• Git: config.yaml is automatically ignored by git (contains secrets)
• Priority: If both backend/config.yaml and ../config.yaml exist, backend version takes precedence

Configuration File Locations

The backend searches for config.yaml in this order:

1. DEER_FLOW_CONFIG_PATH environment variable (if set)
2. backend/config.yaml (current directory when running from backend/)
3. deer-flow/config.yaml (parent directory - recommended location)

Recommended: Place config.yaml in project root (deer-flow/config.yaml).

Troubleshooting

Config file not found

# Check where the backend is looking
cd deer-flow/backend
python -c "from src.config.app_config import AppConfig; print(AppConfig.resolve_config_path())"

If it can't find the config:

1. Ensure you've copied config.example.yaml to config.yaml
2. Verify you're in the correct directory
3. Check the file exists: ls -la ../config.yaml

Permission denied

chmod 600 ../config.yaml  # Protect sensitive configuration

See Also

• Configuration Guide - Detailed configuration options
• Architecture Overview - System architecture