Evaluation Quickstart

Goal

Spin up the LyftData server with its built-in worker on a single host so you can explore the UI, run a sample job, and evaluate the product without permanent infrastructure changes.

• Audience: product managers, solution engineers, and platform leads running a proof-of-concept.
• Time to complete: ~15 minutes end to end.
• What you will have at the end: server listening on 127.0.0.1:3000 (HTTPS by default), built-in worker ready for jobs, and admin access to the UI.

Tip

Prefer to evaluate in containers? Use the Docker and Docker Compose guide.

Before you start

• One 64-bit workstation (Linux, macOS, or Windows 10/11) with admin privileges.
• Port 3000 available locally.
• Ability to unzip or extract archives and run a terminal or PowerShell session as administrator.

Optional: choose the admin password you plan to create during the setup flow.

Step 1 – Stage the binary

Follow the matching command block for your platform. Each one downloads the current stable binary, extracts it into ~/lyftdata-eval (or the Windows equivalent), and confirms the version. If you need a beta or another artifact, choose it from the Downloads page.

Linux

mkdir -p ~/lyftdata-eval && cd ~/lyftdata-eval
curl -LO https://downloads.lyftdata.com/release/latest/lyftdata-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.xz
curl -LO https://downloads.lyftdata.com/release/latest/lyftdata-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.xz.sha256
sha256sum -c lyftdata-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.xz.sha256
tar -xJf lyftdata-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu.tar.xz
cp lyftdata-x86_64-unknown-linux-gnu/lyftdata ./lyftdata
chmod +x ./lyftdata
./lyftdata --version

macOS

mkdir -p ~/lyftdata-eval && cd ~/lyftdata-eval
curl -LO https://downloads.lyftdata.com/release/latest/lyftdata-aarch64-apple-darwin.tar.xz
curl -LO https://downloads.lyftdata.com/release/latest/lyftdata-aarch64-apple-darwin.tar.xz.sha256
shasum -a 256 -c lyftdata-aarch64-apple-darwin.tar.xz.sha256
tar -xJf lyftdata-aarch64-apple-darwin.tar.xz
cp lyftdata-aarch64-apple-darwin/lyftdata ./lyftdata
chmod +x ./lyftdata
# Remove the Gatekeeper quarantine flag so the unsigned binary can run
xattr -d com.apple.quarantine ./lyftdata || true
./lyftdata --version

Windows

$evalDir = "$env:UserProfile\lyftdata-eval"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $evalDir -Force | Out-Null
Set-Location $evalDir
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://downloads.lyftdata.com/release/latest/lyftdata-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.zip -OutFile lyftdata.zip
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://downloads.lyftdata.com/release/latest/lyftdata-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.zip.sha256 -OutFile lyftdata.zip.sha256
$expected = (Get-Content lyftdata.zip.sha256).Split()[0]
$actual = (Get-FileHash lyftdata.zip -Algorithm SHA256).Hash
if ($expected -ne $actual) { throw "Checksum mismatch: expected $expected but saw $actual" }
Unblock-File -Path lyftdata.zip -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Expand-Archive -Path lyftdata.zip -DestinationPath $evalDir -Force
Unblock-File -Path .\lyftdata.exe -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
.\lyftdata.exe --version

Step 2 – Launch the server with the built-in worker

Run the server in a new terminal session. Set the EULA flag for the life of that session and create a temporary staging directory.

Note

LyftData serves HTTPS by default using a self-signed certificate. When you open the UI, your browser will show a certificate warning—proceed for evaluation.

If you prefer plain HTTP for a local-only eval, add --disable-tls and use http://localhost:3000 instead.

Linux

cd ~/lyftdata-eval
export LYFTDATA_LICENSE_EULA_ACCEPT=yes
./lyftdata run server \
  --staging-dir "$HOME/lyftdata-eval/server" \
  --bind-address 127.0.0.1:3000

macOS

cd ~/lyftdata-eval
export LYFTDATA_LICENSE_EULA_ACCEPT=yes
./lyftdata run server \
  --staging-dir "$HOME/lyftdata-eval/server" \
  --bind-address 127.0.0.1:3000

Windows

Set-Location $env:UserProfile\lyftdata-eval
$env:LYFTDATA_LICENSE_EULA_ACCEPT = "yes"
.\lyftdata.exe run server `
  --staging-dir "$env:UserProfile\lyftdata-eval\server" `
  --bind-address 127.0.0.1:3000

The server process keeps the built-in worker attached automatically, so no external workers are required for this pilot. On first start LyftData enters Initial Setup Required and writes a one-time setup link to <staging-dir>/bootstrap/initial-admin.url. In an interactive terminal the ready splash also shows the full setup URL. Leave the terminal window open; it streams logs and will surface any configuration errors immediately.

Tip

If you want a shared or headless pilot instead of a local-only setup flow, rerun the command with --admin-init-password <password>.

Step 3 – Sign in and validate

1. Open the one-time setup URL from the terminal output, or inspect <staging-dir>/bootstrap/initial-admin.url and copy the URL= value.
2. Create the admin password in the setup form.
3. Sign in at https://localhost:3000 as admin with the password you just created.
4. Go to Workers and confirm the Built-In Worker shows Online.
5. Navigate to Jobs → New job, create the “Hello, world” template (or another simple pipeline), and run it. The run should complete on the built-in worker.

Success checklist

• Initial setup completed from the one-time setup link.
• Web UI reachable at https://localhost:3000.
• Built-in worker online in the dashboard.
• Sample job run succeeds.

If any step fails, consult the Troubleshooting guide and review the logs in the terminal window where the server is running.

Clean up or continue

• Stop the evaluation by pressing Ctrl+C in the server terminal.
• Ready to go deeper? Promote this host to a service by following the platform guide for your OS and enabling metrics via Next steps after install.
• Planning a production rollout? Share the Prerequisites checklist with your infrastructure partners and schedule host provisioning.

Track adoption

For evaluation pilots, capture the following signals as you proceed toward production:

• Number of evaluators who completed the quickstart.
• Time from first login to first successful job run.
• Whether metrics collection and dashboards were enabled during the pilot.

Document these metrics in your rollout plan so you can justify scaling beyond the pilot phase.