Setup

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have:

• Node.js 22 or later
• PostgreSQL 13+ (or Neon for cloud hosting)

Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the project root. Copy from .env.example and fill in the required values:

Variable	Required	Description
AUTH_SECRET	Yes	HMAC session signing secret (min 16 chars). Generate: openssl rand -hex 32
OWNER_EMAIL	Yes	The single owner account email
OWNER_PASSWORD	Yes	Owner login password (min 8 chars)
DATABASE_URL	Yes	PostgreSQL connection string (Neon or self-hosted)
NEON_API_KEY	No	Enables one-click pg_cron setup from /settings
NEON_PROJECT_ID	No	Neon project ID (used with NEON_API_KEY)
NEON_ENDPOINT_ID	No	Neon endpoint ID (used with NEON_API_KEY)
ALLOWED_ORIGINS	No	Comma-separated CORS origins (e.g., http://localhost:3000)
PORT	No	HTTP port (default: 3000)

Note

Generate AUTH_SECRET with: openssl rand -hex 32 (or any 16+ character random string)

Installation Steps

1. Clone and Install

git clone https://github.com/preq/projects-manager.git
cd projects-manager
npm install

2. Configure Environment

cp .env.example .env
# Edit .env with your database URL and credentials

3. Database Migration

npx prisma migrate deploy

This creates all tables, indexes, and Row Level Security policies.

4. Start Development Server

npm run dev

The app opens at http://localhost:3000.

First Login

1. Navigate to http://localhost:3000/login
2. Use the email and password from your .env file
3. You are now logged in as the owner

Note

PREQSTATION is single-owner. All data is scoped to this account at the database level via PostgreSQL RLS.

Configure Telegram (Optional)

To enable Telegram notifications:

1. Go to Settings > Telegram
2. Enter your Telegram bot token
3. Test the connection
4. Token is encrypted at rest with AES-GCM

Configure API Keys

Issue tokens for agents to authenticate:

1. Navigate to Settings > API Keys
2. Click + New Token
3. Name it (e.g., local-dev, claude-code-prod)
4. Save and copy the token (starts with preq_)

Use these tokens in your preqstation-skill MCP configuration.