​
Development Guide

This guide covers how to set up and develop with Routstr, whether you’re building an application that uses Routstr, or contributing to Routstr itself.

​
Repository Structure

The Routstr project consists of several key components:

/routstr
  /proxy         - Self-hosted proxy for model providers
  /frontend      - Web interface for the Routstr marketplace
  /protocol      - Core protocol specifications (RIPs)
  /docs          - Documentation site
  /scripts       - Utility scripts and development tools

​
Development Environment

​
Prerequisites

  • Node.js 19 or higher
  • Docker (for containerized development)
  • A Lightning wallet or node (for payment testing)
  • Cashu mint (optional, for token payments)

​
Setting Up the Proxy

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/routstr/routstr.git
cd routstr/proxy

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Build the proxy
npm run build

# Run the proxy locally
npm run dev

​
Setting Up the Frontend

cd routstr/frontend

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run the development server
npm run dev

​
Running Tests

We use Jest for JavaScript/TypeScript testing:

# Run proxy tests
cd proxy
npm test

# Run frontend tests
cd frontend
npm test

​
Working with the Protocol

The Routstr Improvement Proposals (RIPs) define the standards and protocols that make up the Routstr network:

  • RIP-01: OpenAI-API Proxy with Cashu micropayments
  • RIP-02: Nostr event announcements for inference nodes
  • RIP-03: Web interface for browsing and filtering nodes
  • RIP-04: Anonymous quality evaluations
  • RIP-05: Smart clients with Tor/proxy routing

When developing for Routstr, refer to these specifications to ensure compatibility.

​
Local Development Network

For local development, you can set up a complete Routstr network locally:

1

Start a local Nostr relay

docker run -d -p 7000:7000 scsibug/nostr-rs-relay
2

Start a local Cashu mint

docker run -d -p 3338:3338 cashubtc/cashu-fedibtc
3

Configure a local proxy

Create a config with the local relay and mint:

{
  "proxy": {
    "name": "Local Provider",
    "endpoint": "http://localhost:11434/v1"
  },
  "routing": {
    "nostr": {
      "relays": ["ws://localhost:7000"]
    }
  },
  "payment": {
    "cashu": {
      "enabled": true,
      "mint": "http://localhost:3338"
    }
  }
}
4

Run the proxy

docker run -p 8080:8080 -v $(pwd)/config.json:/app/config.json ghcr.io/routstr/proxy

​
Docker Deployment

For production deployment, use the official Docker image:

# Pull the latest proxy image
docker pull ghcr.io/routstr/proxy:latest

# Run the proxy with your configuration
docker run -d -p 8080:8080 -v /path/to/config.json:/app/config.json ghcr.io/routstr/proxy

​
Contributing to Routstr

We welcome contributions to all aspects of the Routstr ecosystem:

  1. Fork the repository you want to contribute to
  2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
  3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')
  4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
  5. Open a Pull Request

​
Coding Standards

  • We use TypeScript for type safety
  • Follow the existing code style and include tests
  • Documentation is required for new features

​
Building and Deploying

​
Building the Proxy

cd proxy
npm run build

The built package will be in the dist directory.

​
Building the Frontend

cd frontend
npm run build

The built site will be in the out directory.

​
Troubleshooting

​
Additional Resources