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Deploy Context7 On-Premise with Docker Compose. This guide assumes you have completed the On-Premise setup and have a valid license key.

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Prerequisites

  • Docker and Docker Compose installed
  • Context7 license key

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Registry Authentication

Context7 Enterprise images are hosted on ghcr.io and require authentication. Log in using your license key: 
LICENSE_KEY="<your-license-key>"

TOKEN=$(curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $LICENSE_KEY" \
  https://context7.com/api/v1/license/registry-token | jq -r '.token')

docker login ghcr.io -u x-access-token -p $TOKEN
Docker stores these credentials locally. docker compose will use them automatically when pulling the image. You can also pull manually: 
docker pull ghcr.io/context7/enterprise:latest

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Docker Compose

Create a docker-compose.yml: 
services:
  context7:
    image: ghcr.io/context7/enterprise:latest
    container_name: context7
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    volumes:
      - context7-data:/data
    environment:
      - LICENSE_KEY=${LICENSE_KEY}

volumes:
  context7-data:
    driver: local
The context7-data volume is critical. It stores your SQLite database (configuration, credentials, indexed libraries) and all vector embeddings. Without a persistent volume, all data is lost when the container restarts or is recreated. Never run without a volume mount in production.
Create a .env file in the same directory: 
LICENSE_KEY=ctx7sk-...
Start the service: 
docker compose up -d
Once the container is running, open http://localhost:3000 in your browser to complete the setup wizard.

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Operations

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Updating

If your registry login has expired, re-authenticate first: 
LICENSE_KEY="<your-license-key>"

TOKEN=$(curl -s -H "Authorization: Bearer $LICENSE_KEY" \
  https://context7.com/api/v1/license/registry-token | jq -r '.token')

docker login ghcr.io -u x-access-token -p $TOKEN
Then pull the latest image and restart the container: 
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d
Data persists in the named Docker volume across updates.

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Health Check

curl http://localhost:3000/api/health
Example response: 
{
  "status": "healthy",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "setup": "complete",
  "license": "configured",
  "licenseInfo": {
    "valid": true,
    "teamSize": 10,
    "expiresAt": "2026-06-01T00:00:00.000Z"
  },
  "repos_parsed": 5,
  "uptime": 3600,
  "connectivity": {
    "llm": "configured",
    "llm_provider": "openai",
    "embedding": "configured",
    "embedding_provider": "openai",
    "github": "configured",
    "gitlab": "not configured"
  }
}

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Connecting AI Clients

Once deployed, point your MCP clients to your deployment URL. See Connecting Your AI Client for client-specific instructions.