Quickstart

Add one machine to your Dashcat account and connect your AI app to it. It takes about five minutes, and nothing needs installing where your AI runs. You need a Dashcat account: sign in at app.dashcat.ai with your email or Google.

1. Make an invite link. In Dashcat Dashboard, open Nodes, choose Add a node and name the machine, such as reception-pc. Copy the invite link. It works once and expires after 7 days, and the dashboard can’t show it again.

2. Join on the machine. Install Dashcat there and use the link in whichever way suits:

   • The Dashcat app: paste the link on the first-run page, under Make this computer a node. On Windows, the installer’s Set up this computer page takes it too.

   • Dashcat Agent on a Mac: the .pkg asks for the link at the end.

   • Anywhere else: open the link on the machine. The page asks whether the Dashcat connector may reach it, then gives you a command to run:

     dashcat-agent join "https://app.dashcat.ai/join#…"

   The machine appears in Dashcat Dashboard by itself, first as Waiting to connect, then Online. To let someone else add their machine, send them the link.

3. Add the connector to your AI app. Copy the connector address from the top of the Nodes page, https://app.dashcat.ai/mcp, and add it to your AI app as a custom connector. Sign in with your Dashcat account when asked. Connect your AI app has the steps for each app.

4. Ask. Try “what’s using the disk on reception-pc?” or “run the test suite on build-box and show me any failures”.

Keep it running

Dashcat Agent has to be running for the node to be online. The Dashcat app sets it to start when you log in. Elsewhere, choose Start at login from the Dashcat icon, or run dashcat-agent autostart enable. On a desktop the Dashcat icon shows whether the node is connected, and Pause remote access cuts everyone off until you turn it back on. See The Dashcat app.

Next

• What your AI can do on a node, and the limits on each tool.
• Choose which nodes each AI app can reach.
• Direct mode, if nothing may pass through Dashcat’s cloud.