How to Install Nexent with Docker — Step-by-Step Tutorial

How to Install and Run Nexent with Docker

This tutorial walks you through deploying Nexent on your own server using Docker — the fastest way to get your AI agent platform up and running.

Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose installed on your server
• At least 2 CPU cores and 4GB RAM (8GB recommended)
• A Linux server (Ubuntu 22.04+ recommended) or any system running Docker

Step 1: Pull the Docker Image

Nexent's official Docker image is available on Docker Hub with over 123k pulls. Start by pulling the latest version:

docker pull nexent/nexent:latest

Step 2: Run Nexent

Launch Nexent with a single Docker command, mapping port 8080 and persisting data to a local volume:

docker run -d \
  --name nexent \
  --restart unless-stopped \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -v ./data/nexent:/data \
  nexent/nexent:latest

Step 3: Access the Web UI

Open your browser and navigate to http://your-server-ip:8080. You'll be greeted by Nexent's dashboard where you can start building agents immediately — no login required by default.

Step 4: Create Your First Agent

From the dashboard, click "Create Agent" and follow the wizard:

1. Name your agent — give it a descriptive name
2. Choose a model — connect any OpenAI-compatible LLM (or use the built-in defaults)
3. Add tools — enable MCP tools, RAG capabilities, or custom skills
4. Set guardrails — define constraints and feedback rules
5. Deploy — your agent is live and ready

Step 5: Using Docker Compose (Recommended for Production)

For production deployments, use Docker Compose for better configuration management:

services:
  nexent:
    image: nexent/nexent:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - 8080:8080
    volumes:
      - ./data/nexent:/data

Save this as docker-compose.yml, then run:

docker compose up -d

Conclusion

Nexent deploys in under 5 minutes with Docker. Start building zero-code AI agents with Harness Engineering, multi-agent orchestration, and enterprise-grade safety — all self-hosted on your infrastructure.