urbit/urbit.org/running-urbit-os

Running Urbit OS

Use this as the thin entrypoint for runtime and operational questions about Urbit OS.

This file should stay short. Add long-form operational material under references/ and read it only when it is relevant.

Scope

• installing and booting ships
• pier lifecycle, backups, and upgrades
• networking, keys, and operational troubleshooting
• desk management and runtime administration

Dependencies and canonical sources

• https://developers.urbit.org/
• https://github.com/urbit/urbit
• release notes and operational docs for the runtime being used

Working rules

1. Separate runtime and operations guidance from identity and app guidance.
2. Prefer documented operational procedures over ad hoc shell folklore.
3. Put long-form walkthroughs in references/, not here.
4. Keep contributions narrow and auditable.

Reference index

• See references/README.md for the contribution pattern.
• For autonomous comet bootstrapping with a native-first, low-dependency flow, see references/comet-onboarding-for-agents.md.
• For booting disposable ships that expose an MCP endpoint for agent tooling, see references/mcp-bootstrap.md.

Contribution pattern

Add focused markdown references under references/ and list them here. Do not create nested SKILL.md files for subtopics.