Local Backend

Run one or more local backends and connect to them from the Agent Canvas UI.

Use --backend-only to start a local backend. Each backend runs behind an ingress proxy on its own port.

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Start a Backend

agent-canvas --backend-only

This starts the backend on 127.0.0.1:8000. No frontend is served.

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Running Multiple Backends

You can run several backends at the same time on different ports — for example, one per project or toolchain:

agent-canvas --backend-only --port 8001
agent-canvas --backend-only --port 8002
agent-canvas --backend-only --port 8003

Each instance gets its own backend and ingress proxy.

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Connect the Frontend

Start the frontend separately:

agent-canvas --frontend-only

Then add your backends through Manage Backends:

1. Click the backend switcher → Manage Backends → Add Backend.
2. Fill in the Host / Base URL (e.g. http://localhost:8001) and API Key.
3. Repeat for each backend you started.

Switch between them from the backend selector depending on what you’re working on.

If you just want a quick single-machine setup, running agent-canvas without any flags starts the full stack (frontend + backend) on one port. The split approach above is useful when you want multiple backends or want to keep the frontend and backends on separate processes.

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Related Guides

• Connect and Manage Backends
• VM / Self-Hosted Installation — backend-only or full Canvas on a remote machine
• Use Docker with Agent Canvas — run in a container