# HoundScraper Install HoundScraper

A self-hosted API with independent keys and no required WarHound account.

Official source: https://ops.warhoundai.com/docs/houndscraper/installation

## Create local configuration

Run scripts/configure.py once. It creates a mode-0600 .env with independent random database, API, encryption and worker keys without printing secrets. It refuses to overwrite an existing file.

## Start the reference deployment

Docker Compose publishes the API only on 127.0.0.1:8081. PostgreSQL is private. Open the local dashboard and enter your instance key from .env. Use authenticated HTTPS and an appropriate network boundary for remote access.

```
docker compose up --build -d
curl http://127.0.0.1:8081/health
```

## Use the Python client

Install from the repository checkout; package-registry publication is not implied. Set your key in an environment variable, never in a model prompt.

```
pip install -e .
export HOUNDSCRAPER_API_KEY="your-instance-key"
houndscraper scrape https://example.com --format markdown
```