> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.seekr.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# What is SeekrFlow Self-Managed

> Deploy and operate SeekrFlow in your own cloud or data center.

SeekrFlow Self-Managed is the [SeekrFlow platform](/flow/what-is-seekrflow) deployed and managed in your own cloud account or data center.

Your data, models, and credentials stay in your environment. You install, upgrade, and operate the deployment, and Seekr supplies the software, the license, and support.

This guide covers installing and operating SeekrFlow in your own environment. The steps assume working knowledge of Kubernetes, Helm, and your cloud provider's identity and storage services.

## Deployment steps

<Steps>
  <Step title="Plan">
    Review security, confirm your environment meets the requirements, and size the compute your deployment needs.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Provision">
    Create the cluster, prepare GPU nodes and networking, create the database, search, and storage SeekrFlow depends on, then set up cloud identity and secret management, and collect your credentials and values.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Prepare to install">
    Set up the `sfe` CLI, generate the values file, add your models, and choose the model each service uses. Then connect cloud identity, create secrets, and connect PostgreSQL.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Deploy">
    Run preflight checks, install SeekrFlow, verify the deployment, and create the first administrator.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Installation overview

Before you install, Seekr gives you credentials for its artifact registry, which holds the Helm chart and container images, and the `sfe` command-line interface (CLI). SeekrFlow installs from the Helm chart, using a values file that describes your environment. If your environment has no outbound internet access, you first mirror the container images into your own registry.

You can install with `sfe` or with Helm directly:

| Method | Choose it when | What it handles for you |
| - | - | - |
| `sfe` CLI | You want the supported, automated path. This is the recommended method. | Generates the values file, sets up cloud identity, creates the databases, populates secrets, runs preflight checks, installs, and checks that the result matches your values file. |
| Helm | You're experienced with Helm and Kubernetes, and you're building your own automation. Not recommended otherwise. | Installs and upgrades the chart. You create the databases, secrets, and cloud identity yourself. |

Use `sfe` unless you need to control each step yourself. The Helm path has more manual steps and none of `sfe`'s checks.

For how SeekrFlow runs once it's installed, see [Architecture](/self-managed/flow/architecture). For what the deployment connects to and what you are responsible for securing, see [Security considerations](/self-managed/flow/security).

## Supported deployment environments

| Environment | Kubernetes service | Setup automated by `sfe` | Feature availability |
| - | - | - | - |
| Amazon Web Services (AWS) | Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (Amazon EKS) in commercial Regions and AWS GovCloud (US). | Cloud identity, secrets, and preflight checks. | All self-managed features, including external models through Amazon Bedrock. |
| On-premises | A Kubernetes cluster in your own data center. | Secrets and preflight checks. Preflight cannot check storage or identity, which you verify yourself. | All self-managed features except external models. |

Every environment follows the same deployment steps. What changes is which services fill each role, such as Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) or an S3-compatible store for object storage. See [Architecture](/self-managed/flow/architecture).


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