Without Docker

Looku is a Node.js program, so Docker is not required. This page is for readers who already run Node.js services. If that is new to you, the Docker guides are easier.

You need: Node.js 22 or newer, git, and a reverse proxy or tunnel for the receiver as in the other guides.

Try it first in your own folder

To try Looku on your computer, you need no root, service user or systemd, and Node.js from nvm is fine. In the folder you cloned Looku into:

npm install --omit=dev
export LOOKU_DB="$PWD/data/looku.db"
npx looku site:add myblog --domain localhost --timezone Europe/Helsinki
npx looku admin:password
npx looku all

looku all keeps running in that terminal, so run other commands in a second one (set LOOKU_DB there too). The dashboard is at http://127.0.0.1:8788, and the site’s LOOKU_ENDPOINT is the same address, because looku all receives page views on the same port. Stop it with Ctrl+C. For a real site, install it as below.

Install

Node.js must be installed for all users (from your distribution or NodeSource), not with nvm, because nvm installs it in your own home folder where the service user cannot reach it.

sudo useradd --system --home /var/lib/looku --create-home looku
sudo git clone https://github.com/niemenjoki/Looku.git /opt/looku
cd /opt/looku
sudo npm install --omit=dev

npm install builds the SQLite library. If it fails with gyp ERR!, install build tools (sudo apt install python3 make g++) and run it again.

Every command needs the database location (without LOOKU_DB, a command uses ./data/looku.db in the current folder and creates a new, empty database if there is none), and runs as the looku user so that the database belongs to it:

sudo -u looku LOOKU_DB=/var/lib/looku/looku.db node packages/engine/src/cli.js site:add myblog --domain example.com --timezone Europe/Helsinki
sudo -u looku LOOKU_DB=/var/lib/looku/looku.db node packages/engine/src/cli.js admin:password

Two processes or one

Command	Listens on	Does
looku ingest	LOOKU_INGEST_HOST:LOOKU_INGEST_PORT (default 127.0.0.1:8787)	receiver, nightly job, monthly email
looku serve	LOOKU_API_HOST:LOOKU_API_PORT (default 127.0.0.1:8788)	dashboard and read API
looku all	LOOKU_API_HOST:LOOKU_PORT (default 127.0.0.1:8788)	both on one port: /ingest, /orders and /healthz go to the receiver, everything else to the dashboard

Two processes let you publish only the receiver. looku all is simpler when both sit behind the same HTTPS proxy; then set LOOKU_API_ALLOW, so that only your own addresses can open the dashboard (see Settings).

Keep it running with systemd

/etc/systemd/system/looku-ingest.service:

[Unit]
Description=Looku receiver
After=network.target

[Service]
User=looku
WorkingDirectory=/opt/looku
Environment=LOOKU_DB=/var/lib/looku/looku.db
Environment=LOOKU_TIMEZONE=Europe/Helsinki
ExecStart=/usr/bin/node packages/engine/src/cli.js ingest
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

/etc/systemd/system/looku-dashboard.service is the same with Description=Looku dashboard, serve instead of ingest, and the dashboard settings you need (for example Environment=LOOKU_API_HOST=192.168.1.10 and Environment=LOOKU_API_HOSTS=192.168.1.10:8788). Use the path that which node prints instead of /usr/bin/node if it differs.

sudo systemctl daemon-reload
sudo systemctl enable --now looku-ingest looku-dashboard
systemctl status looku-ingest

The status should say active (running). Logs: journalctl -u looku-ingest.

All settings are listed in Settings.