# Quick start

> Install PrismaLens, start it, point a service at its code and run one investigation.

This takes about ten minutes and needs no alert source.

## Before you start

* **macOS, Linux or WSL2.** Native Windows is a preview.
* **git.**
* **A coding agent** you can sign in to, such as OpenCode, Claude Code or Codex. See [Coding agents](/coding-agents/).
* **A git repository** on this machine, or a git URL you can clone.

1. **Install**

   ```bash
   curl -fsSL https://prismalens.io/install.sh | sh
   ```

   Or `npm install -g prismalens` if you have Node.js. Other ways are on [Install, upgrade and uninstall](/install/). You get one command under two names, `pl` and `prismalens`.

2. **Start it**

   ```bash
   pl up
   ```

   The first start creates your workspace in `~/.prismalens` and opens your browser on a one-time link. That link signs the browser in; there is no account. If no browser opens, open the link `pl up` printed. It works once, for 15 minutes. Leave `pl up` running.

   If something is wrong with the machine, `pl doctor` says what.

3. **Set up an agent**

   Open **Settings → Agent**. It lists the agents that can run here. If none can, **Add agent** sets one up. Until an agent can run, **Investigate** stays off.

4. **Add a service**

   Open **Services → New service**. Give it a name, and set **Code** to a folder such as `~/code/payments` or a git URL. A run reads its last commit.

5. **Write an incident and investigate**

   Click **New incident**, describe the problem the way you would to a colleague, pick your service, and click **Investigate**.

   The run streams on the incident. A run you start uses **Ask always** unless Settings or the agent’s own configuration sets another level: reads and searches run, and you approve or deny each other request as it comes. When it finishes, the incident shows the report. See [Reading the report](/guides/reports/).

## Next

* [Send alerts from Alertmanager](/guides/alerts/) so incidents open on their own.
* [What PrismaLens reads](/trust/) before you point it at anything sensitive.