This guide explains where to open Metnos, how to sign in for the first time, how to use the chat, and how to add a user. The structure of the administration pages is described separately in the interface guide.
Metnos runs on a computer of yours, at home or in the office. There is no public website to sign in to: the address is the address of the machine you installed it on. Everything below applies on that machine and on the local network it sits in.
The web chat is available on port 8770. To open it, type the complete address in your browser's address bar, including http:// and :8770. On the computer hosting Metnos, use http://127.0.0.1:8770/. If, for example, that computer's address on the local network is 192.168.1.42, type http://192.168.1.42:8770/ on a phone or laptop connected to the same network.
By default, the guided installer makes the chat reachable from the local network. During Metnos installation, at step 4, you can choose for greater security to allow access only from the computer hosting the system. With this setting, the chat can be opened only in a browser running on that computer; other devices on the local network cannot connect.
| Where you open it from | Address to type in the browser |
|---|---|
| From the computer hosting Metnos | http://127.0.0.1:8770/ |
| From another device on the same local network | http://192.168.1.42:8770/ (example: use the address shown by the installer) |
You do not have to guess the address: when the installation ends, Metnos prints the exact addresses to use and saves them in ~/.local/share/metnos/install_summary.md. If you lost them, open that file again.
When the installation ends, Metnos gives you a complete address that already contains a single-use access code: open it exactly as it is, without editing it. If there is more than one address, one is for the computer itself and the others are for the other devices on the network.
If that code has expired you have two ways: re-run the last installation phase, which issues a new one, or open /admin/login and paste the administration key. The key is a text file on the computer hosting Metnos, at ~/.config/metnos/admin.key: it is read from there only, and it is not to be sent to anyone.
./.venv/bin/python -m install --force-phase 6Once you are in, the browser keeps the access and does not ask for the key on every visit.
The main page contains a conversation: describe the outcome you want in your own words, without learning a list of commands. When a request requires confirmation under the applicable permissions, autonomy level, and policies, Metnos presents the proposed operation and waits for consent before proceeding.
You can also talk to it from Telegram. It is the same system, with the same identity and the same permissions, but each channel keeps its own conversation and its own history. The administration pages exist in the web chat only: if Telegram points you to a Settings path, that path opens in the browser.
To know what you can ask, the domain reference lists the subjects Metnos can handle, with example requests written the way you would say them.
From the web chat you can open Settings, the administration area. Its first page gives an overview of system state and leads to four sections; administration-page addresses begin with /admin. The complete interface map is generated from the system registry and therefore remains aligned with the components actually installed.
Pages under /admin are reserved for the instance administrator. An invited guest may use the chat but cannot open Settings.
/admin/users without a valid administrator session, Metnos takes you to the sign-in page and preserves the destination. After you enter the administration key, the browser returns to the requested page automatically. For example, if Metnos is available at 192.168.1.42, you can open http://192.168.1.42:8770/admin/users; when necessary, the visit to /admin/login happens in the same browser. An authenticated user without the administrator role receives an explicit denial instead and gains no new permissions.You need this when you want another user — a family member or guest — to use your Metnos with their own identity, history and permissions. There are two distinct steps: first you create the user's profile, then you give them a way in.
/admin/users.| Field | What to put in it |
|---|---|
| name | A short identifier, lowercase letters, digits and underscore only: lucia, marco_r. It is required. |
| display name | The name as you read it: Lucia Rossi. |
| The person's address, if they have one. | |
| role | guest for a guest, host for a second owner. When in doubt leave guest. |
| autonomy | How much they may do on their own: read_only only looks, restricted asks for confirmation on operations that change something, full goes ahead alone. When in doubt leave restricted. |
Open the user's name in the list to reach their detail page, and from there issue a connection code for the channel they will use. The code is valid for one hour and is single-use.
/start followed by the code; the bot answers with a confirmation.From that same detail page you can later edit the user's data, disconnect a channel, change their preferences or delete the user.
You do not have to memorise any of this. Ask Metnos in the chat, in your own words: "where do I change the model?", "how do I invite someone?". It answers with the path and the address of the page, and describes what is in your installation. If a page does not exist on your instance it says so, instead of inventing it.