BrainstackFor IT teams
Brainstack for IT
Brainstack runs two ways: hosted by us, or on your own server. This page covers what each needs, how the server install works, and how access, backups and security work.
Two ways to run it
Hosted by us, or on your own server.
| Hosted by Brainstack | On your own server | |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | Brainstack | Your IT team (we help set it up) |
| Where the data lives | Our servers in the US (Chicago), with each company kept separate on shared servers | Your server, in the cloud or region you choose |
| Sign-in | Google or work email | Your own Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra or OIDC (Okta, Auth0, Keycloak) |
| Setup time | Minutes | About a day once you have a server and a web address (estimate) |
| IT effort | None | A small Linux server, a web address and a sign-in app; keep the backup keys |
| Updates | We roll them out | We ship a release; you run one command (or we do it with your access) |
| Backups | Automatic: encrypted disk snapshots daily (kept 5 days), managed database backups, and a snapshot before every update | Nightly, encrypted to keys only you hold |
| Who at Brainstack can see notes | Only our engineers, and only to fix a problem you report. Our dashboard shows counts, never note text. | Nobody, once your IT person removes our temporary access. |
| Best for | Small teams, pilots, firms happy with a SaaS tool | Data-residency, security reviews, “nothing leaves our network” |
No AI model runs on Brainstack either way: people's own AI does the thinking, and Brainstack stores and searches what they save.
Only if it runs on your server
On your own server: what runs.
This section is only about running Brainstack on your own server; if we host it, there's nothing for you to run. One Linux server with Docker runs three containers.
Scroll the diagram sideways to see all of it.
- Caddy, the front door. HTTPS on your domain, and the only container on a public port.
- The Brainstack app. The web app and the AI connector at
/mcp. Each note is a plain file on the server's disk. - PostgreSQL 17. People, brains, access and search, on a private network nothing outside the server can reach.
Requirements and sizing
What your server needs.
Size
| Up to 25 people | 2 CPU, 4 GB of memory, 40 GB of disk tested with light load |
|---|---|
| 25 to 100 people | 4 CPU, 8 GB of memory, 80 GB of disk estimate |
100+ people: sized with you after a short trial. Notes are small text (roughly 100,000 notes in under 1 GB, an estimate). Up to 2,000 brains, and no practical limit on people per brain. Moving up a size is a server change plus a settings update, not a reinstall.
Requirements
| System | Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04 LTS, or Debian 12, on x86-64 or ARM64. No GPU. The install sets up Docker. |
|---|---|
| Ports | 443 and 80 inbound; SSH for the install. |
| DNS | One name, such as brain.yourcompany.com: an A record to the server's IPv4 address, no AAAA record. |
| Sign-in | Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra, or any OIDC provider (Okta, Auth0, Keycloak, Authentik). |
| Backup keys | The public keys of one or two custodians. Their secret keys never sit on the server. |
| Outbound | The containers reach only your sign-in provider and the certificate authority; the server itself also fetches OS security updates. |
Install
From a new server to your team using it, in nine steps.
- Get a small server IT teamLinux, in your cloud account or on-premises, with a public IP address.
- Point a web address at it IT teamOne DNS record, such as brain.yourcompany.com.
- Register it for sign-in IT teamAdd Brainstack as an app in your identity provider. We give you the settings.
- Run one install command BrainstackWith temporary access, we lock the server down, start the three containers, get the HTTPS certificate and turn on nightly encrypted backups.
- Claim the site Your adminOpen the address, enter the one-time setup code and sign in as the first admin.
- Invite the team Your adminThe admin adds work emails under People and shares the join links.
- Set up brains Your adminA brain for each team or client: pick people, choose Read or Write, and drop them on it.
- Connect their AI EveryoneAdd
brain.yourcompany.com/mcpas a connector and sign in. The “?” in Brainstack walks them through it. - Take back our access IT teamYour IT person removes the temporary login we used. We'll walk them through it.
Watch the install (1 min)
The nine steps, played as simplified screens. Use Back, Pause and Next to move through them. Open full screen
Connecting assistants
Sign-in and connecting assistants.
| On your own server | Your Brainstack address plus /mcp, such as brain.yourcompany.com/mcp |
|---|---|
| Hosted by us | usebrainstack.com/mcp |
- Each person connects once. They sign in with their work account and add the address as a connector in Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code or any MCP app. The “?” next to the bell gives them the address and shows how to check it worked.
- Rolling it out to everyone? On business plans, an admin can add the connector once for everyone, and people just sign in.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot is supported too. We set it up with your team.
- Each person's own access. Assistants connect over MCP with standard OAuth, so an assistant only gets the notes that person may see.
Brains and access
Who can read what.
Each team or client gets a brain, and each person in it has Read or Write.
ReadSearch and read every note in the brain.
WriteAlso save notes into it.
- Only admins manage brains. They create brains, add people (choosing Read or Write first), switch anyone between Read and Write, and invite people (by email when we host it, with join links on your own server).
- Admins joining are announced. An admin can add themselves to any brain, and everyone in it gets a notice in Brainstack.
- Everyone has a private brain. Only they can see it, admins included. They can still share a single note from it when they choose.
- The AI follows the same rules. It searches only the brains the person is in, and cites the brain, person and date. Every save comes back with a receipt, and sensitive notes and access changes are read back first.
Backups and updates
Looking after it.
- Hosted backups
- Automatic: encrypted disk snapshots daily (kept 5 days), managed database backups, and a snapshot before every update.
- Your server: backups
- The install sets up a nightly backup of the notes and the database, encrypted to your custodians' keys. Copy them off the server too.
- Your server: restores
- The runbook walks you through a restore. Backup and restore are rehearsed on a test setup, and we run them on your server during setup.
- Your server: updates
- Each update is a pinned release, installed with one command (you run it, or we do with your permission). If anything looks off, it stops and tells you how to go back. The server installs its own security updates.
Security and privacy
What we built in.
- No AI on the server. The app refuses to start if an AI service key is configured.
- Only what people save. Brainstack doesn't read email, files or chat history.
- Locked-down server. Only SSH, 80 and 443 in. The database is on a private network, and the app's role doesn't own it.
- Audited changes. Every AI connection, removal and access change is recorded in the same transaction.
- Clean logs. Note text stays out of the logs.
- Leaving ends access. Removing someone ends their sessions and AI connections in the same step.
- Our access ends too. On your own server, your IT person removes our login after the install.
- Reviewed before release. Every release gets an independent code review focused on leaks across people and brains, and each finding is fixed and re-checked.
Questions
What IT usually asks.
- Do I need IT help to set it up?
- Not if we host it. On your own server, once: your IT person gets a small server ready, we run one install command, then they remove our access.
- How big can it get?
- Notes are small text: roughly 100,000 notes fit in under 1 GB (an estimate). Up to 2,000 brains, and no practical limit on people per brain. See the sizes.
- How do people connect their AI?
- With the “?” next to the bell in Brainstack: it gives them the address and shows how to check it worked. Microsoft 365 Copilot is set up with your team.
- Where is the data stored?
- Hosted: on our servers in the US (Chicago), with each company kept separate on shared servers. On your own server: in the cloud or region you choose.
- Can we get our data out?
- On your own server it's already yours: notes are plain files, and backups are encrypted to your keys. Hosted: ask us and we'll export your notes and settings.
- What if the server dies?
- On your own server, restore the latest nightly backup onto a fresh machine with the runbook. Hosted: that's ours to handle.
- How are updates delivered?
- On your own server, a pinned release you install with one command, or we do it with your permission. Hosted: we roll them out.