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

# First Run

> Reach a first useful answer without learning the full runtime surface.

# First Run

## Supported First-Run Path

```bash theme={null}
loong
# If config is missing, first-run setup stays inside the main shell

loong ask --message "Summarize this repository and suggest the best next step."
```

The main `loong` shell owns the supported first-run path. When config is
missing, the guided setup stays inside that same shell instead of bouncing you
to a separate command family first.

Use `loong onboard` when you want to reopen the deeper guided setup flow
explicitly for provider, channel, or tooling reconfiguration.

## Continue The Session

When you need follow-up work:

```bash theme={null}
loong chat
```

If you want to inspect the active provider's model catalog after credentials are healthy:

```bash theme={null}
loong runtime models list
```

`loong runtime models list` is the canonical model-catalog entrypoint.

## What Success Looks Like

* `loong` reaches a healthy first-run handoff without leaving you in raw config editing as step zero.
* `loong ask` produces one useful answer.
* `loong chat` is available for follow-up work.
* `loong onboard` remains available when you want the deeper guided setup flow again.
* `loong doctor` is there as the repair path if something still looks off.

## If First Run Feels Incomplete

Go straight to [Doctor And Health](/get-started/doctor-and-health) when:

* credentials were not detected cleanly
* the provider path still feels ambiguous
* `ask` or `chat` does not behave like a healthy local assistant path

## Approximate Config Shape

```toml theme={null}
active_provider = "openai"

[providers.openai]
kind = "openai"
api_key = { env = "PROVIDER_API_KEY" }
```

The exact provider kind and env var will vary. The important part is that onboarding writes the same provider surface the runtime will keep using later.

Secret reference note:

* `api_key = { env = "PROVIDER_API_KEY" }` means "read the secret from that environment variable".
* `api_key = "PROVIDER_API_KEY"` would instead be treated as the literal API key value itself.
* The docs standardize on the `{ env = "..." }` shape because it is explicit and matches the wider secret-reference model.

## Why This Page Stays Short

* The first-run handoff should get you to one useful answer quickly.
* Provider matrices, channel matrices, and richer runtime policy details belong in deeper guides under grouped shells such as `runtime`, `channels`, and `gateway`.
* The local CLI success path should come before gateway, channels, or broader product surfaces.

## What Comes Next

* Continue to [Providers And Models](/use-loong/providers-and-models) if you want the public provider and model-selection contract.
* Continue to [Doctor And Health](/get-started/doctor-and-health) if the first run is incomplete or unstable.
* Continue to [Use Loong](/use-loong/overview) once the base operator path is healthy.