Atoll
Pick the situation that matches you. Every step is written in plain language - no servers, no command line knowledge required. Your AI coding assistant does the heavy lifting; you just tell it what to do.
Download and unzip it. You'll get a folder called generic-atoll-template. Rename it to whatever your app is called.
Open the folder in your AI assistant. In Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code, open that folder. The assistant automatically reads the included CLAUDE.md and learns how the project must be structured.
Tell it what to build. Describe your app in your own words - for example, "build me a simple to-do list web app." It already keeps the pieces Atoll needs (a Dockerfile, a health-check page, and an .env.example) in place.
Put it on GitHub. Create a new (private) repository on GitHub and push your code to it. If you're not sure how, just ask your assistant to do it for you.
Connect it in Atoll. Sign in to Atoll, go to Repositories → Connect, pick your new repository, and choose a playbook (for a typical app, "Webapp").
Fill in the blanks and deploy. On the Variables tab, Atoll lists any values it still needs. Fill them in, then trigger a deploy. Watch the live log - once the health check passes, your app is online.
Unzip it into your project's folder. Unzip it at the top level of your existing project. It adds a hidden .claude/skills/ folder containing the two skills - your assistant picks them up automatically.
Open your project in your AI assistant. Open the same folder in Claude Code, Cursor or VS Code.
Ask it to make the app Atoll-ready. Say: "Make this repository Atoll compatible." It will add a Dockerfile, a health-check page at /metrics on port 8000, and an .env.example listing the settings your app needs.
Optional: add Login with Helix. If you want users to sign in with Helix, say "Add Login with Helix." See scenario 3 below for exactly what you'll need.
Push your changes to GitHub. Commit and push. Ask your assistant to do it if you're unsure.
Connect and deploy in Atoll. In Atoll, connect the repository, choose a playbook, fill in any missing values on the Variables tab, and deploy.
Good to know: Atoll never needs a special config file in your repo. The only requirements are a Dockerfile, a page that returns "OK" for the health check, and an .env.example - all of which the skill sets up for you.
Unzip it into your project's folder. Unzip it at the top level of your project. It adds .claude/skills/helix-auth/, which your assistant reads automatically.
Ask your assistant to add it. Open your project and say: "Add Login with Helix to this app." It will follow the skill to wire up the sign-in flow.
Get your Helix credentials. A Helix workspace admin registers your app once (in Helix, under OAuth apps) and gives you three things: a client id, a client secret, and your workspace name. You'll also need your Helix address (its web link).
Add those as settings in Atoll. Your assistant adds the matching KEY= lines to .env.example so Atoll knows to ask for them. Then, on the Variables tab in Atoll, paste in the real values.
Push and redeploy. Commit and push your changes, make sure the new values are set in Atoll, and deploy again.
Try it out. Open your app and use the new "Log in with Helix" button to confirm sign-in works.
Keep secrets secret: never paste your client secret into a chat message or commit it to GitHub. Enter it only in Atoll's Variables tab, where it's stored encrypted.