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

# Run the server

> Start the ShoulderTap engine with shtap serve, choose a transport, and reach the HTTP API and approval UI.

`shtap serve` runs the ShoulderTap engine: the routing and asking loop, the scheduler for escalations and timeouts, the HTTP API, and the web approval UI. It is the one process that owns state (a local SQLite file), and every other command talks to it over HTTP.

## Start it

```bash theme={null}
shtap serve --transport console
```

<ParamField query="--config" type="string" default="shouldertap.yaml">
  Path to the configuration file.
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="--transport" type="console | slack" default="console">
  How experts are reached. `console` prints DMs to the terminal and reads replies from stdin. `slack` sends real Slack DMs and captures replies from the Events API.
</ParamField>

<ParamField query="--host" type="string" default="0.0.0.0">
  Host interface to bind the HTTP server to.
</ParamField>

The server listens on the port from `server.port` in your config (default `8776`).

## Transports

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="console">
    The console transport prints the exact DM ShoulderTap would send an expert to the terminal running `shtap serve`, and reads the expert's reply from stdin. It needs no Slack app or credentials, which makes it ideal for a first look and for local development. This is the transport the [Quickstart](/quickstart) uses.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="slack">
    The Slack transport sends real DMs through a Slack app and captures replies via the Events API. It requires `slack.bot_token_env` and `slack.signing_secret_env` in your config and the matching secrets in `.env`. Point your Slack app's Events request URL at `https://<your-host>/api/v1/slack/events`. See [Connect Slack](/run/slack) for the full setup.
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## What the server exposes

Once running, the server serves:

* **The HTTP API** at `http://localhost:8776/api/v1` — used by consumers, the CLI, the SDK, and the MCP server. See the [Protocol reference](/api/authentication).
* **The approval UI** at `http://localhost:8776/` — a single page listing pending proposals to accept or reject. See [Approvals](/run/approvals).

<Warning>
  If the bearer-token environment variable is unset, the API accepts every request. Set `SHOULDERTAP_API_TOKEN` (or whatever `server.api_token_env` names) before binding to a public interface.
</Warning>

## Durability

The scheduler persists escalation and give-up timers to SQLite. If the process restarts, overdue timers fire on the next start — a request that should have escalated while the server was down escalates as soon as it comes back up.