Native Installation

Install Arc on Linux from .deb, .rpm, or Arch packages, or build it from source: set up the systemd service, configure a storage backend, and upgrade an existing install in place.

Install Arc directly on Linux using native packages (.deb, .rpm) or build from source.

Latest Version

Current release: …

Prerequisites

Linux (x86_64 or ARM64)
4GB RAM minimum, 8GB+ recommended
systemd (for service management)

If you need validated cryptography (FIPS 140-2/3, FedRAMP, NIST SP 800-171 / CMMC), install the arc-fips build instead — same version, same features, built against the CMVP-certified Go Cryptographic Module. See FIPS 140-3 mode. Note there is no arc-fips Arch package; on Arch use the standalone binary.

Get your admin token

When Arc starts for the first time, it generates an admin token.

Save This Token

Copy this token immediately - you won't see it again!

sudo journalctl -u arc | grep -i "admin"

You should see:

======================================================================
  FIRST RUN - INITIAL ADMIN TOKEN GENERATED
======================================================================
  Initial admin API token: arc_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
======================================================================

Save it:

export ARC_TOKEN="arc_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"

Storage backends

Local Filesystem - Default, data stored on disk.

Edit /etc/arc/arc.toml:

[storage]
backend = "local"
local_path = "/var/lib/arc/data"

Or via environment:

ARC_STORAGE_BACKEND=local
ARC_STORAGE_LOCAL_PATH=/var/lib/arc/data

Service management

Start/stop/restart

sudo systemctl start arc      # Start
sudo systemctl stop arc       # Stop
sudo systemctl restart arc    # Restart
sudo systemctl status arc     # Status

View logs

sudo journalctl -u arc -f            # Follow logs
sudo journalctl -u arc -n 100        # Last 100 lines
sudo journalctl -u arc --since "1 hour ago"

Enable/disable auto-start

sudo systemctl enable arc     # Enable on boot
sudo systemctl disable arc    # Disable on boot

Configuration

Configuration file: /etc/arc/arc.toml

sudo nano /etc/arc/arc.toml
sudo systemctl restart arc

Common options

[server]
port = 8000

[storage]
backend = "local"
local_path = "/var/lib/arc/data"

[auth]
enabled = true

[compaction]
enabled = true
hourly_enabled = true
daily_enabled = true

[wal]
enabled = false  # Enable for zero data loss
sync_mode = "fdatasync"

[log]
level = "info"
format = "json"

See Configuration Overview for all options.

Data directory

Installation Type	Default Data Directory
Package install	`/var/lib/arc/data`
Source build	`./data/arc`

Updating Arc

# Automatic update to latest version
LATEST_VERSION=$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/basekick-labs/arc/releases/latest | grep tag_name | cut -d '"' -f 4 | sed 's/v//')
wget https://github.com/basekick-labs/arc/releases/download/v${LATEST_VERSION}/arc_${LATEST_VERSION}_amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i arc_${LATEST_VERSION}_amd64.deb
sudo systemctl restart arc

Uninstalling

sudo systemctl stop arc
sudo dpkg -r arc

# Optional: Remove data
sudo rm -rf /var/lib/arc /etc/arc

Troubleshooting

Arc won't start

# Check logs
sudo journalctl -u arc -n 50

# Check port availability
sudo lsof -i :8000

Permission errors

sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/arc/data
sudo chown -R arc:arc /var/lib/arc

Memory issues

Override in /etc/arc/arc.toml:

[database]
memory_limit = "4GB"
max_connections = 16
thread_count = 8