First launch, step by step

This page takes you from nothing to a first answer from Vector, one step at a time, with no coding knowledge needed. Each step names the buttons as Vector and your computer show them.

Download Vector

1. 1
   Create a free account

   Go to vectordev.ai/download, which asks you to log in first. Choose Continue with Google, or choose Sign up to make an account with your email and a password. An email account may ask you to confirm it from your inbox before you log in.

2. 2
   Download the installer

   Choose Download Vector. The button names the computer it detected, such as macOS · Apple silicon. If that is wrong, open Other platforms and pick yours. An older Mac may have an Intel processor: Apple menu → About This Mac says which.

3. 3
   Install it

   On a Mac, open the downloaded file and drag Vector into Applications. On Windows, run the installer. On Linux, the download is an AppImage, which runs without installing.

Open Vector the first time

Vector is in preview: the Mac app is not yet signed with an Apple Developer ID or notarized by Apple, and the Windows installer is not yet code-signed. So the first time you open it, macOS or Windows warns you. This is expected, and you only need to get past it once.

On a Mac

1. 1
   Open Vector from Applications

   macOS stops it with a message such as “Vector” can't be opened because it is from an unidentified developer, or Apple could not verify “Vector” is free of malware. Close the message with Done or OK. Do not choose Move to Trash.

2. 2
   Allow it in System Settings

   Open System Settings from the Apple menu, then Privacy & Security (on older macOS, System Preferences → Security & Privacy). Scroll down to the note that Vector was blocked and choose Open Anyway. If the note is not there, try to open Vector once more, then look again.

3. 3
   Confirm

   macOS asks you to confirm with your Mac's password or Touch ID. Choose Open Anyway (or Open) when it asks, and Vector starts.

You may also see a keychain message: Vector wants to use your confidential information stored in “Vector Safe Storage” in your keychain. That item protects your sign-ins on this Mac. Type your Mac's login password and choose Always Allow. A new install usually does not ask. If Vector was on this Mac before, it can ask the first time you open the new copy, and until Vector is signed with an Apple Developer ID it can ask once again after each update. If you chose Deny, Vector says it couldn't open its secure credential vault: quit Vector, open it again, and choose Always Allow.

On Windows or Linux

On Windows, SmartScreen shows Windows protected your PC when you run the installer. Choose More info, then Run anyway. On Linux, allow the AppImage to run as a program first: tick that option in the file's Properties in your file manager, or run chmod +x on the file in a terminal. Then open it. Keep using the AppImage itself, since in-app updates only work there. If Vector says it cannot open its credential vault, unlock or set up your desktop's keyring, such as GNOME Keyring (libsecret) or KWallet, and open Vector again.

If your computer still refuses to open Vector, see Troubleshooting.

Sign in

Vector opens on Home with Getting started, a short list of first steps that Vector ticks off as you do them. Signing in to Vector is what makes the free models work.

1. 1
   Start signing in

   Next to Connect a model, choose Start free. You can also choose Sign in to Vector in the message box, or in Settings → Account.

2. 2
   Finish in your browser

   Your web browser opens vectordev.ai. Log in with the account you downloaded Vector with, if it asks. The page then says Continue in Vector.

3. 3
   Go back to Vector

   Your browser asks whether it may open Vector. Allow it, and Vector finishes signing you in. If nothing happens, choose Open Vector on the page. The link works once and expires after five minutes, so after that, start again from Vector.

Pick a model

A model is the AI that reads your request and does the work. The message box shows the one that will answer; choose its name to see the others. There are three ways to get one:

Free models

Signed in, the model list has Free models inside of Vector, at no cost to you and with no payment details, within a per-minute and a daily limit for each account. Some are labelled May train on your prompts: before your first message to one, Vector asks, and sends nothing until you choose Accept and send. If Vector says free models are unavailable right now, try again later or use one of the ways below.

Your own key

If you already pay an AI company such as OpenAI, Anthropic or Google, create an API key on its website. In Vector, choose Use my own API key, or open Settings → Providers & keys. Pick the company, paste the key and choose Continue. Its models join the list, and that company bills you for what you use.

Vector Codium

When Vector Codium is available, the model list has its models under Vector Codium. They run on credits from a plan or a top-up you buy at vectordev.ai/codium, and Settings → Account shows the share of this month's credits left. Vector never chooses a Codium model for you, so pick one yourself. Until then, the plans there say Coming soon.

More about each, and about models you host yourself, is on Models.

Run a first task

1. 1
   Open a folder

   On Home, choose Open repository and pick the folder Vector should work in. A folder of code is called a repository. To start from nothing, make an empty folder with that window's New Folder button and choose it.

2. 2
   Answer the trust question, if it comes

   A folder with Vector settings of its own asks Trust this repository? once. Choose Trust this repository only for a folder you know. Not now leaves its settings off, and you can trust it later.

3. 3
   Ask for something safe

   Choose New session, type your request in the message box, and press Enter. A good first request asks Vector to look and explain without changing anything.

Vector shows each step as it works. When it needs your permission, for example to run a command, the message box shows Permission required with Deny, Allow once and, for some steps, Allow always. Allow once approves only that step. When the answer arrives, Getting started ticks off its last step.

Next, ask for a small change and look at it in Review changes before you keep it. If it went the wrong way, Rewind code + chat undoes your last request. Your first task shows how to write a request Vector can check, and Checkpoints and recovery how to undo.