ContributingDevelopment Setup

Development Setup

Clone the repository

git clone <repo-url> sentinel
cd sentinel

Install Node.js dependencies

npm install

Start the dev server

npm run dev

Dashboard will be at http://localhost:5001. A Welcome Wizard walks you through first-run setup.

Set up the Python side (LiteLLM proxy)

cd litellm
python3.12 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
cd ..

Enable RBAC for development (optional)

Set RBAC_ENABLED=true in .env to enable operator authentication during development.

Key Directories

DirectoryPurpose
src/lib/shield/Shield engine and rule definitions
src/lib/rbac/RBAC middleware and permissions
src/app/api/All API route handlers
src/app/api/auth/Authentication endpoints
src/app/api/config/operators/Operator management
src/mcp/MCP server
litellm/LiteLLM proxy config and ClawNex logger
docs/Enterprise documentation suite

Key Documentation

DocWhen to Read
docs/02-high-level-architecture.mdFirst — 10-minute system overview
docs/18-developer-manual.mdDeep dive into every subsystem
docs/19-api-mcp-integration-guide.mdBefore touching the public API or MCP server
docs/11-security-architecture.mdBefore touching the shield engine or break-glass

Building for Production

npm run build

This must succeed before submitting a pull request.