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

# Use the desktop app with your server

> Point the GAIA desktop app at your self-hosted instance and sign in with your instance's email and password

Point the GAIA desktop app at your own server.

## Get the desktop app

Download the app from [heygaia.io/download](https://heygaia.io/download). One app works with GAIA Cloud and your own server. Installers are in [Desktop App](https://docs.heygaia.io/guides/desktop-app.md).

> [!WARNING]
>
> **Use my own server** is not in a released desktop app yet. The newest release, Desktop v0.7.1, doesn't have it. Installed apps update themselves once a release includes it. Updating your instance does not add the button.

## Before you start

* Your instance is running and its sign-in page loads in a browser.
* You know its address, such as `https://gaia.example.com` or `http://192.168.1.20`.

## Connect the app

1. Open GAIA Desktop. The first screen is the desktop sign-in screen, **Welcome to GAIA Desktop**.

2. Click **Use my own server**, under the sign-in button. (That button signs in to GAIA Cloud.)

   ![Welcome to GAIA Desktop sign-in screen with an Open Login in Browser button and, below it, a Use my own server link](https://mintcdn.com/gaia-a3e7b78f/aiZIEOOyBrv-z9zE/images/self-hosting/desktop-login.webp?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=aiZIEOOyBrv-z9zE\&q=85\&s=59720bfa2082162bf863278af4e2b428)

   The desktop sign-in screen, with Use my own server under the GAIA Cloud sign-in button

3. Enter the address and click **Connect**. The app adds `https://` if you leave it out. For plain HTTP, type `http://`.

   ![The desktop sign-in screen with a Server address field filled in with https://gaia.example.com, the hint The address you open GAIA at in your browser, and a Connect button](https://mintcdn.com/gaia-a3e7b78f/aiZIEOOyBrv-z9zE/images/self-hosting/desktop-server-form.webp?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=aiZIEOOyBrv-z9zE\&q=85\&s=6061f8187506e44bda9a9a208280d20f)

   The server form, filled in with an instance's address

4. The app restarts and opens your instance's sign-in page. Sign in with your email and password.

### If Connect shows an error

| Message | What to do |
| - | - |
| Couldn't reach the address | Open the address in a browser. Add `http://` if you don't use HTTPS |
| No GAIA server answered | Use the proxy's address, not a single container's. The API must be at `/api/v1` on it |
| Signs in through GAIA Cloud accounts | Your instance uses WorkOS sign-in, which the desktop app doesn't support on your own server. Use the browser |

## Change the server

1. Click the GAIA icon in the menu bar (macOS) or the system tray (Windows and Linux).
2. Click **Change Server…**.
3. Enter a different address and click **Connect**, or click **Use GAIA Cloud**.

The app restarts. Switching servers removes this computer's device pairing, so pair it again on the new server.

If your instance is down when the app starts, the same screen shows the failed address. Click **Connect** once it is back.


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