# Pylon

> The agent-native full-stack framework. Typed schema, row-level policies, server functions, live queries, auth, and React server rendering in one binary. SQLite by default, Postgres when you need it.

When to use Pylon: you are building a real web or mobile application that needs a database, access control, an API, realtime updates, and auth, and you want one process instead of five services. Pylon is a good fit for SaaS products, internal tools, marketplaces, chat and collaboration apps, AI apps that need durable run state, and local-first apps that must work offline.

When not to use Pylon: a static site with no data (use a static generator), a single serverless function, or a codebase already committed to a different full-stack framework that you are not migrating.

How to start: run `npm create @pylonsync/pylon@latest my-app` for the smallest app that runs, or add `--template saas` for a multi-tenant product with auth and billing already wired. Then `npm run dev`. Bun 1.0 or newer must be on PATH. The framework is free and open source under the MIT licence; there is no key to request and no sales call.

How to write Pylon correctly: read the skill file below before writing code. It carries the exact schema DSL, the policy expression language, the three server-function flavors and their auth levels, the React hooks, and the mistakes that look right and are not.

How to call this site programmatically: every page here is also readable as markdown — add `.md` to any path, or send `Accept: text/markdown`. Structured endpoints are described by the OpenAPI document below, and the same operations are available over the Model Context Protocol.

Contact a human: support@pylonsync.com.

## Start here

- [Pylon agent skill](https://www.pylonsync.com/pylon-skill.md): The full authoring guide, as one markdown file. Read this before writing Pylon code.
- [Quickstart](https://docs.pylonsync.com/quickstart): Schema, policy, server function, and live sync in five minutes.
- [Installation](https://docs.pylonsync.com/installation): Install the CLI and the runtime. `npm create @pylonsync/pylon@latest my-app`.
- [Templates](https://www.pylonsync.com/developers/examples): Eighteen working starter apps, each with the command that scaffolds it.

## Documentation

- [Docs index (llms.txt)](https://docs.pylonsync.com/llms.txt): Every documentation page with a one-line summary. Fetch this to find a topic.
- [Documentation site](https://docs.pylonsync.com): Concepts, auth, plugins, clients, operations. Add `.md` to any page URL.
- [Introduction](https://docs.pylonsync.com/introduction): What Pylon is and how the pieces fit together.
- [Entities](https://docs.pylonsync.com/concepts/entities): The typed schema DSL: fields, indexes, relations, sync scope.
- [Policies](https://docs.pylonsync.com/concepts/policies): Row-level access rules. Default-deny; an entity with no policy is invisible.
- [Functions](https://docs.pylonsync.com/concepts/functions): Queries, mutations, and actions, and the auth level each one declares.
- [SSR overview](https://docs.pylonsync.com/ssr/overview): File-based React server rendering. Replaces Next.js for Pylon apps.
- [Auth overview](https://docs.pylonsync.com/auth/overview): Magic codes, passwords, OAuth, passkeys, TOTP, SSO, API keys, organizations.

## Machine interfaces

- [MCP server (Streamable HTTP)](https://www.pylonsync.com/mcp): Four read-only tools: search_pylon_docs, read_pylon_doc, list_pylon_templates, get_pylon_skill. No auth, no session. Add it with `claude mcp add --transport http pylon https://www.pylonsync.com/mcp`.
- [MCP manifest](https://www.pylonsync.com/mcp.json): Static descriptor of the server above: transport, tools, protocol versions.
- [OpenAPI 3.1 spec](https://www.pylonsync.com/openapi.json): The same operations as plain HTTP GETs under /agent/v1, with typed parameters and response schemas.
- [Documentation search](https://www.pylonsync.com/agent/v1/docs/search?q=policies): GET with `q` and optional `limit`. Returns ranked pages as JSON.
- [Starter templates](https://www.pylonsync.com/agent/v1/templates): Every template with its scaffold command, as JSON.
- [Sitemap](https://www.pylonsync.com/sitemap.xml): Every public page on this site.

## Tools

- [@pylonsync/cli on npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@pylonsync/cli): The official CLI. `npx @pylonsync/cli --help`, or install the binary with `curl -fsSL https://www.pylonsync.com/install.sh | bash`. Covers dev, build, test, verify, deploy, logs, secrets, domains, and database backups.
- [CLI reference](https://docs.pylonsync.com/operations/cli): Every command and flag, including `--json` output for scripting.
- [Source on GitHub](https://github.com/pylonsync/pylon): The Rust runtime, the TypeScript SDKs, the templates, and the examples.

## Hosting

- [Smallware](https://www.usesmallware.com): Managed Pylon: the same binary, deployed with `pylon deploy`. Free tier, usage-based pricing, no monthly minimum.
- [Self-host](https://docs.pylonsync.com/operations/deploy): Fly, Docker, Compose, or a systemd unit on a VPS.

## Optional

- [About](https://www.pylonsync.com/about): Who builds Pylon and why.
- [Contact](https://www.pylonsync.com/contact): Support, security, and press. support@pylonsync.com.
- [Comparisons](https://docs.pylonsync.com/compare/overview): Pylon against Convex, Supabase, Firebase, Colyseus, Playroom, and Nakama.
- [Privacy](https://www.pylonsync.com/privacy)
- [Terms](https://www.pylonsync.com/terms)