Installation

Install the Tai Link server on the machine you want your agents to work on. The whole process takes about five minutes.

## Before you start

- A running Yao Agents instance (local or cloud) that the remote machine can reach over the network.
- The remote machine runs **macOS, Linux, or Windows** (x86-64 or ARM64).

## Download

Go to [yaoagents.com/download](/download) and download the Tai Link installer for your platform.

| Platform | File |
|----------|------|
| macOS (Apple Silicon) | `tai-darwin-arm64` |
| macOS (Intel) | `tai-darwin-amd64` |
| Linux (x86-64) | `tai-linux-amd64` |
| Linux (ARM64) | `tai-linux-arm64` |
| Windows (x86-64) | `tai-windows-amd64.exe` |

After downloading, place the binary in a directory on your PATH.

**macOS / Linux:**

```bash
chmod +x tai-*
sudo mv tai-* /usr/local/bin/tai
```

**Windows:**

Move the `.exe` to a folder in your system PATH, or run it directly from the download location.

## Start the server

Point Tai Link to your Yao Agents instance:

```bash
tai server http://<YOUR_YAO_SERVER>:5099
```

Replace `<YOUR_YAO_SERVER>` with the IP or hostname of the machine running Yao Agents.

## Config file (optional)

For production deployments, create a `config.yml` instead of passing flags:

```yaml
yao:
  server: "http://<YOUR_YAO_SERVER>:5099"
  display_name: "Office Server"

data: /data/volumes

log:
  level: info
  file: logs/tai.log
```

Then start with:

```bash
tai server --config config.yml
```

Tai Link searches for `config.yml` in the current directory and `/etc/tai/config.yml` by default.

## Verify the installation

After starting, you should see:

```
tai server ready
```

If your Yao server is reachable, Tai Link will automatically authenticate and register. Check the Yao Agents UI — the device should appear in the Tai Link panel within a few seconds.

## What's next

- [Connect your first device](/docs/en-us/tai-link/connect-first-device) — authenticate and pair
- [Tunnel mode](/docs/en-us/tai-link/tunnel-mode) — how NAT traversal works behind the scenes