First run
From a configured checkout (see Install) to your first validated strategy in a few minutes.
Start the application
Section titled “Start the application”scripts/start.shThis starts the three host processes — the API, the worker, and the frontend dev server —
and runs database migrations. Logs are written under .run/. Stop everything with:
scripts/stop.shThen open the app (the dev server prints the URL, typically http://localhost:5173).
Create your account and log in
Section titled “Create your account and log in”ClearEdge is single-user. The first time you open it, register a username and password from the login
screen — this becomes the one account; registration refuses a second. (Equivalently, create it from
the CLI: cd backend && uv run python -m ats.cli create-user --username <you>.) Passwords are hashed
with Argon2id.
There is no email/password-reset flow by design (it’s your machine). Forgot your password? Reset
it locally — uv run python -m ats.cli reset-password --username <you> — which is exactly where the
login screen’s “Forgot password?” link points. See the
admin CLI.
Add your data key
Section titled “Add your data key”Open Settings (the gear in the header) and paste your free Tiingo token, then hit Test to
confirm the key actually works before you rely on it. Keys are stored in backend/.env and never
leave your machine. (You can also add Databento, Telegram, Anthropic, and IB account ids here, each
with its own Test — see the configuration reference.)
After adding a data key, restart the app once (
scripts/stop.sh && scripts/start.sh, or the command Settings shows you) so the worker can use it for ingestion. The Test works immediately; the restart is only needed to use the key.
Ingest some data
Section titled “Ingest some data”Go to the Data tab and ingest daily bars for a liquid ETF (e.g. SPY). The bars land in the local
catalog, which every backtest reads from. (Intraday and crypto ingestion are
covered in ingestion.)
Run your first backtest
Section titled “Run your first backtest”Go to Backtests → pick a strategy from the library (e.g.
ibs_reversion), set the symbol and date range, and run a single backtest. The detail view shows
the full metrics, the candlestick chart with fills, the equity curve overlaid with buy-and-hold, a
drawdown subplot, the round-trip trades, and a Monte Carlo panel.
Validate it honestly
Section titled “Validate it honestly”A positive backtest means little on its own. Run the strategy through the gauntlet — the rule test, walk-forward, optimization, deflated Sharpe, and cost stress — and watch its readiness score on the Research tab. This is the heart of the product: see the gauntlet and the research ladder.
What you’re actually learning
Section titled “What you’re actually learning”The whole loop — ingest → backtest → validate → judge against buy-and-hold — is the discipline ClearEdge exists to teach and enforce. When something survives the gauntlet, you can promote it to paper trading; only what survives that, and an explicit approval, can go live.