Quick Start

This guide walks you through the basics of ByteChef in a few minutes. You'll learn how to build a workflow quickly, so no much configuration needed.

In this tutorial, you'll learn:

How to build a workflow quickly with ByteChef's Workflow Builder
How to add and configure a component with data expressions
How to execute workflow automations

Pick Your Platform

You have two ways to use ByteChef:

ByteChef Cloud: We host it. Zero installation. Best for testing and getting familiar with the platform. We'll use this for this guide.
Your own infrastructure (Self-Hosted): Deploy and run ByteChef yourself. Supported on:

If you're ready to selfhost, you can pick any of the platforms above for detailed setup instructions.

In this quickstart guide, we'll be working with the Cloud instance so you can dive in immediately. You can switch to self-hosted instance anytime after you finish this guide.

Step 1: Create a Project

Go to your ByteChef dashboard on the Cloud or Self-hosted instance
Click on Create Project
Enter your project's name and description click Create

Step 2: Create Your First Workflow

Inside your project:

Click the button in the project pane
Give it a label (e.g., "Send Welcome Email")
Click Save.

Now, you now have a blank canvas in your workflow; let's build something.

Step 3: Add a Trigger

Every workflow in ByteChef starts with a trigger, it's the event that kicks off your automation.

Click the + button on the canvas
Search for and select Manual Trigger (this lets you start the workflow by testing or deploying)
Click to confirm

Step 4: Add and Configure Your First Component

Now, let's add a component that does something. Let's use the Spotify component to create a playlist and share with your teammates on Slack.

Click the + icon after the Manual Trigger
Search for Spotify
Select Spotify and click to add it
Select an action from the dropdown (the Create Playlist action)
Configure the component:
- Make a connection with the component by providing your Spotify Client ID and Client Secret
- In the properties panel, provide the playlist name and description
- Select if you want the playlist to be public or private
- Select if you want the playlist to be collaborative or not
Add the Slack component and select the Send Channel Message action
Configure the component:
- Make a connection with the component by providing your Slack Bot User OAuth Access Token
- In the properties panel, provide the channel ID and message.
- In the message section of the Slack properties panel, click on the message tab and enter this expression:

🎵 New playlist created: Slack Shared Songs
Playlist:${spotify_1.external_urls.spotify}
Start adding your favorite songs!

Step 5: Test Your Workflow

Click the test button at the top right corner of the workflow. ByteChef runs your workflow:

The Manual Trigger activates the workflow
The Spotify component creates a playlist
The Slack component sends a message to a channel

You'll see the execution results below:

workflow execution

Check your configured Slack channel to see a message in Slack:

What You've Built

Your workflow now looks like:

Manual Trigger → Spotify (Create Playlist) → Slack (Send Message)

The demo in this quickstart demonstrates the core concept of automation:

Trigger: Something starts the workflow
Components: Do the actual work (create, fetch, send)
Expressions: Pull data between components using {{ $json.fieldName }}

Next Steps

Here are a few things you can explore next:

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