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Install the agent

The recommended way to install the nullplatform agent is via Helm. This method gives you full control over authentication, tags, and GitHub integration—and fits well into CI/CD workflows.

If you're just trying things out, you can also run our quick-install script.

Installation methods​

Helm installation​

Prerequisites​

Before you begin, make sure you have:

  • A Kubernetes cluster
  • Helm 3+

1. Create an API key​

From the nullplatform UI:

  1. Go to Platform settings > API keys, and click + New API key.
  2. Select the account resource where the API key's roles will be assigned.

⚠️ Important: Roles must be assigned at the account level or the setup won’t work.

  1. Select the roles: ops, and secops.
  2. Save your API key somewhere safe—you'll need it shortly.

2. Add the Helm repository​

helm repo add nullplatform https://nullplatform.github.io/helm-charts
helm repo update

3. Set environment variables​

These environment variables configure the agent’s API key, tags, and scope source.

export NP_API_KEY=<your_api_key>
export AGENT_TAGS=<"key:value">
export GITHUB_REPO=your-org/your-repo
export GITHUB_TOKEN=your_github_token

You can customize the tags using this format:

export AGENT_TAGS="env:dev,team:secops"

4. Install the chart​

Use the following command to install the agent with your configuration:

helm install nullplatform-agent nullplatform/nullplatform-agent \
--set configuration.values.NP_API_KEY=$NP_API_KEY \
--set configuration.values.TAGS="$AGENT_TAGS" \
--set configuration.values.GITHUB_REPO=$GITHUB_REPO
--set configuration.values.GITHUB_REPO=$GITHUB_TOKEN
More configuration options

Verify installation​

Let’s make sure everything is working properly.

Check the agent in the UI

  1. Grab the agent ID from the install logs. It looks like this: "id\":\"123b245d-6e7b-4c56-d78e-12f34b50\"
  2. In the platform UI, go to Platform settings > Agents.
  3. You should see your new agent listed by that ID.

Quick install​

If you just want to install the agent using a script, use our one-line installer:

curl https://cli.nullplatform.com/agent/install.sh | bash

This will download the latest np-agent binary to your local system—usually to ~/.local/bin/np-agent.

Run the agent​

Once installed, you can run the agent directly from the command line:

np-agent -apikey <your_api_key>

You can also check available flags with:

np-agent -help

Want to test locally?​

If you're setting up the agent in a local environment (like Minikube), follow our step-by-step guide:

👉 Test a custom scope locally