Run sophia with nothing after it to start and open the setup page. sophia <command> --help explains any command in full.
Running
| Command | What it does |
|---|
sophia | Start with data beside the program and open the browser. |
sophia serve | Run the server only. The admin is at /admin. |
sophia demo | Create a demo site with pages, articles, menus and modules. |
sophia backup / restore | Back up everything, or unpack a backup into an empty folder. |
Sites and people
| Command | What it does |
|---|
site-create <slug> <name> <template> | Create a site, with --hosts and --ext. |
site-set <slug> | Change its domain names (--hosts) or public address (--public-url). |
publish <site> | Publish a site. |
routes <site> | List every public address of a site. |
user-create <email> <name> | Create a person. --super makes them a super user. |
grant <email> <site> <group> | Put a person in one of a site's groups. |
import <file or folder> | Import WordPress, Joomla or Markdown. |
import-stack2 <folder> | Import a Sophia Stack 2 site. |
Building
| Command | What it does |
|---|
new app|block|component|template <name> | Scaffold a working extension. |
check <folder> | Validate an extension. --json for agents. |
build [folders] | Build extensions into their dist folders. |
schema | Print the JSON Schema for extension.json. |
docs | Print the full reference. |
mcp | Run the MCP server for AI agents. |
keygen, pack, trust, install | Make keys, sign packages, trust a publisher, install a package. |
Servers
| Command | What it does |
|---|
server-install | On a Linux server, as root: install as a service. |
update --latest | Update to the newest signed release. |
update <file> | Update from a program or bundle file. |
deploy <user@host> | Install or update a server over ssh. |
bundle | Pack the Linux program with the built extensions. |
release --key <key> | Write a signed download folder. |
ping <url> | Check that a server answers. |
Options for every command
| Option | What it does |
|---|
--root <folder> | The folder holding data and extensions. |
--data <folder> | The data folder (database, sites, installed packages). |
--bind <host:port> | The address to serve on, such as 127.0.0.1:8806. |
Settings can also come from the environment: SOPHIA_DATA, SOPHIA_BIND, SOPHIA_SECURE_COOKIES=1 behind HTTPS, SOPHIA_AI_URL and SOPHIA_AI_MODEL for a local model.