Installation

Prerequisites

• LM Studio (or any OpenAI-compatible API server) — Download LM Studio
• A downloaded model (see Model Setup for recommendations)

For building from source:

• .NET 10 SDK
• Git

Download a Release

Download the latest release for your platform from GitHub Releases:

Platform	File
Windows x64	openorca-win-x64.zip
Linux x64	openorca-linux-x64.tar.gz
macOS x64	openorca-osx-x64.tar.gz
macOS Apple Silicon	openorca-osx-arm64.tar.gz

Windows

1. Download openorca-win-x64.zip
2. Extract to a directory (e.g., C:\Tools\openorca\)
3. Add the directory to your PATH:
   • Open Settings > System > About > Advanced system settings > Environment Variables
   • Edit Path under User variables and add the directory
4. Open a new terminal and run openorca

Linux

# Download and extract
curl -LO https://github.com/Open-Orca-AI/openorca/releases/latest/download/openorca-linux-x64.tar.gz
tar xzf openorca-linux-x64.tar.gz

# Move to PATH
sudo mv openorca /usr/local/bin/
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/openorca

macOS

# Intel Mac
curl -LO https://github.com/Open-Orca-AI/openorca/releases/latest/download/openorca-osx-x64.tar.gz
tar xzf openorca-osx-x64.tar.gz

# Apple Silicon
curl -LO https://github.com/Open-Orca-AI/openorca/releases/latest/download/openorca-osx-arm64.tar.gz
tar xzf openorca-osx-arm64.tar.gz

# Move to PATH
sudo mv openorca /usr/local/bin/
chmod +x /usr/local/bin/openorca

Build from Source

git clone https://github.com/Open-Orca-AI/openorca.git
cd openorca
dotnet build
dotnet run --project src/OpenOrca.Cli

To publish a self-contained executable:

# Windows
dotnet publish src/OpenOrca.Cli -c Release -r win-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

# Linux
dotnet publish src/OpenOrca.Cli -c Release -r linux-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

# macOS Intel
dotnet publish src/OpenOrca.Cli -c Release -r osx-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

# macOS Apple Silicon
dotnet publish src/OpenOrca.Cli -c Release -r osx-arm64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

Output lands in src/OpenOrca.Cli/bin/Release/net10.0/<rid>/publish/.

Set Up LM Studio

1. Download and install LM Studio
2. Download a model — see Model Setup for recommendations
3. Go to the Local Server tab and click Start Server
   • Default URL: http://localhost:1234/v1
4. The server should show "Server started" in the logs

Verify Installation

Run OpenOrca and use the built-in diagnostic command:

openorca
> /doctor

The /doctor command checks:

• LM Studio connection and loaded models
• Configuration file
• Log directory access
• Session storage
• Prompt templates
• Project instructions (ORCA.md)
• Native tool calling setting

If all checks pass, you're ready to go. Head to Quick Start for your first session.