Getting Started with SmolSwarms 🚀

Let’s get you up and running with SmolSwarms faster than you can say “recursive automation” fr fr!

Quick Start with Docker 🐳

The fastest way to get started is using our Docker setup (based on the amazing LibreChat project):

# Clone with all the quantum sauce
git clone --recursive https://github.com/ultrainstinct0x/smolswarms.git

# Enter the quantum realm
cd smolswarms/apps/chat

# Copy example configs (and edit them if needed)
cp librechat/.env.example .env
cp librechat/docker-compose.override.yml.example docker-compose.override.yml

# Let it cook
docker compose -f librechat/docker-compose.yml -f docker-compose.override.yml up

Manual Installation 💿

If you prefer to run things manually (you brave soul):

# Install from PyPI (the blessed way)
pip install smolswarms

# Or if you're feeling spicy, install from source
git clone https://github.com/ultrainstinct0x/smolswarms.git
cd smolswarms
pip install -e .

Your First Swarm 🐝

Let’s create a simple swarm that actually does something useful (unlike my first Discord bot):

from smolswarms import SwarmFactory, Agent
from smolswarms.core import SwarmConfig

# Initialize the factory with your OpenAI API key
factory = SwarmFactory(api_key="sk-...")  # Don't leak this like your Discord token

# Configure your swarm (more organized than your Chrome tabs)
config = SwarmConfig(
    swarm_size=3,  # Start small, we ain't trying to bankrupt ourselves
    agent_type="researcher",  # These agents do be researching
    communication_style="professional"  # Keep it clean in the DMs
)

# Spawn your first swarm (it's alive!)
swarm = factory.create_swarm(config)

# Give them a task (more meaningful than your average group project)
results = swarm.execute_task(
    "Research the latest developments in AI safety",
    max_tokens=1000
)

# See what they cooked up
print(results.summary)

Advanced Features 🔥

Agent Specialization

Make your agents more specialized than your Spotify playlists:

from smolswarms.agents import SpecializedAgent

# Create a specialized agent (built different fr fr)
agent = SpecializedAgent(
    role="data_analyst",
    skills=["python", "pandas", "vibing"],
    personality_traits=["detail_oriented", "caffeinated"]
)

# Let it analyze some data
insights = agent.analyze_dataset("stonks.csv")

Swarm Communication

Set up communication channels smoother than your Discord server:

from smolswarms.core import SwarmNetwork

# Create a network (more connected than your LinkedIn)
network = SwarmNetwork()

# Add some agents to the mix
network.add_agent(agent1, role="coordinator")
network.add_agent(agent2, role="worker")

# Let them chat
network.enable_communication()

Token Management

Keep those API costs lower than your motivation on Monday mornings:

from smolswarms.utils import TokenManager

# Set up token management (because we ain't made of money)
manager = TokenManager(
    budget_limit=100,  # Tokens, not dollars (we responsible fr fr)
    optimization_level="aggressive"
)

# Apply it to your swarm
swarm.set_token_manager(manager)

Best Practices 💡

  1. Start Small: Don’t spawn 100 agents on day one (trust the process)
  2. Monitor Token Usage: Keep an eye on those API calls like they’re your Discord notifications
  3. Use Specialized Agents: Each agent should be more focused than a speedrunner
  4. Handle Errors Gracefully: Because things will break (they always do)
  5. Test in Sandbox: We ain’t trying to recreate Skynet fr fr

Common Issues 🔧

My agents aren’t communicating 

# Make sure you've enabled communication
swarm.enable_communication()

# Check if they're in the same network
print(swarm.network.status)

Token usage is too high 

# Implement token optimization
from smolswarms.utils import optimize_tokens

optimize_tokens(swarm, level="aggressive")

Agents are acting sus 

# Enable safety checks
swarm.enable_safety_protocols()

# Monitor agent behavior
swarm.set_monitoring_level("paranoid")

Next Steps 🎯

Now that you’re up and running:

  1. Check out our Examples for more inspiration
  2. Read the API Reference for the deep lore
  3. Join our Discord to vibe with other developers
  4. Consider Contributing to make SmolSwarms even more based

Remember: With great power comes great responsibility… and with SmolSwarms, you’ve got more power than a Discord mod during a raid! 💪