• A Powerful Community Relay Package for Anyone
  • Getting Ready:
  • Getting started:
  • Setup and Customization:

§A Powerful Community Relay Package for Anyone

You don’t need to know a bunch of command line, or own server hardware, or even be into tech at all to run a powerful, feature-rich relay for your community on Nostr. Pyramid relay’s default settings are calibrated for you to install and go, so you only need to follow the first two steps below. If you would like to personalize your community relay, read on to the end.

§Getting Ready:

• Rent a cheap and reliable VPS from a provider that you trust to host your services. You can rent the smallest available package, in most cases. Pyramid is lightweight and can be host thousands of members on a small VPS. You may opt for a larger package, if you prefer. (Racknerd and Namecheap are popular choices.)
• You will need a domain name for your nostr relay. The VPS you rented may include this. If not you will need to purchase that from a DNS provider. Choose a name that you like or reflects your community’s unique traits.
• Locate the software repository on Github or through another source.

§Getting started:

• Open the simple terminal tool included under the management section within your VPS account. Sign in with the log in credentials provided to you by the hosting provider, likely via email.
• Open the Pyramid repository in a separate browser tab. Copy/paste or type the Easy Install command provided here into your terminal. Hit enter. Your Pyramid instance will automatically install and initiate setup. Once installed, you will be provided with an IP address for your service.
• Copy and paste the IP address provided into another browser tab. This will open your Pyramid setup page. Here you will be prompted to enter your chosen domain name and your Nostr public key, as the relay owner. Upon completing you will be given the IP address for your Pyramid relay.
• Return to your DNS provider’s page and create an A record for your domain name with the IP address provided. You may need to look under the Advanced DNS option, depending of your provider’s page layout. That’s it! Your Pyramid relay will be live on the web. You do not need to set up any other records or certificates. Pyramid will handle all of that for you.

§Setup and Customization:

• Return to your Pyramid’s homepage, refresh, and sign in with your preferred Nostr signer. Once signed in, you can start inviting other members right away, from the invite tree on the landing page. Each invited member can then invite others, too.
• Visit the Settings tab to customize the look and feel of your homepage with a default browsing client, custom colors, fonts, invite limits, a description, and an image for relay icon. When you are writing your description, include any information you’d like, to convey what your community is all about. You can include image links, npub mentions, or Nostr events. This will all be displayed nicely in compatible Nostr clients, so be creative and concise. This will be your Pyramid’s first impression and you might like to make it a good one. Under settings, you can enable custom functionality, as well. If you’re unsure about any of the options, they can be left as is. The default settings provide all of the basic functionality you need to start and run a community relay on Nostr. You can always return and enable these features later, as you learn about them or as you find a need. All settings will save automatically by clicking anywhere on the screen. Keep your Pyramid up to date by periodically checking for a green update button at the bottom of your settings page. Just click to get all of the latest features and fixes.
• Visit the Relay tab to enable and set up any subrelays that you would like to provide for your community. Each subrelay has its own functions, settings, and unique http path, allowing you to provide easy-to-access features for your members and nice browsable feeds for public consumption. The Inbox relay gives your members with a spam-free reply and notification experience in any compatible client. Under ‘configuration’, click on ‘filters’ to set mention limits, ban unwanted pubkeys, and enable the optional proof-of-work requirements for secure NIP-17 DMs. This has been a highly useful subrelay for the members of my Pyramid, and I recommend enabling this one from the start. The other subrelays include options for group curation, automated trending feeds, member-only conversations, and personal note taking. Enable the ones that you like to access their individual settings. You can utilize any, all, or none of these as you wish.
• Visit the Services tab to enable group chats and GRASP. Chat groups can be created by any member of the Pyramid and moderated by both its creator and the relay owner. Each group can have its own privacy settings, including public chats that non-members can join. The included Blossom server comes enabled by default, to provide immediate media file hosting for your members. Set a predetermined storage limit for members based on your VPS storage capacity and your preferences. For more information about GRASP, visit this page.

Your community now has a new home. We’ll look closer at some of the features in another post.