​
Installation Guide

This guide provides instructions for installing TextLayer Core and setting up all necessary prerequisites before proceeding to the Quickstart section.

​
System Requirements

​
Hardware Requirements

  • Processor: Multi-core processor (2+ cores recommended)
  • RAM: Minimum 8GB (16GB recommended for development)
  • Disk Space: At least 5GB of free disk space

​
Software Requirements

  • Operating System: Windows 10 or later
  • Python: Version 3.12 or later
  • Docker Desktop: Required for running OpenSearch
  • PowerShell: Version 5.1 or later (included with Windows 10+)
  • Terminal: Windows Terminal (recommended)

​
Downloading TextLayer Core

You can download the latest version of TextLayer Core using the following command: 
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://textlayer-core-latest.s3.amazonaws.com/textlayer-core-1.0.0.tar.gz" -OutFile "textlayer-core-1.0.0.tar.gz"
This will download the TextLayer Core package to your current directory. You’ll use this package in the installation steps below.

​
Installation Methods

​
Installing Python

The recommended way to install Python is through the Microsoft Store:
  1. Open Microsoft Store
  2. Search for “Python 3.12”
  3. Click “Get” to install it

​
Installing uv Package Manager

TextLayer Core uses the uv package manager for fast dependency management:
powershell -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

​
Option 2: Conda

​
Installing Miniconda

Alternatively, you can use conda for Python environment management:
  1. Download Miniconda from docs.conda.io/en/latest/miniconda.html
  2. Run the installer and follow the setup wizard
  3. Restart your command prompt
  4. Verify installation:
conda --version
  1. (Optional) Update conda:
conda update conda

​
Installing Docker Desktop

Download and install Docker Desktop from the official website.
OpenSearch is required for vector search capabilities in TextLayer Core. Using Docker is the recommended way to run OpenSearch locally.

​
Verification

To verify that your environment is set up correctly:

​
For Python + uv setup:

# Verify Python installation
python --version  # Should show Python 3.12.x

# Verify uv installation
uv --version

# Verify Docker installation
docker --version
docker-compose --version

​
For Conda setup:

# Verify conda installation
conda --version

# Verify Docker installation
docker --version
docker-compose --version

​
Cursor MCP Integration (Optional)

If you’re using Cursor IDE, you can integrate TextLayer with the Model Context Protocol (MCP) for enhanced AI assistance directly in your editor.

​
Installing MCP for Cursor

npx mint-mcp add textlayer

​
Configuring Cursor Settings

After installation, add the following configuration to your Cursor settings: 
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "textlayer": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["{path_given}/.mcp/textlayer/src/index.js"]
    }
  }
}
Replace {path_given} with the actual path provided by the installation command. This path will be displayed in your terminal after running the npx mint-mcp add textlayer command.
The MCP integration allows Cursor to understand your TextLayer project structure and provide more contextual AI assistance when working with your codebase.
Once all prerequisites and optional integrations are installed and verified, proceed to the Quickstart Guide to set up your TextLayer Core development environment.