First-Time Setup

QikLM is a professional orchestration layer for your local AI infrastructure. It separates the model runtime from the applications that use it, providing a stable, managed environment for high-performance inference.

Quick Start

Run the QikLM binary to start the orchestration service. By default, QikLM listens on port 8192.

./qiklm

.\qiklm.exe    # Windows

The Web UIs

Dashboard Features

• Profiles: Create saved model profiles with per-model runtime settings and CLI flags.
• Library: Browse and manage local GGUF files with automated discovery.
• HF Explorer: Search Hugging Face repositories and download models directly into your library.
• Access Control: Manage API access, LAN binding, and admin authentication.

PromptUI Workspace

PromptUI is a premium coding workspace designed to be useful while you work, not just a place to send messages. The built-in Canvas can open code blocks from a chat, let you edit them inline, preview HTML pages, and send the edited code back into the conversation for another pass.

Managing llama.cpp Builds

In QikLM, a build is the local llama-server program that actually runs a model. You can keep up to five different builds registered simultaneously, allowing you to test newer features or machine-specific optimizations without reconfiguring your clients.

Default vs. Profile Builds

The Default Build is used whenever a profile does not specify a specific engine. You can override this inside individual model profiles, allowing a newer model to use a newer build while keeping your stable models on a daily driver.

How Profiles Work

A profile is a saved configuration for running or reaching a model. Instead of manual terminal flags, you give your setup a name (e.g., fast-chat or vision-large) and let QikLM handle the orchestration.

Model Sources

• Local GGUF: A model file stored in your QikLM library. These profiles can select specific registered builds.
• Remote Server: A llama.cpp endpoint already running elsewhere. These profiles bypass local builds as the model is already being served.

Granular Control & Inheritance

Profiles manage GPU layers, context size, threads, and custom CLI flags. Think of your global Engine Settings as the "house settings." A profile can either borrow these defaults or carry its own specific overrides.

Automated Routing

When a client requests a model profile, QikLM automatically starts or switches the managed engine, builds the precise launch command, waits for readiness, and then forwards your request. For remote profiles, QikLM acts as a transparent proxy to the external endpoint.

Package Installation

QikLM is distributed as professional native packages for macOS, Linux, and Windows to ensure seamless background operation.

New-Service -Name "QikLM" `
            -BinaryPathName "C:\path\to\qiklm.exe" `
            -DisplayName "QikLM Orchestrator" `
            -StartupType Automatic

Paths & Variables

QikLM uses platform-standard directories for configuration and data. You can inspect your specific paths using the command line:

qiklm paths

Default Directory Map

Environment Variables

• QIKLM_HOME Override the custom root for all config, data, and state.
• QIKLM_PROXY_PORT Set the server port (Default: 8192).
• QIKLM_BIND_MODE Set access mode: local_only, lan, or custom.

Remote Access

QikLM is a web application, which means any device that can reach your host can use the full Admin Dashboard and PromptUI. Switch the bind mode to LAN in Engine Settings and you're done.

LAN Mode (Environment Override)

To start QikLM in LAN mode from the command line, listening on all interfaces:

QIKLM_BIND_MODE=lan ./qiklm

Custom Bind (Advanced)

To bind to a specific IP address (e.g., for a dedicated server or multi-homed setup):

QIKLM_BIND_MODE=custom QIKLM_BIND_ADDRESS=192.168.0.10 QIKLM_PROXY_PORT=8192 ./qiklm

Compatibility API

Any client that speaks the OpenAI or Anthropic standard can talk to QikLM through its stable local endpoint. Point the client at your QikLM base URL, authenticate with your QikLM API key, and you are connected.

Example: OpenCode

Add QikLM as a provider in your OpenCode config. The same pattern applies to any OpenAI-compatible tool: set the base URL and your API key, then list the models you want to expose.

{
  "$schema": "https://opencode.ai/config.json",
  "provider": {
    "qiklm": {
      "npm": "@ai-sdk/openai-compatible",
      "name": "QikLM",
      "options": {
        "baseURL": "http://127.0.0.1:8192/v1",
        "apiKey": "sk-qiklm-..."
      },
      "models": {
        "gemma-4-12b-it-Q5_K_L": {
          "name": "Gemma 4 12B Q5"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Prefer not to touch config by hand? The one-click OpenCode integration in the Integrations panel writes this for you automatically.

Agents & CLI Integrations

QikLM provides one-click setup flows that bridge local inference with professional agent and developer tools, handling the base URL, API key, and model profiles for you.

Beyond these, any other OpenAI- or Anthropic-API-compatible app works with QikLM. Just point it at your base URL and API key as shown in the Compatibility API above.

Hardware Tuning

Advanced optimization for modern compute runtimes and GPU offloading.

In Engine Settings, use the Pre-Run Initialization field to source environmental variables (such as Intel OneAPI / SYCL vars) before the engine boots.

source /opt/intel/oneapi/setvars.sh > /dev/null 2>&1 &&

lmtop Observability

QikLM's native lmtop module provides zero-dependency, real-time GPU telemetry. Monitor VRAM, temperature, and power draw directly within the Admin Dashboard or PromptUI side panel.