Quick Start

You can go from zero to seeing your first logged email in about 60 seconds.

Prerequisites

• Docker installed on your server or local machine
• A password for the admin UI

Start SeeSee

Run SeeSee with a single command:

docker run -d \
  --name seesee \
  -p 8080:8080 \
  -p 2525:2525 \
  -e SEESEE_ADMIN_PASSWORD=your-secure-password \
  -v seesee-data:/data \
  ghcr.io/brandonjp/seesee-email:latest

This starts both the HTTP server (port 8080) and the SMTP ingest server (port 2525).

With Docker Compose

Create a docker-compose.yml:

services:
  seesee:
    image: ghcr.io/brandonjp/seesee-email:latest
    container_name: seesee
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
      - "2525:2525"
    volumes:
      - seesee-data:/data
    environment:
      SEESEE_ADMIN_PASSWORD: "your-secure-password"

volumes:
  seesee-data:

docker compose up -d

Log in to the Web UI

Open http://localhost:8080 in your browser.

Log in with:

• Username: admin (default, configurable via SEESEE_ADMIN_USERNAME)
• Password: the value you set for SEESEE_ADMIN_PASSWORD

You’ll see the dashboard with onboarding steps to guide you through setup.

Create an app

Apps represent the services that send email through SeeSee. Each app gets its own API key and SMTP credentials.

1. Navigate to Apps in the sidebar
2. Click Create your first app
3. Enter a name and choose a body storage mode
4. Copy the API key shown — it’s only displayed once

Or create one via the API:

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v1/apps \
  -u admin:your-secure-password \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "My Website"}'

The response includes your API key (ss_...) and SMTP credentials. Save them somewhere safe — you won’t see the key again.

Log your first email

Via REST API

curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v1/log \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ss_your_api_key_here" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "to": ["user@example.com"],
    "from": "app@example.com",
    "subject": "Hello from SeeSee!",
    "body_text": "This is a test email logged via the REST API.",
    "status": "sent",
    "provider": "manual"
  }'

Via SMTP

Point any SMTP client at SeeSee:

• Host: localhost (or your server IP)
• Port: 2525
• Username: the SMTP username from app creation
• Password: the SMTP password from app creation
• TLS: not required (for local/internal use)

Verify it works

Check that your email was logged:

curl http://localhost:8080/api/v1/emails \
  -u admin:your-secure-password

Or open the Emails page in the Web UI to see your logged email with subject, recipients, status, and a preview of the body.

Screenshot coming soon

Brandon, put a screenshot here showing the email list with a few logged emails. If you’re reading this, feel free to remind him — and send a screenshot along if you have one!

Keyboard shortcuts

SeeSee has keyboard shortcuts for navigating the email list without touching your mouse. Press ? anywhere in the app to see them.

Key	Action
/	Focus search
j	Next email
k	Previous email
Enter	Open selected email
Esc	Close / deselect
?	Show shortcuts

Next steps

• Configuration Reference — customize ports, retention, and more
• REST API Reference — full endpoint documentation
• SMTP Ingest Guide — capture emails via SMTP
• Docker Deployment — production setup with reverse proxy
• Integrations — PHP, Python, Node.js code examples