Quick Start

This guide walks you through installing Cinch, authenticating, and moving your first clip end-to-end.

1. Install the CLI

   macOS / Linux

   curl -fsSL https://cinchcli.com/install.sh | sh

   This installs the cinch binary to /usr/local/bin.

   Docker (relay only)

   docker run -d -p 8080:8080 -v cinch-data:/data \
     ghcr.io/cinchcli/relay:latest

   Verify the install:

   cinch version

2. Sign in

   cinch auth login

   A browser window opens. Sign in with GitHub or Google.

   Note

   To use a self-hosted relay instead of the hosted service, pass --relay:

   cinch auth login --relay https://your-relay.example.com

3. Push your first clip

   On machine A:

   echo "hello from $(hostname)" | cinch push
   # → ✓ Pushed 28 B

4. Pull it on the other end

   On machine B (also signed in):

   cinch pull
   # → hello from my-server

   Or pipe directly to the clipboard:

   cinch pull | pbcopy   # macOS
   cinch pull | xclip    # Linux (X11)

5. Pair a remote machine (optional)

   To set up cinch on a remote server in one command — SSH in, install, and pair:

   cinch pair user@remotehost

What’s next?

• Install the desktop app to have every push land in your Mac clipboard automatically.
• See the full CLI Reference for all flags.
• Self-host the relay if you want your data on your own server.