Support & FAQ

1. Install Docker Desktop if you haven't already — it's free at docs.docker.com/desktop. Open it and confirm it shows "Docker Desktop is running" before continuing.
2. Unzip the file to a permanent folder on your computer (e.g. C:\FirstBell on Windows or ~/FirstBell on Mac/Linux).
3. Run the launcher from inside the folder: FirstBell.exe on Windows, FirstBell-mac on Mac, or ./firstbell-launcher on Linux.
4. The launcher downloads the container images and AI model automatically — first launch takes 5–20 minutes depending on your internet speed. A progress bar appears in the launcher window. This only happens once.
5. Your browser opens at http://localhost:8501 — complete the 7-step setup wizard. Enter your license key when prompted (it was emailed to you on purchase).

Your license key was emailed to the address you used during checkout, with the subject line "Your FirstBell™ License Key + Getting Started".

If you can't find the email:

• Check your spam/junk folder — automated emails sometimes land there.
• Search your inbox for support@firstbell.trade
• If still missing, email support@firstbell.trade with your order number from your Whop purchase confirmation and we'll resend it within 24 hours.

During the setup wizard (Step 4), you will select your broker. Here's what each one requires:

Charles Schwab: You need an approved Schwab Developer account at developer.schwab.com. Enter your App Key and App Secret in the wizard. FirstBell will walk you through the OAuth token flow.

Alpaca: Create a free paper or live account at alpaca.markets. Copy your API Key and Secret Key from the dashboard. Enter them in the wizard.

Tradier: Create an account at tradier.com and generate a developer access token. Note: Tradier does not support native OCO bracket orders — FirstBell will warn you when a bracket order is placed.

Paper Trading (no real money): Select "Paper" in the broker dropdown during setup. No API keys required — ideal for testing before going live.

The scheduled scan runs automatically at 8:45 AM EST on trading days. A few things to check:

• Is the scheduler running? Check the scheduler status indicator in the Settings panel inside the app. If it shows "Not Running", click Restart Scheduler to start it.
• Was your computer on and awake at 8:45 AM? The scan requires your machine to be running. If your PC was asleep, the scan was skipped for that day — this is normal. You can trigger a manual scan from the Morning Briefing tab inside the app.
• Is today a market holiday? FirstBell automatically skips scans on NYSE holidays.
• API rate limit? If yfinance returns no data, wait 30 minutes and try the manual scan button.

Most startup issues are caused by Docker Desktop not running. Open Docker Desktop and wait until it shows "Docker Desktop is running" (whale icon in your taskbar or menu bar), then run the FirstBell launcher again.

Common issues and quick fixes:

• "Docker not found" / launcher exits immediately — Docker Desktop is not installed or not running. Install it from docs.docker.com/desktop and make sure it shows "Running" before launching FirstBell.
• Browser doesn't open automatically — open your browser manually and go to http://localhost:8501. First launch takes 3–5 minutes while Docker downloads the AI model — this is normal.
• "Port already in use" — another application is using port 8501 or 11434. Email support@firstbell.trade with your OS and we'll send you a one-line fix.
• "Database is locked" — another instance of FirstBell is already running. Close the launcher and try again.
• Container fails to start — open Docker Desktop, go to Containers, find the firstbell or ollama container, click on it, and check the Logs tab. Copy the last 10 lines and email them to support@firstbell.trade.

If none of these apply, email support@firstbell.trade with a screenshot or copy of the error. We'll diagnose it within one business day.

When a new version is available, you will receive an email from support@firstbell.trade with a download link.

To update:

1. Download the new zip file from the link in the email.
2. Unzip it to a new folder (e.g. FirstBell-v1.1).
3. Copy your existing config/ folder from your old FirstBell installation into the new folder — this preserves all your API keys and settings.
4. Your trade journal and history are stored in a Docker volume (firstbell_data) and carry over automatically — no file copy needed.
5. Run the launcher from the new folder (FirstBell.exe on Windows, FirstBell-mac on Mac, ./firstbell-launcher on Linux).

FirstBell subscriptions are billed monthly at $97/month through Whop.

• Cancel: Log into your Whop account and cancel your subscription there, or email support@firstbell.trade. Access continues through the end of your paid period.
• Refund: We offer a 7-day money-back guarantee for new subscribers. See the full Refund Policy.
• Receipt / invoice: Whop emails a receipt on every charge. If you need a formal invoice, email support@firstbell.trade.
• Update payment method: Log into your Whop account to update your payment method.

FirstBell's local AI (Ollama) automatically detects your GPU at launch. GPU mode is optional — the app works in CPU mode out of the box. If you have an NVIDIA GPU and want significantly faster AI responses, follow these steps based on your OS:

Windows (Docker Desktop):

1. Open Docker Desktop → Settings → Resources → GPU.
2. Enable "Enable GPU" and click Apply & Restart.
3. Restart the FirstBell launcher. The terminal will confirm: GPU detected — using high-quality model.

Linux / WSL2:

1. Confirm your NVIDIA driver is installed: open a terminal and run nvidia-smi. You should see your GPU listed with VRAM. If not, install the driver from nvidia.com/drivers.
2. Install the NVIDIA Container Toolkit (required for Docker GPU passthrough):
   curl -fsSL https://nvidia.github.io/libnvidia-container/gpgkey | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-container-toolkit-keyring.gpg
curl -s -L https://nvidia.github.io/libnvidia-container/stable/deb/nvidia-container-toolkit.list | sed 's#deb https://#deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-container-toolkit-keyring.gpg] https://#g' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-container-toolkit.list
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y nvidia-container-toolkit
sudo nvidia-ctk runtime configure --runtime=docker
sudo systemctl restart docker
3. Run the FirstBell launcher again — it detects the toolkit automatically and enables GPU mode.

Mac: Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3) does not support NVIDIA GPU passthrough inside Docker. FirstBell runs in CPU mode on Mac — AI responses are slightly slower but fully functional. Groq cloud fallback is always active as a speed boost.