> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.amulet.so/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> Mount a volume and verify persistent storage in a few minutes.

This guide takes the shortest path to a durable file: install the CLI, mount a
volume, write a file, and verify that it survives an unmount.

## Before you begin

You need an Amulet account and a Linux environment with FUSE. See
[Mount on Linux](/mount-linux) for platform and mount requirements. Keep two
terminals open: one for the mount process and one for file operations.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Install the CLI">
    ```bash theme={null}
    curl -fsSL https://amulet.so/install.sh | sh
    ```

    If the installer prints a `PATH` command, run it before continuing.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Export your API key">
    Create a key in the [API Keys tab](https://app.amulet.so/?tab=api-keys). Copy
    the secret when it appears, then export it:

    ```bash theme={null}
    export AMULET_API_KEY=amulet_...
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Mount the volume">
    Run this in the first terminal and keep it running:

    ```bash theme={null}
    amulet mount demo ./demo
    ```

    The command creates the volume and local mount directory if they do not exist.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Write a file">
    In another terminal:

    ```bash theme={null}
    echo "hello from amulet" > ./demo/hello.txt
    cat ./demo/hello.txt
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Unmount and remount">
    ```bash theme={null}
    amulet unmount ./demo
    ```

    Start the same mount command again in the first terminal:

    ```bash theme={null}
    amulet mount demo ./demo
    ```

    Then confirm from the second terminal that the file persisted:

    ```bash theme={null}
    cat ./demo/hello.txt
    ```

    When you are finished, unmount once more:

    ```bash theme={null}
    amulet unmount ./demo
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Manage volumes" href="/manage-volumes">
    List, remount, and delete volumes.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Work with branches" href="/branches">
    Give a job an isolated writable filesystem.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Save a snapshot" href="/snapshots">
    Preserve and mount an immutable version.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>