Bloom setup

Get Bloom running on your computer

A step-by-step guide to running Bloom privately on your own machine — no technical background needed.

Already have a claim code? Great — you'll enter it near the end, so start with Step 1. If you bought Bloom yourself, the code was shown right after checkout and is in your confirmation email. Don't have one yet? Pick a plan — the code arrives on screen and by email the moment checkout finishes.
1

Install Docker

Docker is the free program that runs Bloom — and the Bloom installer in Step 2 will offer to set it up for you: it downloads Docker Desktop, asks for your Mac password to install it, and waits for it to start. (Docker still shows a short first-run welcome screen to click through.) You can skip straight to Step 2 and let it do the work.

Prefer to install Docker yourself first? Download Docker Desktop for Mac (a .dmg file) from docker.com, open it, and drag Docker into your Applications folder.

  • Newer Macs (2020 and later) use Apple Silicon — pick that download.
  • Older Macs use Intel — pick that one instead. If unsure, click the Apple menu → "About This Mac" to check.
Get the Docker Desktop app from docker.com — not brew install docker. The Homebrew version installs only the command-line tool without Docker Compose, which Bloom needs, and the install will stop with a "compose is not a docker command" error.

Open Docker once so it finishes setting up. To confirm it worked, open Terminal (see Step 3) and run:

docker --version && docker compose version

Both lines should print a version number. If the second one errors, Docker Desktop may not be fully started yet (wait for the whale icon to say running), or an older command-line Docker may be getting in the way — see "It says unknown shorthand flag" in Troubleshooting below.

2

Install Bloom

Open Terminal: press ⌘ + Space to open Spotlight, type Terminal, and press Return. Paste this one line and press Return — it downloads Bloom and starts it for you:

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

The first run downloads Bloom and takes several minutes; when it finishes it prints a link to open. Running it again later is safe — it just refreshes Bloom.

Manual setup without the installer

Prefer to do it by hand? Get the Bloom folder from your Bloom host, open Terminal, then run:

cd path/to/bloom/selfhost/family
docker compose up -d
1

Install Docker

Docker is the free program that runs Bloom — and the Bloom installer in Step 2 will offer to set it up for you: it downloads Docker Desktop and runs its installer (Windows asks for permission, and Docker may need a restart to finish setting up WSL 2). You can skip straight to Step 2 and let it do the work.

Prefer to install Docker yourself first? Download the Docker Desktop installer from docker.com, then double-click it and follow the prompts.

  • The installer turns on WSL 2 (a Windows feature Docker needs) for you.
  • You may be asked to restart your PC once — that's normal.

Open Docker Desktop once so it finishes setting up. To confirm it worked, open PowerShell (see Step 3) and run:

docker --version; docker compose version

Both lines should print a version — Docker Desktop includes Compose. If the second line errors, update Docker Desktop to the latest version and restart it.

2

Install Bloom

Open PowerShell: click Start, type PowerShell, and open it. Paste this one line and press Enter — it downloads Bloom and starts it for you:

irm https://bloomtocollege.com/install.ps1 | iex

The first run downloads Bloom and takes several minutes; when it finishes it prints a link to open. Running it again later is safe — it just refreshes Bloom.

Manual setup without the installer

Prefer to do it by hand? Get the Bloom folder from your Bloom host, open PowerShell, then run:

cd path\to\bloom\selfhost\family
docker compose up -d
1

Install Docker

The Bloom installer in Step 2 will offer to install Docker for you using Docker's official install script (it uses sudo, so it asks for your password). You can skip straight to Step 2 and let it do the work.

Prefer to install Docker yourself first? Open your terminal and run Docker's official install script:

curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh

Then let your user run Docker without sudo:

sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

Log out and back in for that to take effect. Now confirm BOTH Docker and Docker Compose are installed — Bloom needs both:

docker --version && docker compose version

Both lines should print a version. If the second says "docker: 'compose' is not a docker command", your install skipped the Compose plugin — add it, then re-check:

sudo apt-get install -y docker-compose-plugin

(On non-Debian systems, see docs.docker.com/compose/install.)

2

Install Bloom

In your terminal, run this one line — it downloads Bloom and starts it for you:

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

The first run downloads Bloom and takes several minutes; when it finishes it prints a link to open. Running it again later is safe — it just refreshes Bloom.

Manual setup without the installer

Prefer to do it by hand? Get the Bloom folder from your Bloom host, then run:

cd path/to/bloom/selfhost/family
docker compose up -d

Finish setup

4

Open the app

In your web browser, go to:

http://my.bloomtocollege.com

You'll see a screen that says "Connect to your Bloom server". Bookmark this address — on this computer it always opens your own Bloom.

If that page doesn't load, another program is using the main address. Try http://localhost:8100 instead — the installer also prints the exact address to use.

5

Connect

For the server address, enter:

https://bloomtocollege.com

Then enter your claim code — from your purchase confirmation (shown after checkout and emailed to you), or the one your Bloom host sent you. Claim codes are single-use and expire, so if it doesn't work, ask for a fresh one.

6

Put Bloom in your Dock / taskbar

After this, Bloom opens from an icon like any app — no address to remember.

  • Safari (macOS Sonoma or newer): with Bloom open, choose File → Add to Dock.
  • Chrome: click ⋮ → Cast, Save and Share → Install Bloom — or use the install icon that appears in the address bar.
  • Edge: click ⋯ → Apps → Install Bloom.
  • Chrome: click the install icon in the address bar.
  • Chrome / Chromium: click the install icon in the address bar.
7

Your first week

Add your student and their grade — Bloom shapes everything around it.

  • Ninth grader? Start with What I'm into, and put the first 20-minute family check-in on the calendar — Bloom preps the agenda.
  • Junior or senior? Fill in the profile, review the college matches, and let the deadlines line up.

Troubleshooting

Docker Desktop isn't running

Bloom needs Docker running in the background. Look for the whale icon — on a Mac it's in the menu bar (top-right), on Windows it's in the system tray (bottom-right near the clock). If you don't see it, open Docker Desktop and wait for it to say it's running, then try again.

It says "unknown shorthand flag: 'd' in -d"

This means the docker command lost its compose part mid-install. Two known causes: Docker's compose plugin was only installed for your user account (common when Docker Desktop was set up without an admin password), or another container tool (Podman, Colima, Rancher Desktop, or nerdctl) has installed a docker that intercepts the command. A tell-tale sign of the second: docker compose version prints something like v5.3.0 — the real Docker Compose is v2.x.

Re-running the Bloom install command usually fixes both on its own — the installer keeps your compose plugin visible and, on a Mac, switches to Docker Desktop's own docker when a foreign one is in the way (leaving your other tool untouched). If it still fails, fix it by hand:

Find which docker is being used:

which -a docker

If the first one is something like /usr/local/bin/docker and you also have Docker Desktop installed, that foreign docker is winning. Make sure Docker Desktop is installed and running, then remove or rename the other one so Docker Desktop's docker is used, and run the install command again.

To confirm it's fixed, run docker compose version — it should print v2.something.

The address doesn't open

Another program on your computer may already be using the same address. Close any other apps that run a local web server, or restart your computer, then run the start command again. The installer prints the exact address to use — copy it from there. If it keeps happening, ask your Bloom host.

How do I update Bloom later?

Bloom updates itself automatically every night — you don't need to do anything. As long as your computer and Docker are running, it quietly pulls the latest version in the background.

If you ever want to update right now, run:

curl -fsSL https://bloomtocollege.com/update.sh | sh
How do I stop Bloom?

From the selfhost/family folder, run:

docker compose down

Your data is kept safely — starting Bloom again brings everything back.

Where does my data live?

Your family's data is stored in a Docker volume on your computer, separate from the Bloom folder. Deleting or moving the Bloom folder does not delete your data.