FAQ

What is ShaDo AI?

ShaDo AI is a self-hosted web application that generates interactive HTML prototypes from plain-text descriptions. It's powered by Claude via OpenRouter and designed for product managers, founders, and designers who want to go from idea to working prototype in minutes.

Do I need a coding background to use it?

No. You describe your product in plain English and ShaDo AI handles everything else — page structure, HTML generation, user stories, and ERD diagrams.

Where does AI generation happen?

All AI calls go through OpenRouter using the API key you provide during setup. By default, the system uses Claude (claude-sonnet) but you can change the model from the Settings page.

Is my data stored on Anthropic's servers?

ShaDo AI is self-hosted — your prompts and generated content live entirely on your own server or local machine. API calls are sent to OpenRouter/Anthropic for generation only; no project data is stored on their end.

How many users can I invite?

There is no hard limit on collaborators per project. Each project can have any number of Viewers, Editors, and Admins. The owner account is created during the setup wizard and cannot be changed.

Can I change the AI model?

Yes. Go to Settings → General and update the AI Model field. Any OpenRouter-supported model identifier works (e.g. anthropic/claude-3.5-sonnet, openai/gpt-4o, etc.).

What happens if generation fails mid-way?

Each page is generated independently in parallel. If one page fails, the others complete normally. Failed pages will have no content — you can re-generate the specific page individually.

Can I edit the generated HTML directly?

Not from within the UI — the generator is designed for prompt-driven iteration. To edit HTML directly, export as ZIP and edit the files in your preferred code editor.

How does the public share link work?

From project Settings, toggle "Enable share link" on. This generates a unique URL that anyone can open to view the project read-only — no login required. Disable the toggle to revoke access immediately.

Is there a limit on the number of versions?

No. Versions are unlimited. Every generation (or manual regeneration) creates a new version. You can restore any previous version at any time — restoring creates a new version from the old content, so nothing is ever deleted.

How do I update ShaDo AI after a new release?

Extract the new ZIP, back up your .env files, run install.sh (which runs any new DB migrations), then start.sh to restart the services. Your database and project data are preserved.

Does it work on Windows?

For local development, yes — Node.js, PostgreSQL, and Redis all run on Windows. The install.sh and start.sh scripts require a bash-compatible shell (Git Bash or WSL). For production, a Linux VPS (Ubuntu 22.04) is strongly recommended.

Can I use Docker instead of installing Node.js/PostgreSQL manually?

Yes. Option B in the Local Installation guide covers the Docker path — run docker-setup.sh and it handles everything including the database and Redis containers.

Where can I get support?

Open a support ticket via the ShaDo Apps platform (shadoapps.com/contact) or email support@shadoapps.com. Include your ShaDo Apps license key and a description of the issue.