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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://sherlock-osint.vercel.app/docs/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Sherlock is a bring-your-own-key (BYOK) application. It connects directly from your browser to the AI provider of your choice — no Sherlock-managed credentials, no server-side proxying. To run investigations or use the chat feature, you need at least one API key from a supported provider. This page covers how to get a key from each provider and how to add it to Sherlock.

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Adding a key in the UI

Open Settings from the top navigation bar, then select the Runtime tab. Scroll to the Access Credentials section. You’ll see a field for each supported provider: Google Gemini, OpenRouter, OpenAI, and Anthropic. Paste your key into the appropriate field and click Save. Sherlock stores the key locally in your browser — it is never transmitted to Sherlock’s own servers. The field shows a key count when credentials are configured, so you can confirm your key was saved at a glance.
Keys are stored only in your browser’s local storage. This means they don’t roam between devices or browsers. If you switch browsers or clear your storage, you’ll need to re-enter your key. For shared or public deployments, each user adds their own key — there are no server-side credentials to configure.

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Supported providers

Google Gemini is the recommended starting point for most users. It’s free to get started via Google AI Studio, and Gemini models are well-suited for structured research and investigation tasks.Get a Gemini API key:
  1. Go to Google AI Studio.
  2. Sign in with your Google account.
  3. Click Create API key and copy the key that appears.
Add it to Sherlock:
  1. Open Settings → Runtime → Access Credentials.
  2. Paste your key into the Google Gemini API Key field.
  3. Click Save.
Gemini offers a generous free tier through AI Studio that covers typical research workloads. Check the AI Studio quota page if you’re running frequent or large investigation runs.

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Choosing a model

After you add a key, the model selector in run setup and in Settings → Runtime → Runtime Profile shows the models available for that provider. You can switch providers and models each time you launch a run — your saved default is a starting point, not a lock-in. For OpenRouter, click Browse in the model selector to open a searchable catalog with filter options. Sherlock includes a curated list of quick picks alongside the full catalog, and you can also enter a model slug manually if you know the exact identifier.

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Self-hosted configuration via environment variables

If you’re self-hosting Sherlock and want to pre-configure a key for local development, you can set provider keys as environment variables instead of entering them in the UI. This is intended for local development setups only — do not use this approach for a public or shared deployment. Copy .env.example to .env.local in the repo root and set the variables you need: 
cp .env.example .env.local
Then edit .env.local: 
# Google Gemini
VITE_GEMINI_API_KEY=your_gemini_api_key_here

# OpenRouter
VITE_OPENROUTER_API_KEY=your_openrouter_api_key_here

# OpenAI
VITE_OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key_here

# Anthropic
VITE_ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your_anthropic_api_key_here
Restart the dev server after editing .env.local. The keys will be baked into the client build and available without manual entry in the Settings UI.
Environment variable keys are embedded in the built client bundle. For any public or shared deployment — including Vercel — leave provider env vars unset and have each user enter their own key in Settings → Runtime. Setting a shared provider key in a public deployment exposes that key to anyone who inspects the bundle.