Overview
WolfStack has a 39-lesson Getting Started course built into the dashboard — not a separate site, not a video playlist, but a calm, one-step-at-a-time tour rendered inside the product next to the thing it is describing.
It exists because a full infrastructure dashboard is genuinely overwhelming on day one, and the usual outcome is that a newcomer bounces back to a bare hypervisor. The course is built to get you a first win instead.
It is free on every tier, including Community.
Written for people who have never run a server
- Lesson one is literally “What even is a server?” — no assumed background.
- Every click-step is grounded in the real UI. No invented button labels that do not exist in the product.
- Progress is tracked with a progress bar and mark-complete, so you can stop and come back.
- Three ways in: a dismissible dashboard banner for first-timers, a sidebar compass button, and a tile in the Apps & Tools drawer.
Follow along without losing your place
- Contextual help. A ? button in the top bar opens the lesson matching whatever page you are on — open it on the Docker view and you get Make a Docker container; open it on Fleet Security and you get Harden the server.
- A follow-along drawer. The lesson sits beside the real interface rather than replacing it, so you are always working in the actual product.
- Ask the AI about this lesson. A button in the drawer opens the AI agent seeded with that lesson’s context. The agent’s knowledge base includes the course index, so “how do I…” questions get answered and pointed at the matching lesson.
The full syllabus
39 lessons, grouped into modules. Levels 2 and 3 pick up once the basics are comfortable.
Start here
For people who have never run a server before. No assumptions.
- What even is a server? (start here)
Getting your bearings
What the thing is, and what you can safely ignore at first.
- What WolfStack is (and the one thing to remember)
- A 2-minute tour of the screen
- The only six things you need at first
Your servers
You already have one. Here is how to add more.
- You already have a server
- Adding another server
Install your first app
The fastest possible first win.
- Install something from the App Store
- Find it and open it
Containers & VMs
The question every newcomer asks, answered plainly.
- Docker, LXC or VM — which one?
- Make a Docker container
- Make an LXC container
Getting a shell
When you do need the command line.
- Open a shell on a server
- Open a shell inside a container
Backups
The lessons people wish they had done first.
- Back something up right now
- Make backups happen automatically
- Restore from a backup
Knowing when something is wrong
Monitoring without building a monitoring stack.
- The Issues page (your morning check)
- Get alerts on your phone
- Put up a status page
Wrapping up level 1
Where everything else lives, and what to do when stuck.
- The map of everything else
- How to get unstuck
- Put your app on a real domain (with HTTPS)
- Your starter checklist
Level 2 — becoming an operator
Past the basics: networking, VMs, storage, automation and AI.
- Welcome to Level 2
- Link your servers with WolfNet
- Run a full virtual machine
- Storage that outgrows one disk
- Automate the boring stuff with WolfFlow
- Your AI co-pilot: WolfAgents
- You’re an operator now
Lock it down — security
Servers get attacked constantly. This is the most important content in the course.
- Lock down your login
- Harden the server
Level 3 — think like a defender
A full security module, from firewalls to incident response.
- Think like a defender
- Control what’s reachable (the firewall)
- Catch malware and intruders on the box
- No default secrets, no stale software
- See attacks coming
- When something gets in
- The defender’s checklist
Where to go next
- Install WolfStack — one command, then the course is waiting on the dashboard.
- Containers — the reference docs behind the Docker and LXC lessons.
- Backups — the reference docs behind the backup module.
- Security — the reference docs behind the hardening modules.
- Support — when the “how to get unstuck” lesson is not enough.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to pay for the Getting Started course?
No. The course ships inside WolfStack on every tier, including the free Community edition.
Do I need Linux experience to follow it?
No. It starts at “what even is a server?” and only introduces a shell in module five, once you have already installed and opened something.
Does the course explain the difference between Docker, LXC and a VM?
Yes — that is its own lesson, because it is the question nearly every newcomer hits first.
Is there security content?
Yes, and a lot of it. Two dedicated hardening lessons plus a seven-lesson “think like a defender” module covering firewalls, intrusion detection, secrets, threat intelligence and what to do when something gets in.