# Run a model on your own machine with Ollama

Install Ollama, pull a model, and NeuralVault finds it at localhost:11434 with no API key and no account.

*https://perpetualtechnologies.co.uk/support/connect-ollama — last checked 2026-09-06*

## Steps

1. Install Ollama from ollama.com and let it finish starting. It runs as a background service and listens on http://localhost:11434.
2. Pull a model. In a terminal, "ollama pull llama3.1" is a reasonable first choice; smaller models answer faster on modest hardware.
3. Open NeuralVault and go to Settings, then AI & extensions, then API keys. Ollama appears under "Providers that run locally" and asks for nothing, because there is no key to give a server on your own machine.
4. Open the model picker in Chat and choose the model you pulled.

## How to tell it worked

Send one message in Chat. If it answers, the whole path is working: nothing left your machine to do it.

## If it does not work

**Ollama is installed but no models are listed.**

Installing Ollama does not download a model. Run "ollama list" in a terminal. If it is empty, pull one.

**The app cannot reach Ollama.**

Open http://localhost:11434 in a browser. If that does not respond, Ollama is not running, and no setting in NeuralVault can fix that. Restart it, then reopen the model picker.

**Answers are extremely slow.**

That is a hardware answer, not a configuration one. A model larger than your available memory will be swapped to disk. Try a smaller variant.

## Still stuck

Bug reports belong in the app, in Settings, About. Those carry no contact details, so they
get fixed rather than answered. To get a reply, email us instead: that route targets two
business days. https://perpetualtechnologies.co.uk/contact