Tidepool
Build and deploy any kind of web app without leaving the command line. Build for autonomous AI agents. Handles auth, Stripe payments, admin panels, email, database, file storage, custom domains, markdown, secrets, and real-time SSE (chat apps/online games) out of the box. Minimalist approach.
Use when: the user wants to create a website, deploy a Python web app, add subscriptions or paywalls, set up user login, or build anything with a URL. Provides the tidepool CLI and tp.* runtime API. Deploys in seconds, scales to 10+ replicas. NOT for: non-web tasks, general Python scripting.
Learn the API
Before building anything, fetch the full API reference:
curl -s https://tidepool.sh/api | python3 -m json.tool
This returns every endpoint, every tp.* runtime tool, and usage examples. Read it first.
Workflow
Zero to live Substack clone in one command:
pip install tidepool && tidepool quickstart
Or build from scratch:
tidepool init my-app && cd my-app
# edit main.py
tidepool dev # local dev server at http://localhost:8000
tidepool register --email you@example.com
tidepool deploy # live at https://my-app.tidepool.sh
Iterate on a live pod:
tidepool pull <hash> # pull pod code + data to work locally
tidepool dev # test changes locally
tidepool push # push code, db, secrets, files back to prod
tidepool push --secret STRIPE_KEY=sk_xxx # override a secret
tidepool push --replace-db # replace all db keys instead of merging
tidepool push --sync # also delete remote files not present locally
tidepool push -y # skip confirmation prompt
Runtime (import tp)
main.py runs once at startup to register routes and configure the app. The server dispatches requests to handlers.
import tp
tp.auth = 'standard' # email/password auth
tp.payments = {'products': [{'id': 'pro', 'name': 'Pro', 'price': 500, 'recurring': 'month'}]}
tp.admin = {'users': ['admin@example.com']}
@tp.route('/')
def home(req):
posts = tp.db.prefix('post:', reverse=True, limit=10)
return render_posts(posts, req.user)
@tp.route('/post/:slug', methods=['GET', 'POST'])
def post(req, slug):
if req.method == 'POST':
tp.db.set(f'post:{slug}', req.body)
return None # 303 redirect
return tp.db.get(f'post:{slug}')
Handler returns: str → HTML, dict → JSON, int → status, None → redirect, tuple → (body, status), generator → SSE.
Request object: req.path, req.method, req.query, req.user, req.body, req.files.
Key tools
| Tool | Usage |
|---|---|
tp.route(path) |
@tp.route('/api/:id', methods=['GET','POST']) |
tp.page(path, html) |
tp.page('/about', '<h1>About</h1>') |
tp.auth |
'standard', 'paywall', or config dict |
tp.payments |
{products: [{id, name, price, recurring}]} |
tp.admin |
{users: ['admin@x.com'], models: {...}} |
tp.db |
.get(k), .set(k,v), .delete(k), .prefix(p), .keys(), .count() |
tp.files |
.read(name), .write(name, data), .list(), .delete(name) |
tp.email() |
tp.email('to@x.com', 'Subject', 'body', html='<p>hi</p>') |
tp.http |
tp.http.get(url), .post(url, json={}) |
tp.secrets |
Read-only dict from tp_data/secrets.json |
tp.state |
Public JSON state, readable at ?format=json |
tp.background() |
@tp.background(seconds=3600) for recurring tasks |
tp.markdown() |
Convert markdown string to HTML |
tp.create_user() |
tp.create_user('email', 'pass', subscriptions={}) |
tp.users() |
Returns all users (password hashes excluded) |
tp.publish() |
tp.publish({'messages': msgs}) — update public JSON state (ETag polling) |
Notes
- Local dev stores data in
tp_data/(db.json, secrets.json, files/). - Secrets go in
tp_data/secrets.json— they are read-only at runtime. - Static files in
static/are served at/static/. - Jinja2 is pre-installed for templating.
tidepool ejectcopies runtime files into your project for full control.