Offline knowledge archive for a Raspberry Pi 5 that serves Wikipedia, maps and survival guides over its own Wi-Fi hotspot, built on Internet-in-a-Box.
517+27 this week53HTMLMITUpdated 7 hours ago
Crosstalk-Solutions/project-nomad
An offline-first knowledge and education server that bundles Wikipedia, courses, maps, tools and optional local AI on hardware you own.
- Stars
- 42,502
- Forks
- 4,356
- Open issues
- 110
- Last commit
- yesterday
What is it?
Project NOMAD is a self-contained server for offline knowledge and education. It runs on a Debian-based machine you own and is accessed through a web browser, so once content is downloaded no internet connection is needed. A management interface called the Command Center installs and updates the bundled tools, which run as Docker containers.
The included modules cover an offline information library built on Kiwix (Wikipedia and other ZIM content), Khan Academy courses through Kolibri with progress tracking, downloadable regional maps via ProtoMaps, CyberChef for data work, and FlatNotes for note-taking. An AI Assistant can use Ollama or any OpenAI-compatible server such as LM Studio, with document upload and semantic search backed by Qdrant.
NOMAD itself needs about 5 GB of disk and under 1 GB of RAM, but the AI Assistant and offline content greatly increase storage and memory needs. The project includes no authentication and is meant for local networks rather than direct internet exposure.
Key features
- 01Offline Wikipedia and ebook library through Kiwix
- 02Khan Academy courses with progress tracking via Kolibri
- 03Downloadable regional offline maps
- 04Optional local AI chat with document upload and semantic search
- 05One-click app catalog and support for custom Docker containers
- 06Opt-in automatic updates for core software and installed apps
Use cases
- Providing reference and education resources in areas without reliable internet
- Setting up a home or classroom learning server for offline study
- Running a private local AI assistant over your own documents
- Keeping a self-hosted offline toolkit for emergency preparedness
Quick start
- 1
Check that you have a Debian-based OS (Ubuntu 26.04 LTS recommended) with at least 5 GB free disk and sudo rights
- 2
Run the Quick Install commands from the README to download and run the install script
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y curl && curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Crosstalk-Solutions/project-nomad/refs/heads/main/install/install_nomad.sh -o install_nomad.sh && sudo bash install_nomad.sh - 3
Open a browser and go to http://localhost:8080 (or http://DEVICE_IP:8080 from another device)
Things to know
- Installs only on Debian-based Linux; Windows users must use the community-supported WSL2 route.
- The AI Assistant pushes the install to roughly 25 GB and needs a large GPU or plenty of RAM.
- It has no built-in authentication, so it should not be exposed directly to the internet.
In collections
Topics
FAQ
- What is project-nomad?
- An offline-first knowledge and education server that bundles Wikipedia, courses, maps, tools and optional local AI on hardware you own. Project NOMAD is a self-contained server for offline knowledge and education. It runs on a Debian-based machine you own and is accessed through a web browser, so once content is downloaded no internet connection is needed. A management interface called the Command Center installs and updates the bundled tools, which run as Docker containers.
- Is project-nomad free to use? What license does it have?
- project-nomad is open source under the Apache-2.0 license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
- Is project-nomad still maintained?
- Actively maintained. The last commit to project-nomad was on Nov 6, 2026.
- What can I use project-nomad for?
- Providing reference and education resources in areas without reliable internet Setting up a home or classroom learning server for offline study Running a private local AI assistant over your own documents Keeping a self-hosted offline toolkit for emergency preparedness
- How do I install project-nomad?
- Check that you have a Debian-based OS (Ubuntu 26.04 LTS recommended) with at least 5 GB free disk and sudo rights Run the Quick Install commands from the README to download and run the install script: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y curl && curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Crosstalk-Solutions/project-nomad/refs/heads/main/install/install_nomad.sh -o install_nomad.sh && sudo bash install_nomad.sh Open a browser and go to http://localhost:8080 (or http://DEVICE_IP:8080 from another device)
- Where can I get project-nomad?
- The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/Crosstalk-Solutions/project-nomad
Summary generated by AI from the project's README. GitHub stats refresh daily.
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