# Getting started
Source: https://nordvec.com/docs/guides/getting-started

Create an API key and run your first document search against Nordvec.

This guide takes you from zero to your first search result.

## 1. Create an API key [#1-create-an-api-key]

Sign in and open **Settings > API Keys** in your workspace. For searching, create
a **client** key with the `search:read` scope; it starts with `nv_eu_live_`. The
raw key is shown **once** and never again, so store it somewhere safe. A key
belongs to the workspace, not to the person who created it, and authenticates
as a bearer token.

See [Authentication](/docs/guides/authentication) for key classes, scopes and
the full lifecycle (rotate, revoke, grace windows).

## 2. Search your documents [#2-search-your-documents]

Point any HTTP client at the API base, `https://nordvec.com/api/v1`, and
send your query. Results come back ranked, each carrying the source document it
came from. `query` is required; `limit` (1-50, default 20) is optional.

```bash
curl https://nordvec.com/api/v1/documents/search \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $NORDVEC_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{ "query": "quarterly revenue", "limit": 10 }'
```

<Callout>
Every result references its source document, so you can verify a match rather
than just trust it. That is the whole point of the platform.
</Callout>

An API key sees the documents its workspace shares. Documents a person has
connected but not shared stay visible only to that person, so a search with a
key can return fewer results than the same search in the app.

## 3. Add documents [#3-add-documents]

Documents arrive from the [connectors](/docs/guides/connectors) you connect in
the app, and from files you upload there. To index content from your own
system instead, see [Push documents](/docs/guides/how-to/push-documents).

## 4. Chat with citations [#4-chat-with-citations]

A [conversation](/docs/guides/concepts/conversations) is a chat grounded in your
documents, where every answer is cited. Conversations belong to a signed-in
person, so they run in the Nordvec app and through its session-authenticated
endpoints, not with an API key.

## Next steps [#next-steps]

<Cards>
  <Card title="Documents & search" href="/docs/guides/concepts/documents" />
  <Card title="Errors and rate limits" href="/docs/guides/errors-and-rate-limits" />
  <Card title="API reference" href="/docs/api" />
</Cards>