> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.phanomcloud.online/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Start Bot

> Starts a bot by creating and launching its Docker container. Returns immediately — startup happens in the background.

## Body

<ParamField body="bot_id" type="string" required>
  UUID of the bot to start.
</ParamField>

<Info>
  The response is returned **immediately** with `status: "starting"`. Track the real status via `GET /bots/:id` or stream logs with `GET /bots/:id/logs/stream`.
</Info>

## Process

1. Validates ownership
2. Creates a Docker container (`bot_<id>`) with `--memory` and `--cpus` limits
3. Starts the container
4. Begins async log capture
5. Updates status to `"online"` once running

<RequestExample>
  ```bash cURL theme={null}
  curl -X POST https://api.phanomcloud.online/bots/start \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer sess_..." \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d '{ "bot_id": "3fa85f64-5717-4562-b3fc-2c963f66afa6" }'
  ```

  ```js JavaScript theme={null}
  const res = await fetch("https://api.phanomcloud.online/bots/start", {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      Authorization: "Bearer sess_...",
      "Content-Type": "application/json"
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({ bot_id: "3fa85f64-5717-4562-b3fc-2c963f66afa6" })
  });
  ```
</RequestExample>

<ResponseExample>
  ```json 200 theme={null}
  {
    "success": true,
    "message": "Bot \"my-discord-bot\" is starting",
    "data": { "status": "starting" }
  }
  ```

  ```json 409 theme={null}
  {
    "success": false,
    "error": "Bot is already online"
  }
  ```
</ResponseExample>