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Choose Your Setup

Not sure which components to install? This guide helps you decide.

The Quick Answer​

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                 What do you want to do?                     │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                           │
         ┌─────────────────┼─────────────────┐
         ▼                 ▼                 ▼
   Just run models    Chat interface    AI Research
   (API/terminal)     with web search   (Perplexity-like)
         │                 │                 │
         ▼                 ▼                 ▼
   ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐  ┌──────────────┐
   │   Ollama    │  │ Open WebUI  │  │  Perplexica  │
   │    only     │  │             │  │  + SearXNG   │
   └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘  └──────────────┘

   setup-ollama.ps1  setup-ollama-     setup-ollama-
                     websearch.ps1     websearch.ps1
                     -Setup OpenWebUI  -Setup Perplexica

Detailed Comparison​

I want to...InstallContainersCommand
Use AI from terminal/scriptsOllama only0setup-ollama.ps1
Chat UI (ready to use)Open WebUI1setup-ollama-websearch.ps1 -Setup OpenWebUI -SingleUser
Chat with a nice UIOpen WebUI1setup-ollama-websearch.ps1 -Setup OpenWebUI
Chat + search the webOpen WebUI1Same as above
Search multiple engines at onceOpen WebUI + SearXNG2Install Perplexica first, then Open WebUI
Get AI research with citationsPerplexica + SearXNG3setup-ollama-websearch.ps1 -Setup Perplexica
Have everythingBoth3setup-ollama-websearch.ps1 -Setup Both
Personal Use Recommendation

Add -SingleUser to skip account creation. Open WebUI will be immediately usable with:

  • No login required
  • Web search pre-enabled
  • All your models pre-selected

Understanding the Components​

Ollama​

What it is: The AI engine that runs models on your GPU.

You need this if: You want to run AI locally. Period. Everything else builds on Ollama.

Terminal ──→ Ollama ──→ GPU ──→ Response

Open WebUI​

What it is: A ChatGPT-like web interface for Ollama.

You need this if: You want a nice UI instead of the terminal.

Browser ──→ Open WebUI ──→ Ollama ──→ Response

Setup options:

  • -SingleUser - No login, ready to use immediately (recommended for personal use)
  • Standard - First user to sign up becomes admin

Pre-configured features:

  • Web search enabled with DuckDuckGo (or SearXNG if available)
  • All installed models pre-selected
  • Persistent sessions (stay logged in across restarts)

Web search: Open WebUI can search the web, but only one search engine at a time (DuckDuckGo OR Google OR Brave - you pick one in settings).

SearXNG​

What it is: A meta-search engine that queries multiple search engines at once.

You need this if: You want comprehensive search results from many sources.

Query ──→ SearXNG ──→ DuckDuckGo ──→┐
                 ──→ Google ───────→├──→ Combined Results
                 ──→ Bing ─────────→┤
                 ──→ Wikipedia ────→┘

Key point: SearXNG runs as a separate container. If you install Perplexica, you get SearXNG automatically.

Perplexica​

What it is: A Perplexity AI clone that provides research-style answers with citations.

You need this if: You want AI to research topics and cite its sources.

Question ──→ Perplexica ──→ SearXNG ──→ Web Results
                   │                        │
                   └───→ Ollama ←───────────┘
                            │
                            ▼
                 Answer with [1][2][3] citations

Requires: SearXNG (installed automatically with Perplexica).

Common Questions​

Can I use both Open WebUI and Perplexica?​

Yes! They share Ollama and can share SearXNG too.

setup-ollama-websearch.ps1 -Setup Both

This gives you:

Can Open WebUI use multiple search engines?​

Only if you also install SearXNG. By default, Open WebUI uses one engine at a time.

To get multi-engine search in Open WebUI:

  1. Install Perplexica (gets you SearXNG)
  2. In Open WebUI settings, change search provider to SearXNG

Which should I start with?​

Start with Open WebUI. It's simpler and covers 90% of use cases. You can always add Perplexica later.

Do I need Docker or Podman?​

Only for the web interfaces (Open WebUI, Perplexica, SearXNG). Ollama runs natively on Windows.

Visual Summary​

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                        WHAT YOU CAN INSTALL                        │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                                                                     │
│  REQUIRED                                                          │
│  ────────                                                          │
│  ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │                         OLLAMA                                │ │
│  │              (runs models on your GPU)                        │ │
│  │                      :11434                                   │ │
│  └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│                               ▲                                    │
│                               │                                    │
│  OPTIONAL WEB UIs             │                                    │
│  ───────────────              │                                    │
│  ┌──────────────────┐    ┌────┴───────────────┐                   │
│  │    Open WebUI    │    │     Perplexica     │                   │
│  │      :3000       │    │       :3002        │                   │
│  │                  │    │                    │                   │
│  │  ChatGPT-like    │    │  Perplexity-like   │                   │
│  │  1 search engine │    │  Research + cites  │                   │
│  └────────┬─────────┘    └─────────┬──────────┘                   │
│           │                        │                               │
│           │         OPTIONAL       │  REQUIRED                     │
│           │         ───────        │  ────────                     │
│           │              ┌─────────▼─────────┐                     │
│           └─────────────►│     SearXNG       │                     │
│             (can use     │      :4000        │                     │
│              if running) │                   │                     │
│                          │  Multi-engine     │                     │
│                          │  meta-search      │                     │
│                          └───────────────────┘                     │
│                                                                     │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Next Steps​