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

# Introduction

[SambaStack](https://sambanova.ai/products/sambastack) is a turnkey AI inference platform delivering industry-leading performance, energy efficiency, and out-of-the-box support for popular open-source models. Available as both cloud (hosted) and on-premises solutions.

With SambaStack, you can:

* **Deploy leading AI models** – Access models from 9+ providers, including Meta, DeepSeek, Mistral AI, and Google, through a unified platform.
* **Reduce latency and inference costs** – Use built-in prompt caching to achieve 90%+ cache hit rates under sustained workloads.
* **Deploy your way** – Run on your infrastructure or use SambaNova's fully managed service.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Who this guide is for" icon="user-gear">
    System administrators managing:

    * Hardware infrastructure
    * Kubernetes clusters
    * Inference services (models, user groups, access control)
  </Card>

  <Card title="Required skills" icon="terminal">
    * Linux system administration
    * Kubernetes operations (`kubectl`, Helm)
    * Log analysis and troubleshooting
    * System credential management
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

<Note>
  See the [SambaStack release notes](/docs/en/release-notes/sambastack) for new features, improvements, bug fixes, and version-specific updates. For inference service features and API usage, see the [Developer Guide](/docs/en/get-started/overview).
</Note>

## Deployment options

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="SambaStack hosted" icon="cloud" href="/docs/en/sambastack/getting-started/hosted">
    A fully managed cloud service from SambaNova. Build and operate high-performance inference services without managing the underlying infrastructure – SambaNova provides and maintains the AI hardware and Kubernetes environment, while you configure and manage your AI services (model selection, user groups, and users).

    <span style={{textDecoration: "underline"}}>Quickstart guide</span>
  </Card>

  <Card title="SambaStack on-prem" icon="server" href="/docs/en/sambastack/getting-started/on-prem">
    Runs in your own data center, giving you full control over the AI infrastructure, Kubernetes environment, and AI services you deploy. You manage everything end-to-end – model selection, user groups, and users – to support your organization’s needs.

    <span style={{textDecoration: "underline"}}>Quickstart guide</span>
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Deployment comparison

| Component                         | Hosted                                                                                                                                               | On-premises                                                                                                                                          |
| :-------------------------------- | :--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | :--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Location**                      | SambaNova data center                                                                                                                                | Customer data center                                                                                                                                 |
| **Infrastructure**                | SambaNova provides and manages                                                                                                                       | Customer manages (post-SambaNova installation)                                                                                                       |
| **Kubernetes**                    | SambaNova installs and manages                                                                                                                       | Customer installs and manages                                                                                                                        |
| **SambaStack software**           | Customer installs and manages                                                                                                                        | Customer installs and manages                                                                                                                        |
| **Authentication options**        | <ul><li>Existing OIDC compliant solution</li><li>Existing LDAP via Keycloak integration</li><li>Local identity management through Keycloak</li></ul> | <ul><li>Existing OIDC compliant solution</li><li>Existing LDAP via Keycloak integration</li><li>Local identity management through Keycloak</li></ul> |
| **DNS/TLS**                       | SambaNova provides and manages                                                                                                                       | Customer provides and manages                                                                                                                        |
| **Ingress**                       | SambaNova provides                                                                                                                                   | Customer provides                                                                                                                                    |
| **Software and model repository** | SambaNova provides image/artifact access                                                                                                             | SambaNova provides via GCP access (customer retrieves)                                                                                               |

See the [on-prem architecture diagram and connection flows](/docs/en/v2.0.2/sambastack/getting-started/on-prem#sambastack-on-prem-architecture) for a full breakdown of how requests, administration, and supporting infrastructure connect.

## Explore key capabilities

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Supported models and bundles" icon="cube" href="/docs/en/sambastack/service-administration/model-deployment/supported-models-and-bundles">
    Browse available models, context lengths, and features.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Deploying model bundles" icon="rocket" href="/docs/en/sambastack/service-administration/model-deployment/deploying-model-bundles">
    Deploy your first model bundle on SambaStack.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Prompt caching" icon="bolt" href="/docs/en/sambastack/service-administration/performance/prompt-caching">
    Cut latency and cost by caching repeated context – hit rates reach 90%+ under sustained traffic.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Authentication" icon="key" href="/docs/en/sambastack/service-administration/platform-admin/authentication">
    Set up OIDC or LDAP authentication for your deployment.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>