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+# Local Network Dashboard
+
+A beautiful, self-hosted dashboard to organize and access all your local network services.
+
+This project consists of two parts:
+1.  **Frontend:** A React-based dashboard that runs in your browser.
+2.  **Backend:** A Node.js server that you run locally to perform network scans.
+
+---
+
+## Running the Application
+
+### 1. Prerequisites
+
+Before you start, you need to have **Nmap** installed on the computer where you will run the backend server. Nmap is a powerful network scanning tool that the backend uses to discover services.
+
+-   **macOS (using Homebrew):**
+    ```bash
+    brew install nmap
+    ```
+-   **Debian/Ubuntu:**
+    ```bash
+    sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install nmap
+    ```
+-   **Windows:**
+    Download the installer from the [official Nmap website](https://nmap.org/download.html).
+
+You also need [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/) installed to run the backend server.
+
+### 2. Running the Backend Server
+
+The backend server is responsible for scanning your network and finding services.
+
+1.  **Navigate to the `server` directory:**
+    ```bash
+    cd server
+    ```
+
+2.  **Install dependencies:**
+    ```bash
+    npm install
+    ```
+
+3.  **Start the server:**
+    ```bash
+    node server.js
+    ```
+
+The server will start and listen on port 3001. You should see a message `Backend server running on http://localhost:3001`. Keep this terminal window open.
+
+### 3. Running the Frontend
+
+The frontend is the visual dashboard you interact with. Simply open the `index.html` file in your web browser.
+
+-   Once the dashboard is open, click the "Scan Network" button.
+-   Enter your network range (e.g., `192.168.1.0/24`).
+-   Click "Start Scan".
+
+The frontend will contact your running backend server, which will perform the nmap scan and return the discovered services to be automatically added to your dashboard.