Guide
Guides and reference for trading with VolNinja.
Getting Started
- IntroductionWhat VolNinja is, who it is for, and how the guide is organized.
- How VolNinja WorksYour trading data and IBKR connection stay on your machine; the cloud only handles login, billing, and a secure link.
- Installing & Starting VolNinjaGet VolNinja running on your machine and confirm it is up.
- Connecting IBKRSet up IBKR Gateway or TWS, choose paper or live, and confirm the connection.
- Your First RunA guided tour of the main screens and what to do first.
Common Workflows
- Placing a TradeThe three ways a trade reaches your Dashboard: run a template, record a manual position, or let a strategy open one.
- Building a TemplateCreate a reusable trade blueprint end to end: legs, entry execution, and where management comes from.
- Automating Exits & ManagementHave VolNinja manage or close a position for you — app-side rules versus broker-side standing orders.
- Running a StrategyLet a strategy watch the market and open or close across templates on its own.
- Checking Risk Before You CommitJudge a position or your whole portfolio using the Risk Lab verdict, cones, and what-if scenarios.
- Reviewing Your ResultsSee how a day or period went and drill into any day's trades.
- Paper vs Live — Trading SafelySwitch between paper and live deliberately, and never fire real money by accident.
Positions
- Positions OverviewThe dashboard: table vs cards, the summary bar, filtering, and reading a position at a glance.
- Position DetailsThe details sheet: legs, per-leg Greeks, editing a leg, probabilities, and conditions.
- Opening & Closing PositionsAdd a position, and close, split, expire, or bulk-close existing ones.
- Rolling a LegRoll a single leg to a new strike — by hand from the Roll Leg dialog or automatically as a management rule.
- Automating a PositionAttach rules to a single position and read execution counts.
Market View
- Options ChainRead the live SPX 0DTE quote grid, the subscription status column, and where the 100-line budget is shown.
- IntradayThe intraday chart: what it shows and how to use it.
- Market Data & SubscriptionsHow VolNinja snapshots and streams quotes within your IBKR data-line budget, the settings that tune coverage, and extending the 100-line limit.
Automation Basics
Templates
- Templates OverviewWhat a template is, the template list, favorites, and how templates feed strategies.
- Template LegsDefine a template's legs — strikes, rights, ratios, and selection.
- Entry ExecutionHow a template works its order into the market: anchor price, the attempt loop, retries, and timeouts.
- Management RulesApp-side rules that manage an open position — take profit, close a percentage, close or roll a leg — gated by conditions.
- Standing OrdersBroker-side stop/limit orders submitted to IBKR at entry, so protection holds even if the app is down — and their nuances.
Strategies
- Strategies OverviewWhat a strategy is, how it orchestrates templates, and its runtime status.
- Strategy RulesStrategy-level rules and conditions.
- Strategy VariablesVariables, global variables, and aggregate definitions.
- Actions & RuntimeThe actions editor, runtime info, event log, and starting or stopping a strategy.
Risk Lab
Remote Access & Account
- Account & BillingCreate an account, choose a plan, and manage your subscription.
- Pairing a DevicePair this machine for remote access and understand what pairing grants.
- Remote AccessLog in to your trading app from anywhere while your connection stays private.
- Managing Your AccountView and revoke paired devices from the account panel.