---
source_url: "https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/quickstart?utm_source=openai"
title: "Quick-Start | Simple Auth"
mirrored_at: 2026-08-17T15:03:10.274Z
host: simple-auth.zdyn.net
cited_in_42a: true
mirror_canonical: "https://index.42a.ai/simple-auth.zdyn.net/quickstart__q__utm_source_openai"
---

> **Original source:** https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/quickstart?utm_source=openai

-   [Stand-Alone Authentication Portal](#stand-alone-authentication-portal)
    -   [Docker](#docker)
    -   [Binary](#binary)
-   [Accessing Your New Server](#accessing-your-new-server)
    -   [TLS](#tls)
-   [Simple Gateway](#simple-gateway)
-   [Next Steps](#next-steps)

## [#](#stand-alone-authentication-portal) Stand-Alone Authentication Portal

The easiest way to get started is to run _simple-auth_ as a stand-alone portal, accessed by API, to manage users.

By default, _simple-auth_ will run without any configuration. However, if you want the user to be able to login via cookie, you must set: `web.login.cookie.jwt.signingkey` This key must be unique, cryptographically secure, and very secret, to guarantee a user's session can't be hijacked.

Once the application is started, it will create a local sqlite3 `simpleauth.db` file to store the users. You can optionally change this to a different database. See [database providers](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/database)

_simple-auth_ uses minimal memory, and a default boot of a new server **uses under 64 MB of ram**.

TIP

A simple way to generate a secure password is with `openssl rand -base64 14`

DANGER!

The `signingkey` must be kept secret at all times. This is how a user can login, and _simple-auth_ knows who they are. If you need to share the key to validate the JWT, I recommend using public-private [key pair strategy](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/config#signing-key-pair) (RS256, RS512)

### [#](#docker) Docker

WARNING

By default, simple-auth in docker will put your database in `/var/lib/simple-auth`. Make sure to create a volume so you don't lose your data on container restart!

Or, if you prefer _docker-compose_...

### [#](#binary) Binary

Download the binary from the [releases page](https://github.com/zix99/simple-auth/releases), and run with:

All environment variables can be replaced with CLI counterparts. For more information see [Config](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/config)

## [#](#accessing-your-new-server) Accessing Your New Server

Once _simple-auth_ is running, navigate to `http://localhost:9002` (default port for binary) or `http://localhost:80` (default port for docker), and you'll see the home page, where you can either login or create an account.

![Simple-auth](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/assets/img/simpleauth.df5b2079.png)

### [#](#tls) TLS

WARNING

If _simple-auth_ is exposed to the public internet, you should use TLS encryption. If you use a proxy, it might provide TLS for you. If not, _simple-auth_ has the ability to issue a valid certificate via [Let's Encrypt (opens new window)](https://letsencrypt.org/)

To enable, simply set `web.tls.enabled` to `true` (via `--web-tls-enabled` or other config).

For more information, see [TLS Cookbook](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/cookbooks/tls)

## [#](#simple-gateway) Simple Gateway

After running it stand-alone, the simplest way to start using authentication is the [Gateway](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/access/gateway) functionality. This proxies request to a downstream HTTP service through _simple-auth_ when the user is authenticated. To use this functionality you need 3 new environment variables:

For example:

Read more in the [Gateway](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/access/gateway) docs

## [#](#next-steps) Next Steps

Check out [more config options](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/config), [customize the UI](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/customization), or check out some [cookbooks](https://simple-auth.zdyn.net/cookbooks/)

You can also check out the [examples in the repository](https://github.com/zix99/simple-auth/tree/master/docs/examples)