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

# Quickstart

This quickstart is the fastest way to get a locally running version of Springtail up for testing. It uses the **local cluster**, a full multi-node Springtail deployment running under Docker Compose. For an explanation of what each step does, the cluster's internals, and the full set of management commands, see [Local Cluster Deployment](/local-cluster-deployment).

## Prerequisites

* Docker and Docker Compose
* Python 3
* AWS CLI

## Launch the cluster

Run all commands from the `local-cluster/` directory:

```shell theme={null}
cd local-cluster
```

Build a package and start the cluster. The first `./cluster up` builds any missing images, so it may take a few minutes:

```shell theme={null}
./cluster build-package /tmp/springtail-packages
./cluster up /tmp/springtail-packages/springtail-<date>-<gitsha>.tar.gz
```

Check that the cluster is up:

```shell theme={null}
./cluster status
```

Connect to the proxy with any PostgreSQL client:

```shell theme={null}
psql -h localhost -p 55432 -U postgres
```

## Tear down

```shell theme={null}
# Stop the Springtail services, keeping the primary DB and dependencies
./cluster down

# Stop everything and remove all data volumes
./cluster down all
```