How to: Getting Started
If you prefer to use a cloud-hosted Kong, you can [sign up for a free trial of Kong Konnect](https://konghq.com/products/kong-konnect/register?utm_medium=Referral&utm_source=Github&utm_campaign=kong-gateway&utm_content=konnect-promo-in-gateway&utm_term=get-started) and get started in minutes. If not, you can follow the instructions below to get started with Kong on your own infrastructure.

Let’s test drive Kong by adding authentication to an API in under 5 minutes.

We suggest using the docker-compose distribution via the instructions below, but there is also a [docker installation](https://docs.konghq.com/gateway/latest/install/docker/#install-kong-gateway-in-db-less-mode) procedure if you’d prefer to run the Kong Gateway in DB-less mode.

Whether you’re running in the cloud, on bare metal, or using containers, you can find every supported distribution on our [official installation](https://konghq.com/install/#kong-community) page.

1) To start, clone the Docker repository and navigate to the compose folder.
```cmd
  $ git clone https://github.com/Kong/docker-kong
  $ cd docker-kong/compose/
```

2) Start the Gateway stack using:
```cmd
  $ KONG_DATABASE=postgres docker-compose --profile database up
```

The Gateway is now available on the following ports on localhost:

- `:8000` - send traffic to your service via Kong
- `:8001` - configure Kong using Admin API or via [decK](https://github.com/kong/deck)
- `:8002` - access Kong's management Web UI ([Kong Manager](https://github.com/Kong/kong-manager)) on [localhost:8002](http://localhost:8002)

Next, follow the [quick start guide](https://docs.konghq.com/gateway-oss/latest/getting-started/configuring-a-service/
) to tour the Gateway features.