> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://sequinstream.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Get started with Redpanda
> Learn how to setup Postgres change data capture (CDC) to a Redpanda cluster in under 10 minutes. Setup a robust pipeline with backfills, inserts, updates, and deletes.
In this quickstart, you'll create a real-time data pipeline that streams changes from a Postgres database to a Redpanda cluster. You'll:
* Sign up for a Redpanda account
* Create a Redpanda cluster and topic
* Boot Sequin
* Create a sink to stream changes to Redpanda
* See changes flow from a sample database to Redpanda in real-time
By the end, you'll have hands-on experience setting up Postgres change data capture (CDC) with Sequin. This same pattern can be used to setup your own Postgres CDC pipeline with Redpanda.
This is the quickstart for streaming Postgres to Redpanda. See the [how-to guide](/how-to/stream-postgres-to-kafka) for an explanation of how to use the Kafka sink or the [reference](/reference/sinks/kafka) for details on all configuration options.
First, let's get your Redpanda cluster ready:
Sign up for or sign in to your [Redpanda account](https://cloud.redpanda.com).
Redpanda provides a generous free tier.
Once your cluster is ready, create a new topic called `products`. A single partition is fine.
1. Navigate to "Security" and click "Create User".
2. Enter `sequin` as the username.
3. Copy the auto-generated password. You'll need this in a moment.
4. For SASL Mechanism, select `SCRAM-SHA-256`.
5. Click "Create".
Now, create an ACL for the Sequin user to allow it to publish to the `products` topic:
1. Navigate to "Security" and to the "ACLs" tab.
2. Click "Create ACL".
3. For "User / Principal", enter `sequin`.
4. For "Host", enter `*`. This will let `sequin` connect from any host.
5. In the "Topics" section, under "Operations", toggle "All" to "Allow".
6. You can leave the rest of the ACL sections set to their defaults ("Not set").
7. Click "Ok".
You've created a Redpanda cluster, topic, and user.
The easiest way to get started with Sequin is with our [Docker Compose file](https://github.com/sequinstream/sequin/blob/main/docker/docker-compose.yaml). This file starts a Postgres database, Redis instance, and Sequin server.
1. Download [sequin-docker-compose.zip](https://github.com/sequinstream/sequin/releases/latest/download/sequin-docker-compose.zip).
2. Unzip the file.
3. Navigate to the unzipped directory and start the services:
```bash theme={null}
cd sequin-docker-compose && docker compose up -d
```
```bash theme={null}
curl -L https://github.com/sequinstream/sequin/releases/latest/download/sequin-docker-compose.zip -o sequin-docker-compose.zip \
&& unzip sequin-docker-compose.zip && rm sequin-docker-compose.zip
cd sequin-docker-compose && docker compose up -d
```
```bash theme={null}
git clone git@github.com:sequinstream/sequin.git
cd sequin/docker
docker compose up -d
```
Check that Sequin is running using `docker ps`:
```bash theme={null}
docker ps
```
You should see output like the following:
```
CONTAINER ID IMAGE COMMAND CREATED STATUS PORTS NAMES
bd5c458cabde sequin/sequin:latest "/scripts/start_comm…" 11 seconds ago Up 9 seconds 4000/tcp, 0.0.0.0:7376->7376/tcp sequin-sequin-1
3bacd89765e7 grafana/grafana "/run.sh" 11 seconds ago Up 11 seconds 0.0.0.0:3000->3000/tcp sequin-sequin_grafana-1
3ad41319a66c postgres:16 "docker-entrypoint.s…" 11 seconds ago Up 11 seconds (healthy) 0.0.0.0:7377->5432/tcp sequin-sequin_postgres-1
6139a5fc4e80 redis:7 "docker-entrypoint.s…" 11 seconds ago Up 11 seconds 0.0.0.0:7378->6379/tcp sequin-sequin_redis-1
7e07a5b052de prom/prometheus "/bin/prometheus --c…" 11 seconds ago Up 11 seconds 0.0.0.0:9090->9090/tcp sequin-sequin_prometheus-1
```
Sequin, Postgres, Redis, Prometheus, and Grafana should be up and running (status: `Up`).
The Docker Compose file automatically configures Sequin with an admin user and a playground database.
Let's log in to the Sequin web console:
After starting the Docker Compose services, open the Sequin web console at [http://localhost:7376](http://localhost:7376):
Use the following default credentials to login:
* Email:
```
admin@sequinstream.com
```
* Password:
```
sequinpassword!
```
To get you started quickly, Sequin's Docker Compose file creates a logical database called `sequin_playground` with a sample dataset in the `public.products` table.
Let's take a look:
In the Sequin web console, click **Databases** in the sidebar.
Click on the pre-configured `sequin-playground` database:
The database "Health" should be green.
Let's get a sense of what's in the `products` table. Run the following command:
```bash theme={null}
docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
"select id, name, price from products;"
```
This command connects to the running Postgres container and runs a `psql` command.
You should see a list of the rows in the `products` table:
```
id | name | price
----+-----------------------+-------
1 | Avocados (3 pack) | 5.99
2 | Flank Steak (1 lb) | 8.99
3 | Salmon Fillet (12 oz) | 14.99
4 | Baby Spinach (16 oz) | 4.99
5 | Sourdough Bread | 6.99
6 | Blueberries (6 oz) | 3.99
(6 rows)
```
We'll make modifications to this table in a bit.
With the playground database connected, you can create a [sink](/reference/sinks/overview). This sink will send changes to the `products` table to your Redpanda topic:
Click "Sinks" in the sidebar navigation, then click "Create Sink".
Select "Kafka" as the sink type and click "Continue".
In the "Source" card, note that the `sequin-playground` database is selected and all schemas and tables are included. Leave these defaults:
In the `Inital backfill` card, select the `public.products` table to initate a backfill when the sink is created.
In the "Kafka Configuration" card, enter your Redpanda connection details:
* Hosts: Your Redpanda bootstrap server (e.g., `seed-xxx.redpanda.com:9092`)
* Find this in "Overview" > "Kafka API" > "Boostrap server URLs"
* Topic: `products`
* SASL Mechanism: Select `SCRAM-SHA-256`
* Username: `sequin`
* Password: The auto-generated password for the `sequin` user
* TLS: Toggle ON
At the bottom of the form, click the "Test Connection" button. If you provided proper credentials, it should succeed.
Sequin can connect to your Redpanda cluster.
You can leave the rest of the defaults. As configured, the Redpanda topic will first receive a backfill of all rows currently in the `products` table. Then, it will receive all changes to the `products` table in real-time.
Click "Create Sink" to finish setting up your sink.
On the new sink's overview page, you should see the "Health" status turn green, indicating data is flowing to your topic.
Let's confirm messages are flowing:
Click the "Messages" tab. You'll see a list of the recently delivered messages:
Sequin indicates it backfilled the `products` table to your Redpanda topic.
In the Redpanda Console, in the "Topics" tab of your cluster, navigate to the `products` topic. You should see the messages that were sent from Sequin. These are [`read` events](/reference/messages) from the initial backfill of the `products` table:
If the messages haven't appeared yet, refresh the page.
Messages are flowing from Sequin to your Redpanda topic.
Let's make some changes to the `products` table and see them flow to your topic.
In your terminal, run the following command to insert a new row into the `products` table:
```bash theme={null}
docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
"insert into products (name, price) values ('Organic Honey (16 oz)', 12.99);"
```
Check your Redpanda Console. After refreshing, you should see a new message corresponding to the inserted row.
Feel free to try other changes:
```bash theme={null}
docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
"update products set price = 7.99 where name = 'Avocados (3 pack)';"
```
```bash theme={null}
docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
"update products set name = 'Organic Avocados (3 pack)' where name = 'Avocados (3 pack)';"
```
```bash theme={null}
docker exec -i sequin-sequin_postgres-1 \
psql -U postgres -d sequin_playground -c \
"delete from products where name = 'Blueberries (6 oz)';"
```
Each change will appear in your Redpanda topic within a few seconds.
Great work!
You've successfully:
* Set up a complete Postgres change data capture pipeline
* Created a Redpanda cluster and topic
* Loaded existing data through a backfill
* Made changes to the `products` table
* Verified changes are flowing to your Redpanda topic
## Ready to stream
Now you're ready to connect your own database to Sequin and start streaming changes:
Connect your Postgres database to Sequin.
Setup a Kafka sink to send changes to your topic.