Getting Started

This guide contains everything you need to download, install, and run HARP Proxy.

• Quick start
  • Installation
  • First glance
  • Next Steps

System Requirements

HARP Proxy has minimal system requirements:

• Python: 3.13+ (automatically managed by UV)

• Ports: Default ports are 4000-4100 (proxy endpoints) and 4080 (dashboard)

• Memory: Minimal (~50MB base, scales with traffic and cache size)

• Storage: Depends on database backend (SQLite in-memory by default)

For production deployments, consider using PostgreSQL or MySQL for persistent storage.

Installation

Several options exist to install HARP Proxy on your development machine.

The recommended method is using UV, a fast Python package manager that makes installation and execution simple.

For containerized environments, you can use Docker containers, ensuring you have the exact set of dependencies, including the system, that we have battle-tested. There is also an helm chart available for kubernetes users.

For traditional Python environments, you can choose to install from PyPI, using pip. This method is more flexible but requires a working Python environment and some knowledge of Python.

If you want to extend or contribute to HARP, consider installing from sources.

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Contents

• UV & UVX (Recommended)
  • Install UV
  • Quick Start with UVX
  • Test Your Proxy
  • Local Development
  • Common Commands
  • Next Steps
• Docker & Docker Compose
  • Download the image
  • Start a proxy
  • Adding a configuration file
  • Use docker compose
  • Next Steps
• Helm & Kubernetes
  • Install or upgrade
  • Services
  • Ingress
  • Database
  • Values
• Python & PIP
  • Install with PIP
  • Start a proxy
  • Next Steps
• Sources
  • Development Workflow
  • Next Steps

What next?

Once you’re able to successfully run the proxy, you may want to head over to the Configuration section of the Operator Guide.

You can also jump to one of the following guides:

Start Guide Install and run your first proxy. Quick start Using Docker Using Python From Sources
Features Guide Discover HARP Proxy, feature by feature. Configuration Proxy Cache Circuit Breaker Probes Audit Log Rules Engine
User’s Guide Explore the user interface. Overview Transactions System Performances	Operator’s Guide Configure and watch. Configuration Run
Developer’s Guide Enhance and extend. Quick start Run Customize Extend	Contributor’s Guide Dive in the internals. Introduction Overview Dependency Injection Events Applications
Reference Exhaustive reference list and description of commands, functions, classes, settings, etc. Core Reference Applications Reference Configuration Reference Command Line Reference