> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.fly.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Launch a demo app Illustration by Annie Ruygt of a rocket on the launch pad In this step-by-step guide you'll use Fly Launch to deploy a simple "hello fly" demo app to Fly.io. The first step is installing all the tools you need to work with Fly Launch. Which is one tool: flyctl. ## 1. Install flyctl flyctl is a command-line utility that lets you work with Fly.io using `fly` commands, from creating your account to deploying your applications. It runs on your local device so you'll want to install the version that's appropriate for your operating system. ### macOS If you have the [Homebrew](https://brew.sh) package manager installed, flyctl can be installed by running: ```bash theme={null} brew install flyctl ``` If not, you can run the install script: ```bash theme={null} curl -L https://fly.io/install.sh | sh ``` If you used curl to install flyctl, then you need to add the flyctl directory to your shell rc file. Check the output of the install script for the entries to copy and paste into the file. Now you can use the `fly` command from any directory. ### Linux Run the install script: ```bash theme={null} curl -L https://fly.io/install.sh | sh ``` ### Windows Run the PowerShell install script: ```bash theme={null} pwsh -Command "iwr https://fly.io/install.ps1 -useb | iex" ``` If you encounter an error saying the `pwsh` command is not found, `powershell` can be used instead, though we recommend [installing the latest version of PowerShell](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/scripting/install/installing-powershell-on-windows). ## Uninstall flyctl How you remove flyctl depends on how you installed it. **Homebrew (macOS):** Uninstall with `brew uninstall flyctl`. **Install script (macOS and Linux):** Remove the flyctl directory (`~/.fly` by default), then delete the lines the install script added to your shell rc file (for example `~/.bashrc` or `~/.zshrc`) to put flyctl on your `PATH`. **Windows (PowerShell):** Remove the flyctl install directory (`~\.fly` by default) and remove its entry from your `PATH`. ## 2. Sign up or sign in Sign up for an account or [sign in](#sign-in-to-your-flyio-account) to your existing account. ### Sign up for a Fly.io account If it’s your first time using Fly.io, you’ll need to create an account. To sign up, run: ```bash theme={null} fly auth signup ``` This will take you to the sign-up page where you can use your email address, your Google account, or your GitHub account to create a Fly.io account. When you sign up with GitHub, we'll send you a confirmation email with a link to set a password; you'll need a password so we can actively verify that it's you for some Fly.io operations. **Note:** At some point, you'll be prompted for credit card payment information. New accounts start on our Pay As You Go plan. See [Pricing](/about/pricing) and [Billing](/about/billing) for more details. After signing up you'll be returned to your command line, ready to use Fly.io. ### Sign in to your Fly.io account If you already have a Fly.io account, all you need to do is sign in with flyctl. To sign in, run: ```bash theme={null} fly auth login ``` When your browser opens to the Fly.io sign-in screen, enter your user name and password to sign in. If you signed up with GitHub, then click `Sign in with GitHub` to sign in. After logging in you'll be returned to your command line, ready to use Fly.io. Microsoft WSL users may need to run the following command, which creates a symbolic link that allows the browser to open: `ln -s /usr/bin/wslview /usr/local/bin/xdg-open` ## 3. Launch the demo app Fly Launch helps you quickly deploy almost any kind of app using a Docker image. For this example, you'll use our pre-built Docker image, `flyio/hellofly:latest`, to create and deploy the demo app. Running `fly launch` to create a new app generates a [`fly.toml` config file](/reference/configuration) with some useful defaults that you can tweak through a web interface before deploying the app. When you run a command post-deploy, flyctl looks for a `fly.toml` file to get the app name and the configuration to apply. To create the demo app, run: ```bash theme={null} fly launch --image flyio/hellofly:latest ``` You'll get a summary of the defaults for your app. For example: ```output theme={null} Using image flyio/hellofly:latest Creating app in /Users/username/my-app-name We're about to launch your app on Fly.io. Here's what you're getting: Organization: MyName (fly launch defaults to the personal org) Name: my-app-name (derived from your directory name) Region: Secaucus, NJ (US) (this is the fastest region for you) App Machines: shared-cpu-1x, 1GB RAM (most apps need about 1GB of RAM) Postgres: (not requested) Redis: (not requested) ? Do you want to tweak these settings before proceeding? (y/N) ``` Fly launch creates an app name by appending a random name to your project directory name. App names must be globally unique. To change any settings, type `y` at the prompt to open the Fly Launch page, then click **Confirm Settings** to confirm and deploy the demo app. Or just type `n` to accept the default and deploy the app. Example `fly launch` output: ```output theme={null} Created app 'my-app-name' in organization 'personal' Admin URL: https://fly.io/apps/my-app-name Hostname: my-app-name.fly.dev Wrote config file fly.toml Validating /Users/username/my-app-dir/fly.toml Platform: machines ✓ Configuration is valid ==> Building image Searching for image 'flyio/hellofly:latest' remotely... image found: img_z1nr0lpjz9v5q98w Watch your deployment at https://fly.io/apps/my-app-name/monitoring Provisioning ips for my-app-name Dedicated ipv6: 2a09:8280:1::42:a8f4 Shared ipv4: 66.241.124.213 Add a dedicated ipv4 with: fly ips allocate-v4 This deployment will: * create 2 "app" machines No machines in group app, launching a new machine Creating a second machine to increase service availability Finished launching new machines ------- NOTE: The machines for [app] have services with 'auto_stop_machines = true' that will be stopped when idling ------- Visit your newly deployed app at https://my-app-name.fly.dev/ ```

4. Check your app's status

After the app is deployed, use the `fly status` command to get the basic details about your new app. For example: ```bash cmd theme={null} fly status ``` ```output output theme={null} App Name = hellofly Owner = personal Hostname = hellofly.fly.dev Image = flyio/hellofly:latest Machines PROCESS ID VERSION REGION STATE ROLE CHECKS LAST UPDATED app 148e453b7d7289 1 ord started 2023-05-17T17:39:37Z app 5683d311c3228e 1 ord stopped 2023-05-17T17:38:44Z ``` In this example, the app has a DNS hostname of `hellofly.fly.dev`. The app has two Machines running in the ord (Chicago) region. We recommend running at least two Machines to improve availability. ## 5. Visit your app You can connect to your deployed app with the `fly apps open` command, which opens a browser to `https://.fly.dev/` for a secure connection. You've successfully launched your first app on Fly.io! For fun, add `/` to `fly apps open` and your name will be appended to the app's path to add an extra greeting from the hellofly application. ```bash cmd theme={null} fly apps open /fred ``` ```out out theme={null} opening https:http://hellofly.fly.dev/fred ... ``` You just deployed an app on Fly.io! ## Deploy changes You probably don't need to make any changes to our demo app. But when you do make changes to an app on Fly.io, deploy a new release with: ```bash theme={null} fly deploy ``` Now that you have a working demo app, learn [what you can do with Fly Launch](/launch/index). ## Delete the demo app When you're done playing with the demo app, delete it so you're not using unnecessary resources: ``` fly apps destroy ``` ## Grow and scale Read about some of the ways you can increase availability, capacity, and performance with Fly.io: * Follow the blueprint for [extra Machines for more resilient apps](/blueprints/resilient-apps-multiple-machines) * Read up on [App availability and resiliency](/apps/app-availability) * [Autoscale Machines based on load or custom metrics](/reference/autoscaling) * [Scale Machine CPU and RAM](/launch/scale-machine) * [Scale Machine count](/launch/scale-count)