> **Building with AI coding agents?** If you're using an AI coding agent, install the official Scalekit plugin. It gives your agent full awareness of the Scalekit API — reducing hallucinations and enabling faster, more accurate code generation.
>
> - **Claude Code**: `/plugin marketplace add scalekit-inc/claude-code-authstack` then `/plugin install <auth-type>@scalekit-auth-stack`
> - **GitHub Copilot CLI**: `copilot plugin marketplace add scalekit-inc/github-copilot-authstack` then `copilot plugin install <auth-type>@scalekit-auth-stack`
> - **Codex**: run the bash installer, restart, then open Plugin Directory and enable `<auth-type>`
> - **Skills CLI** (Windsurf, Cline, 40+ agents): `npx skills add scalekit-inc/skills --list` then `--skill <skill-name>`
>
> `<auth-type>` / `<skill-name>`: `agentkit`, `full-stack-auth`, `mcp-auth`, `modular-sso`, `modular-scim` — [Full setup guide](https://docs.scalekit.com/dev-kit/build-with-ai/)

---

# Self-hosted deployment overview

Scalekit's self-hosted deployment lets you run the full Scalekit platform on your own Kubernetes cluster. All authentication data stays within your infrastructure — nothing leaves your network.

Use self-hosted deployment when your organization requires:

- **Data residency**: Auth data must remain in a specific region or on-premises location
- **Network isolation**: The auth service must not be reachable from the public internet
- **Compliance**: Regulations such as FedRAMP, HIPAA, or internal security policies prohibit use of SaaS auth services
- **Air-gapped environments**: Your deployment environment has no outbound internet access

## How it works

Scalekit is deployed on Kubernetes via a Helm chart managed through the <a href={DISTR_URL}>Scalekit distribution portal</a>. You configure the deployment with a `values.yaml` file, apply Kubernetes secrets to your cluster, and connect the cluster to the portal — which handles chart delivery, migrations, and upgrades.

## What Scalekit runs

A self-hosted deployment runs as a single Kubernetes `Deployment` with multiple containers:

| Component | Description |
|-----------|-------------|
| **Auth service** | Core service handling login, token issuance, sessions, SSO, and SCIM |
| **Dashboard** | Admin web UI for managing your Scalekit instance |
| **Flagd** | Feature flag sidecar for runtime configuration |
| **Webhooks** | Webhook delivery service |
| **OpenFGA** | Fine-grained authorization engine (optional) |

## What you provide

Scalekit does not bundle a database or cache in production. You provision and manage these separately:

| Dependency | Requirement | Notes |
|------------|-------------|-------|
| **Kubernetes** | 1.27 or later | Any managed or self-managed cluster |
| **PostgreSQL** | 15 or later | Three databases required: `scalekit`, `webhooks`, `openfga` |
| **Redis** | 6.2 or later | Used for sessions, caching, and job queues |
| **SMTP** | Any provider | Postmark and SendGrid have first-class support |
**Evaluation shortcut:** The Helm chart includes optional PostgreSQL and Redis subcharts. Enable them to spin up Scalekit quickly without provisioning external services. **Use subcharts for evaluation only** — they are not suitable for production.
**Access required:** Self-hosted deployment requires a Scalekit enterprise license. You receive your Helm chart access and container registry token through the <a href={DISTR_URL}>Scalekit distribution portal</a> as part of onboarding.

## Choose your path

| Path | When to use |
|------|-------------|
| **[Quick start](/self-hosted/quickstart/)** | Get Scalekit running fast using bundled PostgreSQL and Redis. Ideal for evaluation and proof-of-concept. No external databases or `kubectl secret` commands needed. |
| **[Full installation](/self-hosted/system-requirements/)** | Production deployment with external PostgreSQL and Redis, full secret management, and your choice of ingress controller. |

---

## More Scalekit documentation

| Resource | What it contains | When to use it |
|----------|-----------------|----------------|
| [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) | Structured index with routing hints per product area | Start here — find which documentation set covers your topic before loading full content |
| [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) | Complete documentation for all Scalekit products in one file | Use when you need exhaustive context across multiple products or when the topic spans several areas |
| [sitemap-0.xml](https://docs.scalekit.com/sitemap-0.xml) | Full URL list of every documentation page | Use to discover specific page URLs you can fetch for targeted, page-level answers |