> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://pii-shield.gitbook.io/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://pii-shield.gitbook.io/docs/quick-start.md).

# Quick Start

You can run PII-Shield immediately using Docker or by downloading a pre-built binary. The tool reads from **STDIN** and writes sanitized logs to **STDOUT**.

## Option 1: Docker (Fastest)

Ideal for quick testing without installing anything on your host.

### 1. Pull the image

```bash
docker pull thelisdeep/pii-shield:latest
```

### 2. Pipe logs through it

```bash
echo '{"level":"info", "msg":"Login attempt", "pass":"SuperSecret123"}' | \
docker run -i --rm thelisdeep/pii-shield:latest
```

## Option 2: Standalone Binary (No Docker)

Ideal for local development or servers where Docker is not available. You can download the latest release for Linux, macOS, or Windows from the [Releases Page](https://github.com/aragossa/pii-shield/releases).

### Linux / macOS

```bash
# 1. Download the release (example for Linux AMD64)
wget https://github.com/aragossa/pii-shield/releases/download/v1.0.0/pii-shield_1.0.0_linux_amd64.tar.gz

# 2. Extract the archive
tar -xvf pii-shield_1.0.0_linux_amd64.tar.gz

# 3. Run it
echo "User password=secret123" | ./pii-shield
```

### Windows (PowerShell)

```powershell
echo "User password=secret123" | .\pii-shield.exe
```

## Option 3: Go Install

If you have Go installed on your machine:

```bash
go install github.com/aragossa/pii-shield@latest
pii-shield --help
```

### Expected Output

Regardless of how you run it, PII-Shield will output the sanitized log line immediately: **Input**

```json
{"level":"info", "msg":"Login attempt", "pass":"SuperSecret123"}
```

**Output**

```json
{"level":"info", "msg":"Login attempt", "pass":"[HIDDEN:5a1b2c]"}
```