---
layout: article
title: Start with Firewall
description: Create your first Appwrite Firewall rule and see how it affects project API traffic.
difficulty: beginner
readtime: 5
---

In this quick start you create a deny rule on the project **API**, send a request that it blocks, and find that request in the traffic overview.

# Open Firewall

1. Sign in to [Appwrite Cloud](https://cloud.appwrite.io).
2. Open a project.
3. Open **Firewall** in the sidebar.

# Create a deny rule

![Create firewall rule wizard with a deny rule](/images/docs/firewall/create-rule.avif)

1. Click **Create rule**.
2. Enter a **Rule name** (for example `Deny staging admin path`).
3. Leave **Resource type** set to **API** so the rule applies to project API traffic (`/v1/...`).
4. Under conditions, set:
   - Attribute: **Path**
   - Operator: **Starts with**
   - Value: a path you want to block (for example `/v1/account`)
5. Under **Then**, choose **Deny**.
6. Keep **Priority** at `100`.
7. Leave **Enabled** on.
8. Review the impact preview in the sidebar, then click **Create rule**.

# Confirm the rule

![Firewall rules list with the new deny rule](/images/docs/firewall/rules-list.avif)

1. On the Firewall page, make sure the resource selector above the rules list shows **API**.
2. Find your rule in the list. It should show **Deny** and its status toggle should be on.

To change the rule later, open its actions menu and choose **Update**.

# Test the rule

Firewall never blocks the Console, so send the request with a client SDK or an API key instead.

```sh
curl -i https://cloud.appwrite.io/v1/account \
  -H "X-Appwrite-Project: <PROJECT_ID>"
```

The response is `403`, and its headers name the rule that stopped it:

```
HTTP/2 403
x-appwrite-waf-rule: <RULE_ID>
x-appwrite-waf-action: deny
```

# See it in traffic overview

Open **Firewall** in your project. The chart above the rules list shows requests that reached your project (**Passed**) alongside each Firewall outcome. The **Denied** series rises as matching requests arrive.

See [Traffic overview](/docs/products/firewall/monitor) for metrics and date ranges, and [Actions](/docs/products/firewall/actions) for what each outcome means.

# Next steps

The [guides](/docs/products/firewall#guides) cover country blocks, IP allowlists, rate limits, challenges, and redirects.