This quickstart gets you started with Apache Druid using the `micro-quickstart` startup configuration and introduces you to some Druid features, including the MSQ task engine that's part of the [multi-stage query architecture](../multi-stage-query/index.md).
With the MSQ task engine, you can write query tasks that can reference [external data](../multi-stage-query/index.md#read-external-data) as well as perform ingestion with SQL [INSERT](../multi-stage-query/index.md#insert-data) and [REPLACE](../multi-stage-query/index.md#replace-data), eliminating the need to generate JSON-based ingestion specs.
In this quickstart, you'll do the following:
- install Druid
- start up Druid services
- use the MSQ task engine to ingest data
Druid supports different ingestion engines. While we recommend SQL based ingestion, you can find tutorials for other modes of ingestion, such as [Load data with native batch ingestion](tutorial-batch-native.md).
Download the [{{DRUIDVERSION}} release](https://www.apache.org/dyn/closer.cgi?path=/druid/{{DRUIDVERSION}}/apache-druid-{{DRUIDVERSION}}-bin.tar.gz) from Apache Druid.
For this quickstart, you need Druid version 24.0 or higher.
For versions earlier than 24.0 (0.23 and below), see [Load data with native batch ingestion](tutorial-batch-native.md).
Start up Druid services using the `micro-quickstart` single-machine configuration.
This configuration includes default settings that are appropriate for this tutorial, such as loading the `druid-multi-stage-query` extension by default so that you can use the MSQ task engine.
You can view that setting and others in the configuration files in the `conf/druid/single-server/micro-quickstart/`.
At any time, you can revert Druid to its original, post-installation state by deleting the entire `var` directory. You may want to do this, for example, between Druid tutorials or after experimentation, to start with a fresh instance.
It may take a few seconds for all Druid services to finish starting, including the [Druid router](../design/router.md), which serves the console. If you attempt to open the Druid console before startup is complete, you may see errors in the browser. Wait a few moments and try again.
In this quickstart, you use the the Druid console to perform ingestion. The MSQ task engine specifically uses the **Query** view to edit and run SQL queries.
For a complete walkthrough of the **Query** view as it relates to the multi-stage query architecture and the MSQ task engine, see [UI walkthrough](../operations/druid-console.md).
The Druid distribution bundles the `wikiticker-2015-09-12-sampled.json.gz` sample dataset that you can use for testing. The sample dataset is located in the `quickstart/tutorial/` folder, accessible from the Druid root directory, and represents Wikipedia page edits for a given day.
Entering the base directory and [wildcard file filter](https://commons.apache.org/proper/commons-io/apidocs/org/apache/commons/io/filefilter/WildcardFileFilter.html) separately, as afforded by the UI, allows you to specify multiple files for ingestion at once.
6. Optionally, click **Preview** to see the general shape of the data before you ingest it.
7. Click **Run** to execute the query. The task may take a minute or two to complete. When done, the task displays its duration and the number of rows inserted into the table. The view is set to automatically refresh, so you don't need to refresh the browser to see the status change.
* [Extensions](../development/extensions.md) for details on Druid extensions.
* [MSQ task engine query syntax](../multi-stage-query/index.md#msq-task-engine-query-syntax) to further explore queries for SQL-based ingestion.
* [Druid SQL overview](../querying/sql.md) to learn about how to query data you ingest.
* [Load data with native batch ingestion](tutorial-batch-native.md) to load and query data with Druid's native batch ingestion feature.
* [Load stream data from Apache Kafka](./tutorial-kafka.md) to load streaming data from a Kafka topic.
* [API](../multi-stage-query/msq-api.md) to submit query tasks to the MSQ task engine programmatically.
* [Connect external data](../multi-stage-query/msq-tutorial-connect-external-data.md) to learn how to generate a query that references externally hosted data that the MSQ task engine can use to ingest data.
* [Convert ingestion spec](../multi-stage-query/msq-tutorial-convert-ingest-spec.md) to learn how to convert an existing JSON ingestion spec to a SQL query that the MSQ task engine can use to ingest data.
Remember that after stopping Druid services, you can start clean next time by deleting the `var` directory from the Druid root directory and running the `bin/start-micro-quickstart` script again. You may want to do this before taking other data ingestion tutorials, since they use the same Wikipedia datasource.
