---
title: Verifying the connection
description: You can verify the connection between PingAccess and Kong Gateway by making an end-to-end request. To do so, first create an application for Kong in PingAccess.
component: pingaccess
version: 9.0
page_id: pingaccess:agents_and_integrations:pa_verifying_the_connection
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingaccess/9.0/agents_and_integrations/pa_verifying_the_connection.html
revdate: April 11, 2025
section_ids:
  about-this-task: About this task
  steps: Steps
  troubleshooting: Troubleshooting:
  next-steps: Next steps
---

# Verifying the connection

## About this task

You can verify the connection between PingAccess and Kong Gateway by making an end-to-end request. To do so, first create an application for Kong in PingAccess.

|   |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               |
| - | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
|   | This procedure contains only information that's specific to creating a working Kong Gateway connection. Learn more about configuration settings outside the scope of this procedure in [Adding an application](../pingaccess_user_interface_reference_guide/pa_adding_an_app.html) and [Application field descriptions](../pingaccess_user_interface_reference_guide/pa_application_field_descriptions.html). |

## Steps

1. In the PingAccess admin console, go to **Applications > Applications** and click **[icon: plus, set=fa]Add Application**.

2. In the **Name**, **Context Root**, and **Virtual Host(s)** fields, enter information matching how the application APIs are exposed.

3. In the **Application Type** list, select **API**.

4. In the **Destination** list, select **Sideband**.

5. In the **Sideband Client** list, select the sideband client you created for Kong in [Configuring PingAccess for Kong Gateway integration](pa_configuring_pa_for_kong_gateway_integration.html).

6. Select the **Enabled** checkbox to allow the application to process requests.

7. After you've finished filling out the configuration, click **Save**.

## Troubleshooting:

* If the requests aren't going through to the backend service as expected, debug logging can give a detailed breakdown of the request/response flow through Kong. To enable Kong debug logging:

  1. In the `ping-auth` config, set `enable_debug_logging` to true.

  2. In the `kong.conf` file, set `log_level = debug`.

  |   |                                                                                                                                                  |
  | - | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
  |   | These messages might contain sensitive request information and accumulate disk space, so you should disable debug logging after troubleshooting. |

* The `pingaccess.log` on the PingAccess engine node can also provide useful debugging data. You can find information about how to access and interpret the PingAccess logs in [Log configuration](../configuring_and_customizing_pingaccess/pa_logging_configuration.html).

## Next steps

After you create the application, you can assign rules to it to control access to APIs protected by the Kong gateway. Learn more about configuring rules in [Rule management](../pingaccess_user_interface_reference_guide/pa_rule_management.html).