diff --git a/setup-relay.sh b/setup-relay.sh
index 7cb1457..4ab61e4 100644
--- a/setup-relay.sh
+++ b/setup-relay.sh
@@ -620,8 +620,7 @@ $DRY_RUN && { warn "DRY-RUN: skipping firewall step."; exit 0; }
 
 if ! ask_yn "Configure firewall rules now?" "y"; then
     info "Skipped. Remember to open the ports listed above manually."
-    exit 0
-fi
+else
 
 # ── Detect firewall ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 detect_firewall() {
@@ -647,9 +646,13 @@ case "$FW" in
     iptables)  info "Detected: iptables" ;;
     none)      warn "No supported firewall detected (firewalld / ufw / nftables / iptables)."
                info "Open the ports listed in Step 5 manually."
-               exit 0 ;;
+               _FW_SKIP=true ;;
 esac
 
+if [[ "${_FW_SKIP:-false}" == "true" ]]; then
+    : # fall through to Step 7
+else
+
 # ── Collect all ports to open across all relays ───────────────────────────────
 declare -a FW_TCP=()
 declare -a FW_UDP=()
@@ -795,4 +798,58 @@ fi
 
 apply_firewall_rules "$FW"
 echo ""
-success "Firewall rules applied. 🎉"
\ No newline at end of file
+success "Firewall rules applied. 🎉"
+fi   # end _FW_SKIP check
+fi   # end firewall step
+
+# ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+# STEP 7 – Start / Restart containers (optional)
+# ═════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
+header "Step 7 · Start / Restart Containers (optional)"
+
+$DRY_RUN && { warn "DRY-RUN: skipping container step."; exit 0; }
+
+if ! ask_yn "Run 'docker compose down && docker compose up -d' for each relay now?" "y"; then
+    info "Skipped. Start the containers manually:"
+    for i in "${!RELAY_DIRS[@]}"; do
+        echo "  cd ${RELAY_DIRS[$i]} && docker compose down && docker compose up -d"
+    done
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+if ! command -v docker &>/dev/null; then
+    error "docker not found — cannot start containers."
+    info "Install Docker and run manually:"
+    for i in "${!RELAY_DIRS[@]}"; do
+        echo "  cd ${RELAY_DIRS[$i]} && docker compose down && docker compose up -d"
+    done
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+for i in "${!RELAY_DIRS[@]}"; do
+    DIR="${RELAY_DIRS[$i]}"
+    D="${RELAY_DOMAINS[$i]}"
+    echo ""
+    info "Relay: ${D}"
+
+    if [[ ! -f "${DIR}/docker-compose.yml" ]]; then
+        error "  ${DIR}/docker-compose.yml not found — skipping."
+        continue
+    fi
+
+    info "  Stopping existing container (if any) ..."
+    ( cd "$DIR" && docker compose down ) && success "  docker compose down: OK" \
+        || warn "  docker compose down returned non-zero (container may not have been running)"
+
+    info "  Starting container ..."
+    if ( cd "$DIR" && docker compose up -d ); then
+        success "  docker compose up -d: OK"
+        info   "  Logs: cd ${DIR} && docker compose logs -f"
+    else
+        error "  docker compose up -d failed. Check logs:"
+        error "    cd ${DIR} && docker compose logs -f"
+    fi
+done
+
+echo ""
+success "All done! 🎉"
\ No newline at end of file