Installing the Venafi CLI tool¶

The Venafi CLI utility is a standalone binary you can download directly from the Venafi releases page or install using one of the methods described on this page.

Prerequisites¶

Before you download and try to install the Venafi CLI tool, make sure your system meets the following prerequisites:

Your system is running one of the following operating systems:
- Linux (amd64)
- MacOS (arm64/amd64)
- Windows (amd64)
You have curl installed on your system (if using macOS or Linux).
Administrator access to a Kubernetes cluster.
Administrator access to a Venafi Control Plane instance.
A stable internet connection.

Venafi CLI installer¶

Use the Venafi CLI installer for automated installation appropriate to your operating system.

Future releases of the Venafi CLI utility will expand the installation methods available.

macOS, Linux, or WSLWindows

There are two ways you can install the Venafi CLI tool on macOS, Linux, or Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL):

Using the Venafi CLI installer
Using the Homebrew package manager

Using the Venafi CLI installer¶

The Venafi CLI installer for macOS, Linux, and WSL places the Venafi CLI utility in the /usr/bin directory so that all users can access it.

Execute the following command:
```
curl -sSfL https://dl.venafi.cloud/venctl/latest/installer.sh | bash
```
The installer is configurable using the following environment variables:
- INSTALL_DIR - the installation directory. For example, you can use INSTALL_DIR=$HOME/.local/bin for a single user installation.
- VERSION - the version of the CLI to install if you need a version other than the latest one.
- INSTALL_LOG - the installation log file.
Installation configuration examples

Installing a specific version:
```
curl -sSfL https://dl.venafi.cloud/venctl/latest/installer.sh | VERSION=1.0.1 bash
```
Install the Venafi CLI in a user owned directory:
```
curl -sSfL https://dl.venafi.cloud/venctl/latest/installer.sh | INSTALL_DIR=$HOME/.local/bin bash
```

Using Homebrew¶

To install the latest version of the Venafi CLI tool using Homebrew, type the following command:
```
brew install venafi/tap/venctl
```

The Venafi CLI installer for Windows installed the utility in the C:\Users\<YOUR USERNAME>\Venafi directory.

Run the following command from a non-administrator PowerShell session to install the Venafi CLI utility.
```
irm https://dl.venafi.cloud/venctl/latest/installer.ps1 | iex
```
The installer is configurable using the following environment variables:
- -InstallDir - the Venafi CLI utility installation directory. Unless specified otherwise, the utility is installed to $env:USERPROFILE\Venafi.
- -Version - the version of the CLI to install if you need a version other than the latest one.
- -NoProxy - bypass the system proxy during the installation.
- -Proxy - the proxy to use during installation.
- -ProxyCredential - credential for the given proxy.
- -ProxyUseDefaultCredentials - use the credentials of the current user for the proxy server that is specified by the -Proxy parameter.

Installation configuration examples¶

To view all the installer's configurable parameters:

# Download the Venafi CLI installer
irm https://dl.venafi.cloud/venctl/latest/installer.ps1 -outfile 'install.ps1'
# See the configurable parameters
.\install.ps1 -?

To install the Venafi CLI utility in a custom directory:

.\install.ps1 -InstallDir 'D:\Applications\Venafi'

To bypass the system proxy during installation:

.\install.ps1 -NoProxy

To perform a silent install:

# Omit outputs
.\install.ps1 [-Parameters ...] | Out-Null
# Or collect logs
.\install.ps1 [-Parameters ...] > install.log
# Get result
$LASTEXITCODE

Updating the Venafi CLI tool¶

The Venafi CLI tool features a self-updater that automatically checks for and installs the latest version. Use the following command:

venctl update

Getting help with Venafi CLI tool commands¶

Use the following command to get information on individual venctl commands and their flags:

venctl [command] --help

See the Venafi CLI reference page for a list of available venctl commands.