balena-cli/doc/cli.markdown

Balena CLI Documentation

This tool allows you to interact with the balena api from the comfort of your command line.

Please make sure your system meets the requirements as specified in the README.

Install the CLI

Dependencies

Before installing the Balena CLI from npm, make sure you have the following dependencies installed:

• make
• g++ compiler
• Python 2.7
• git

For example, to install these packages on a Debian-based Linux operating systems:

$ sudo apt-get install g++ make python git --yes

NOTE: If you are installing the stand-alone binary CLI, you will not need to install these dependencies.

Npm install

The best supported way to install the CLI is from npm:

$ npm install balena-cli -g --production --unsafe-perm

--unsafe-perm is only required on systems where the global install directory is not user-writable. This allows npm install steps to download and save prebuilt native binaries. You may be able to omit it, especially if you're using a user-managed node install such as nvm.

Standalone install

Alternatively, if you don't have a node or pre-gyp environment, you can still install the CLI as a standalone binary. This is in experimental and may not work perfectly yet in all environments, but works well in initial cross-platform testing, so it may be useful, and we'd love your feedback if you hit any issues.

To install the CLI as a standalone binary:

• Download the latest zip for your OS from https://github.com/balena-io/balena-cli/releases.
• Extract the contents, putting the balena-cli folder somewhere appropriate for your system (e.g. C:/balena-cli, /usr/local/lib/balena-cli, etc).
• Add the balena-cli folder to your PATH. ( Windows instructions, Linux instructions, OSX instructions)
• Running balena in a fresh command line should print the balena CLI help.

To update in future, simply download a new release and replace the extracted folder.

Have any problems, or see any unexpected behaviour? Please file an issue!

Getting started

Once you have the CLI installed, you'll need to log in, so it can access everything in your balena account.

To authenticate yourself, run:

$ balena login

You now have access to all the commands referenced below.

Proxy support

The CLI does support HTTP(S) proxies.

You can configure the proxy using several methods (in order of their precedence):

• set the BALENARC_PROXY environment variable in the URL format (with protocol, host, port, and optionally the basic auth),
• use the balena config file (project-specific or user-level) and set the proxy setting. This can be:
  • a string in the URL format,
  • or an object following this format, which allows more control,
• or set the conventional https_proxy / HTTPS_PROXY / http_proxy / HTTP_PROXY environment variable (in the same standard URL format).

Table of contents

• Api keys

  • api-key generate <name>

• Application

  • app create <name>
  • apps
  • app <name>
  • app restart <name>
  • app rm <name>

• Authentication

  • login
  • logout
  • signup
  • whoami

• Device

  • devices
  • device <uuid>
  • devices supported
  • device register <application>
  • device rm <uuid>
  • device identify <uuid>
  • device reboot <uuid>
  • device shutdown <uuid>
  • device public-url enable <uuid>
  • device public-url disable <uuid>
  • device public-url <uuid>
  • device public-url status <uuid>
  • device rename <uuid> [newName]
  • device move <uuid>
  • device init

• Environment Variables

  • envs
  • env rm <id>
  • env add <key> [value]
  • env rename <id> <value>

• Tags

  • tags
  • tag set <tagKey> [value]
  • tag rm <tagKey>

• Help

  • help [command...]

• Information

  • version

• Keys

  • keys
  • key <id>
  • key rm <id>
  • key add <name> [path]

• Logs

  • logs <uuid>

• Sync

  • sync [uuid]

• SSH

  • ssh [uuid]

• Notes

  • note <|note>

• OS

  • os versions <type>
  • os download <type>
  • os build-config <image> <device-type>
  • os configure <image>
  • os initialize <image>

• Config

  • config read
  • config write <key> <value>
  • config inject <file>
  • config reconfigure
  • config generate

• Preload

  • preload <image>

• Push

  • push <applicationOrDevice>

• Settings

  • settings

• Wizard

  • quickstart [name]

• Local

  • local configure <target>
  • local flash <image>
  • local logs [deviceIp]
  • local scan
  • local ssh [deviceIp]
  • local push [deviceIp]
  • local stop [deviceIp]

• Deploy

  • build [source]
  • deploy <appName> [image]

• Platform

  • join [deviceIp]
  • leave [deviceIp]

• Utilities

  • util available-drives

Api keys

api-key generate <name>

This command generates a new API key for the current user, with the given name. The key will be logged to the console.

This key can be used to log into the CLI using 'balena login --token ', or to authenticate requests to the API with an 'Authorization: Bearer ' header.

Examples:

$ balena api-key generate "Jenkins Key"

Application

app create <name>

Use this command to create a new balena application.

You can specify the application device type with the --type option. Otherwise, an interactive dropdown will be shown for you to select from.

You can see a list of supported device types with

$ balena devices supported

Examples:

$ balena app create MyApp
$ balena app create MyApp --type raspberry-pi

Options

--type, -t <type>

application device type (Check available types with balena devices supported)

apps

Use this command to list all your applications.

Notice this command only shows the most important bits of information for each app. If you want detailed information, use balena app instead.

Examples:

$ balena apps

app <name>

Use this command to show detailed information for a single application.

Examples:

$ balena app MyApp

app restart <name>

Use this command to restart all devices that belongs to a certain application.

Examples:

$ balena app restart MyApp

app rm <name>

Use this command to remove a balena application.

Notice this command asks for confirmation interactively. You can avoid this by passing the --yes boolean option.

Examples:

$ balena app rm MyApp
$ balena app rm MyApp --yes

Options

--yes, -y

confirm non interactively

Authentication

login

Use this command to login to your balena account.

This command will prompt you to login using the following login types:

• Web authorization: open your web browser and prompt you to authorize the CLI from the dashboard.

• Credentials: using email/password and 2FA.

• Token: using a session token or API key from the preferences page.

Examples:

$ balena login
$ balena login --web
$ balena login --token "..."
$ balena login --credentials
$ balena login --credentials --email johndoe@gmail.com --password secret

Options

--token, -t <token>

session token or API key

--web, -w

web-based login

--credentials, -c

credential-based login

--email, -e, -u <email>

email

--password, -p <password>

password

logout

Use this command to logout from your balena account.

Examples:

$ balena logout

signup

Use this command to signup for a balena account.

If signup is successful, you'll be logged in to your new user automatically.

Examples:

$ balena signup
Email: johndoe@acme.com
Password: ***********

$ balena whoami
johndoe

whoami

Use this command to find out the current logged in username and email address.

Examples:

$ balena whoami

Device

devices

Use this command to list all devices that belong to you.

You can filter the devices by application by using the --application option.

Examples:

$ balena devices
$ balena devices --application MyApp
$ balena devices --app MyApp
$ balena devices -a MyApp

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

device <uuid>

Use this command to show information about a single device.

Examples:

$ balena device 7cf02a6

devices supported

Use this command to get the list of all supported devices

Examples:

$ balena devices supported

device register <application>

Use this command to register a device to an application.

Examples:

$ balena device register MyApp
$ balena device register MyApp --uuid <uuid>

Options

--uuid, -u <uuid>

custom uuid

device rm <uuid>

Use this command to remove a device from balena.

Notice this command asks for confirmation interactively. You can avoid this by passing the --yes boolean option.

Examples:

$ balena device rm 7cf02a6
$ balena device rm 7cf02a6 --yes

Options

--yes, -y

confirm non interactively

device identify <uuid>

Use this command to identify a device.

In the Raspberry Pi, the ACT led is blinked several times.

Examples:

$ balena device identify 23c73a1

device reboot <uuid>

Use this command to remotely reboot a device

Examples:

$ balena device reboot 23c73a1

Options

--force, -f

force action if the update lock is set

device shutdown <uuid>

Use this command to remotely shutdown a device

Examples:

$ balena device shutdown 23c73a1

Options

--force, -f

force action if the update lock is set

device public-url enable <uuid>

Use this command to enable public URL for a device

Examples:

$ balena device public-url enable 23c73a1

device public-url disable <uuid>

Use this command to disable public URL for a device

Examples:

$ balena device public-url disable 23c73a1

device public-url <uuid>

Use this command to get the public URL of a device

Examples:

$ balena device public-url 23c73a1

device public-url status <uuid>

Use this command to determine if public URL is enabled for a device

Examples:

$ balena device public-url status 23c73a1

device rename <uuid> [newName]

Use this command to rename a device.

If you omit the name, you'll get asked for it interactively.

Examples:

$ balena device rename 7cf02a6
$ balena device rename 7cf02a6 MyPi

device move <uuid>

Use this command to move a device to another application you own.

If you omit the application, you'll get asked for it interactively.

Examples:

$ balena device move 7cf02a6
$ balena device move 7cf02a6 --application MyNewApp

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

device init

Use this command to download the OS image of a certain application and write it to an SD Card.

Notice this command may ask for confirmation interactively. You can avoid this by passing the --yes boolean option.

Examples:

$ balena device init
$ balena device init --application MyApp

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--yes, -y

confirm non interactively

--advanced, -v

show advanced configuration options

--os-version <os-version>

exact version number, or a valid semver range, or 'latest' (includes pre-releases), or 'default' (excludes pre-releases if at least one stable version is available), or 'recommended' (excludes pre-releases, will fail if only pre-release versions are available), or 'menu' (will show the interactive menu)

--drive, -d <drive>

the drive to write the image to, like /dev/sdb or /dev/mmcblk0. Careful with this as you can erase your hard drive. Check balena util available-drives for available options.

--config <config>

path to the config JSON file, see balena os build-config

Environment Variables

envs

Use this command to list the environment variables of an application or device.

The --config option is used to list "config" variables that configure balena features.

Service-specific variables are not currently supported. The following examples list variables that apply to all services in an app or device.

Example:

$ balena envs --application MyApp
$ balena envs --application MyApp --config
$ balena envs --device 7cf02a6

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

--config, -c, -v, --verbose

show config variables

env rm <id>

Use this command to remove an environment variable from an application or device.

Notice this command asks for confirmation interactively. You can avoid this by passing the --yes boolean option.

The --device option selects a device instead of an application.

Service-specific variables are not currently supported. The following examples remove variables that apply to all services in an app or device.

Examples:

$ balena env rm 215
$ balena env rm 215 --yes
$ balena env rm 215 --device

Options

--yes, -y

confirm non interactively

--device, -d

device

env add <key> [value]

Use this command to add an enviroment or config variable to an application or device.

If value is omitted, the tool will attempt to use the variable's value as defined in your host machine.

Use the --device option if you want to assign the environment variable to a specific device.

If the value is grabbed from the environment, a warning message will be printed. Use --quiet to remove it.

Service-specific variables are not currently supported. The following examples set variables that apply to all services in an app or device.

Examples:

$ balena env add EDITOR vim --application MyApp
$ balena env add TERM --application MyApp
$ balena env add EDITOR vim --device 7cf02a6

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

env rename <id> <value>

Use this command to change the value of an application or device enviroment variable.

The --device option selects a device instead of an application.

Service-specific variables are not currently supported. The following examples modify variables that apply to all services in an app or device.

Examples:

$ balena env rename 376 emacs
$ balena env rename 376 emacs --device

Options

--device, -d

device

Tags

tags

Use this command to list all tags for a particular application, device or release.

This command lists all application/device/release tags.

Example:

$ balena tags --application MyApp
$ balena tags --device 7cf02a6
$ balena tags --release 1234

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

--release, -r <release>

release id

tag set <tagKey> [value]

Use this command to set a tag to an application, device or release.

You can optionally provide a value to be associated with the created tag, as an extra argument after the tag key. When the value isn't provided, a tag with an empty value is created.

Examples:

$ balena tag set mySimpleTag --application MyApp
$ balena tag set myCompositeTag myTagValue --application MyApp
$ balena tag set myCompositeTag myTagValue --device 7cf02a6
$ balena tag set myCompositeTag myTagValue --release 1234
$ balena tag set myCompositeTag "my tag value with whitespaces" --release 1234

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

--release, -r <release>

release id

tag rm <tagKey>

Use this command to remove a tag from an application, device or release.

Examples:

$ balena tag rm myTagKey --application MyApp
$ balena tag rm myTagKey --device 7cf02a6
$ balena tag rm myTagKey --release 1234

Options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

--release, -r <release>

release id

Help

help [command...]

Get detailed help for an specific command.

Examples:

$ balena help apps
$ balena help os download

Options

--verbose, -v

show additional commands

Information

version

Display the balena CLI version.

Keys

keys

Use this command to list all your SSH keys.

Examples:

$ balena keys

key <id>

Use this command to show information about a single SSH key.

Examples:

$ balena key 17

key rm <id>

Use this command to remove a SSH key from balena.

Notice this command asks for confirmation interactively. You can avoid this by passing the --yes boolean option.

Examples:

$ balena key rm 17
$ balena key rm 17 --yes

Options

--yes, -y

confirm non interactively

key add <name> [path]

Use this command to associate a new SSH key with your account.

If path is omitted, the command will attempt to read the SSH key from stdin.

Examples:

$ balena key add Main ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub
$ cat ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub | balena key add Main

Logs

logs <uuid>

Use this command to show logs for a specific device.

By default, the command prints all log messages and exit.

To continuously stream output, and see new logs in real time, use the --tail option.

Examples:

$ balena logs 23c73a1
$ balena logs 23c73a1

Options

--tail, -t

continuously stream output

Sync

sync [uuid]

Warning: 'balena sync' requires an openssh-compatible client and 'rsync' to be correctly installed in your shell environment. For more information (including Windows support) please check the README here: https://github.com/balena-io/balena-cli

Use this command to sync your local changes to a certain device on the fly.

After every 'balena sync' the updated settings will be saved in '/.balena-sync.yml' and will be used in later invocations. You can also change any option by editing '.balena-sync.yml' directly.

Here is an example '.balena-sync.yml' :

$ cat $PWD/.balena-sync.yml
uuid: 7cf02a6
destination: '/usr/src/app'
before: 'echo Hello'
after: 'echo Done'
ignore:
	- .git
	- node_modules/

Command line options have precedence over the ones saved in '.balena-sync.yml'.

If '.gitignore' is found in the source directory then all explicitly listed files will be excluded from the syncing process. You can choose to change this default behavior with the '--skip-gitignore' option.

Examples:

$ balena sync 7cf02a6 --source . --destination /usr/src/app
$ balena sync 7cf02a6 -s /home/user/myBalenaProject -d /usr/src/app --before 'echo Hello' --after 'echo Done'
$ balena sync --ignore lib/
$ balena sync --verbose false
$ balena sync

Options

--source, -s <path>

local directory path to synchronize to device

--destination, -d <path>

destination path on device

--ignore, -i <paths>

comma delimited paths to ignore when syncing

--skip-gitignore

do not parse excluded/included files from .gitignore

--skip-restart

do not restart container after syncing

--before, -b <command>

execute a command before syncing

--after, -a <command>

execute a command after syncing

--port, -t <port>

ssh port

--progress, -p

show progress

--verbose, -v

increase verbosity

SSH

ssh [uuid]

Warning: 'balena ssh' requires an openssh-compatible client to be correctly installed in your shell environment. For more information (including Windows support) please check the README here: https://github.com/balena-io/balena-cli

Use this command to get a shell into the running application container of your device.

Examples:

$ balena ssh MyApp
$ balena ssh 7cf02a6
$ balena ssh 7cf02a6 --port 8080
$ balena ssh 7cf02a6 -v
$ balena ssh 7cf02a6 -s

Options

--port, -p <port>

ssh gateway port

--verbose, -v

increase verbosity

--host, -s

access host OS (for devices with balenaOS >= 2.7.5)

--noproxy

don't use the proxy configuration for this connection. Only makes sense if you've configured proxy globally.

Notes

note <|note>

Use this command to set or update a device note.

If note command isn't passed, the tool attempts to read from stdin.

To view the notes, use $ balena device .

Examples:

$ balena note "My useful note" --device 7cf02a6
$ cat note.txt | balena note --device 7cf02a6

Options

--device, -d, --dev <device>

device uuid

OS

os versions <type>

Use this command to show the available balenaOS versions for a certain device type. Check available types with balena devices supported

Example:

$ balena os versions raspberrypi3

os download <type>

Use this command to download an unconfigured os image for a certain device type. Check available types with balena devices supported

If version is not specified the newest stable (non-pre-release) version of OS is downloaded if available, or the newest version otherwise (if all existing versions for the given device type are pre-release).

You can pass --version menu to pick the OS version from the interactive menu of all available versions.

Examples:

$ balena os download raspberrypi3 -o ../foo/bar/raspberry-pi.img
$ balena os download raspberrypi3 -o ../foo/bar/raspberry-pi.img --version 1.24.1
$ balena os download raspberrypi3 -o ../foo/bar/raspberry-pi.img --version ^1.20.0
$ balena os download raspberrypi3 -o ../foo/bar/raspberry-pi.img --version latest
$ balena os download raspberrypi3 -o ../foo/bar/raspberry-pi.img --version default
$ balena os download raspberrypi3 -o ../foo/bar/raspberry-pi.img --version menu

Options

--output, -o <output>

output path

--version <version>

exact version number, or a valid semver range, or 'latest' (includes pre-releases), or 'default' (excludes pre-releases if at least one stable version is available), or 'recommended' (excludes pre-releases, will fail if only pre-release versions are available), or 'menu' (will show the interactive menu)

os build-config <image> <device-type>

Use this command to prebuild the OS config once and skip the interactive part of balena os configure.

Example:

$ balena os build-config ../path/rpi3.img raspberrypi3 --output rpi3-config.json
$ balena os configure ../path/rpi3.img 7cf02a6 --config "$(cat rpi3-config.json)"

Options

--advanced, -v

show advanced configuration options

--output, -o <output>

the path to the output JSON file

os configure <image>

Use this command to configure a previously downloaded operating system image for the specific device or for an application generally.

This command will try to automatically determine the operating system version in order to correctly configure the image. It may fail to do so however, in which case you'll have to call this command again with the exact version number of the targeted image.

Note that device api keys are only supported on balenaOS 2.0.3+.

This command still supports the deprecated format where the UUID and optionally device key are passed directly on the command line, but the recommended way is to pass either an --app or --device argument. The deprecated format will be remove in a future release.

In case that you want to configure an image for an application with mixed device types, you can pass the --device-type argument along with --app to specify the target device type.

Examples:

$ balena os configure ../path/rpi3.img --device 7cf02a6
$ balena os configure ../path/rpi3.img --device 7cf02a6 --device-api-key <existingDeviceKey>
$ balena os configure ../path/rpi3.img --app MyApp
$ balena os configure ../path/rpi3.img --app MyApp --version 2.12.7
$ balena os configure ../path/rpi3.img --app MyFinApp --device-type raspberrypi3

Options

--advanced, -v

show advanced configuration options

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

--deviceApiKey, -k <device-api-key>

custom device key - note that this is only supported on balenaOS 2.0.3+

--deviceType <device-type>

device type slug

--version <version>

a balenaOS version

--config <config>

path to the config JSON file, see balena os build-config

os initialize <image>

Use this command to initialize a device with previously configured operating system image.

Note: Initializing the device may ask for administrative permissions because we need to access the raw devices directly.

Examples:

$ balena os initialize ../path/rpi.img --type 'raspberry-pi'

Options

--yes, -y

confirm non interactively

--type, -t <type>

device type (Check available types with balena devices supported)

--drive, -d <drive>

the drive to write the image to, like /dev/sdb or /dev/mmcblk0. Careful with this as you can erase your hard drive. Check balena util available-drives for available options.

Config

config read

Use this command to read the config.json file from the mounted filesystem (e.g. SD card) of a provisioned device"

Examples:

$ balena config read --type raspberry-pi
$ balena config read --type raspberry-pi --drive /dev/disk2

Options

--type, -t <type>

device type (Check available types with balena devices supported)

--drive, -d <drive>

drive

config write <key> <value>

Use this command to write the config.json file to the mounted filesystem (e.g. SD card) of a provisioned device

Examples:

$ balena config write --type raspberry-pi username johndoe
$ balena config write --type raspberry-pi --drive /dev/disk2 username johndoe
$ balena config write --type raspberry-pi files.network/settings "..."

Options

--type, -t <type>

device type (Check available types with balena devices supported)

--drive, -d <drive>

drive

config inject <file>

Use this command to inject a config.json file to the mounted filesystem (e.g. SD card or mounted balenaOS image) of a provisioned device"

Examples:

$ balena config inject my/config.json --type raspberry-pi
$ balena config inject my/config.json --type raspberry-pi --drive /dev/disk2

Options

--type, -t <type>

device type (Check available types with balena devices supported)

--drive, -d <drive>

drive

config reconfigure

Use this command to reconfigure a provisioned device

Examples:

$ balena config reconfigure --type raspberry-pi
$ balena config reconfigure --type raspberry-pi --advanced
$ balena config reconfigure --type raspberry-pi --drive /dev/disk2

Options

--type, -t <type>

device type (Check available types with balena devices supported)

--drive, -d <drive>

drive

--advanced, -v

show advanced commands

config generate

Use this command to generate a config.json for a device or application.

Calling this command with the exact version number of the targeted image is required.

This is interactive by default, but you can do this automatically without interactivity by specifying an option for each question on the command line, if you know the questions that will be asked for the relevant device type.

In case that you want to configure an image for an application with mixed device types, you can pass the --device-type argument along with --app to specify the target device type.

Examples:

$ balena config generate --device 7cf02a6 --version 2.12.7
$ balena config generate --device 7cf02a6 --version 2.12.7 --generate-device-api-key
$ balena config generate --device 7cf02a6 --version 2.12.7 --device-api-key <existingDeviceKey>
$ balena config generate --device 7cf02a6 --version 2.12.7 --output config.json
$ balena config generate --app MyApp --version 2.12.7
$ balena config generate --app MyApp --version 2.12.7 --device-type fincm3
$ balena config generate --app MyApp --version 2.12.7 --output config.json
$ balena config generate --app MyApp --version 2.12.7 --network wifi --wifiSsid mySsid --wifiKey abcdefgh --appUpdatePollInterval 1

Options

--version <version>

a balenaOS version

--application, -a, --app <application>

application name

--device, -d <device>

device uuid

--deviceApiKey, -k <device-api-key>

custom device key - note that this is only supported on balenaOS 2.0.3+

--deviceType <device-type>

device type slug

--generate-device-api-key

generate a fresh device key for the device

--output, -o <output>

output

--network <network>

the network type to use: ethernet or wifi

--wifiSsid <wifiSsid>

the wifi ssid to use (used only if --network is set to wifi)

--wifiKey <wifiKey>

the wifi key to use (used only if --network is set to wifi)

--appUpdatePollInterval <appUpdatePollInterval>

how frequently (in minutes) to poll for application updates

Preload

preload <image>

Warning: "balena preload" requires Docker to be correctly installed in your shell environment. For more information (including Windows support) please check the README here: https://github.com/balena-io/balena-cli .

Use this command to preload an application to a local disk image (or Edison zip archive) with a built release from balena.

Examples:

$ balena preload balena.img --app 1234 --commit e1f2592fc6ee949e68756d4f4a48e49bff8d72a0 --splash-image image.png
$ balena preload balena.img

Options

--app, -a <appId>

id of the application to preload

--commit, -c <hash>

the commit hash for a specific application release to preload, use "latest" to specify the latest release (ignored if no appId is given)

--splash-image, -s <splashImage.png>

path to a png image to replace the splash screen

--dont-check-arch

Disables check for matching architecture in image and application

--pin-device-to-release, -p

Pin the preloaded device to the preloaded release on provision

--docker, -P <docker>

Path to a local docker socket (e.g. /var/run/docker.sock)

--dockerHost, -h <dockerHost>

Docker daemon hostname or IP address (dev machine or balena device)

--dockerPort, -p <dockerPort>

Docker daemon TCP port number (hint: 2375 for balena devices)

--ca <ca>

Docker host TLS certificate authority file

--cert <cert>

Docker host TLS certificate file

--key <key>

Docker host TLS key file

Push

push <applicationOrDevice>

This command can be used to start an image build on the remote balenaCloud build servers, or on a local-mode balena device.

When building on the balenaCloud servers, the given source directory will be sent to the remote server. This can be used as a drop-in replacement for the "git push" deployment method.

When building on a local-mode device, the given source directory will be built on the device, and the resulting containers will be run on the device. Logs will be streamed back from the device as part of the same invocation. The web dashboard can be used to switch a device to local mode: https://www.balena.io/docs/learn/develop/local-mode/

The --registry-secrets option specifies a JSON or YAML file containing private Docker registry usernames and passwords to be used when pulling base images. Sample registry-secrets YAML file:

'my-registry-server.com:25000':
	username: ann
	password: hunter2
'':  # Use the empty string to refer to the Docker Hub
	username: mike
	password: cze14
'eu.gcr.io':  # Google Container Registry
	username: '_json_key'
	password: '{escaped contents of the GCR keyfile.json file}'

Examples:

$ balena push myApp
$ balena push myApp --source <source directory>
$ balena push myApp -s <source directory>

$ balena push 10.0.0.1
$ balena push 10.0.0.1 --source <source directory>
$ balena push 10.0.0.1 -s <source directory>

Options

--source, -s <source>

The source that should be sent to the balena builder to be built (defaults to the current directory)

--emulated, -e

Force an emulated build to occur on the remote builder

--nocache, -c

Don't use cache when building this project

--registry-secrets, -R <secrets.yml|.json>

Path to a local YAML or JSON file containing Docker registry passwords used to pull base images

Settings

settings

Use this command to display detected settings

Examples:

$ balena settings

Wizard

quickstart [name]

Use this command to run a friendly wizard to get started with balena.

The wizard will guide you through:

- Create an application.
- Initialise an SDCard with the balena operating system.
- Associate an existing project directory with your balena application.
- Push your project to your devices.

Examples:

$ balena quickstart
$ balena quickstart MyApp

Local

local configure <target>

Use this command to configure or reconfigure a balenaOS drive or image.

Examples:

$ balena local configure /dev/sdc
$ balena local configure path/to/image.img

local flash <image>

Use this command to flash a balenaOS image to a drive.

Examples:

$ balena local flash path/to/balenaos.img[.zip|.gz|.bz2|.xz]
$ balena local flash path/to/balenaos.img --drive /dev/disk2
$ balena local flash path/to/balenaos.img --drive /dev/disk2 --yes

Options

--yes, -y

confirm non-interactively

--drive, -d <drive>

drive

local logs [deviceIp]

Examples:

$ balena local logs
$ balena local logs -f
$ balena local logs 192.168.1.10
$ balena local logs 192.168.1.10 -f
$ balena local logs 192.168.1.10 -f --app-name myapp

Options

--follow, -f

follow log

--app-name, -a <name>

name of container to get logs from

local scan

Examples:

$ balena local scan
$ balena local scan --timeout 120
$ balena local scan --verbose

Options

--verbose, -v

Display full info

--timeout, -t <timeout>

Scan timeout in seconds

local ssh [deviceIp]

Warning: 'balena local ssh' requires an openssh-compatible client to be correctly installed in your shell environment. For more information (including Windows support) please check the README here: https://github.com/balena-io/balena-cli

Use this command to get a shell into the running application container of your device.

The '--host' option will get you a shell into the Host OS of the balenaOS device. No option will return a list of containers to enter or you can explicitly select one by passing its name to the --container option

Examples:

$ balena local ssh
$ balena local ssh --host
$ balena local ssh --container chaotic_water
$ balena local ssh --container chaotic_water --port 22222
$ balena local ssh --verbose

Options

--verbose, -v

increase verbosity

--host, -s

get a shell into the host OS

--container, -c <container>

name of container to access

--port, -p <port>

ssh port number (default: 22222)

local push [deviceIp]

Warning: 'balena local push' requires an openssh-compatible client and 'rsync' to be correctly installed in your shell environment. For more information (including Windows support) please check the README here: https://github.com/balena-io/balena-cli

Use this command to push your local changes to a container on a LAN-accessible balenaOS device on the fly.

If Dockerfile or any file in the 'build-triggers' list is changed, a new container will be built and run on your device. If not, changes will simply be synced with rsync into the application container.

After every 'balena local push' the updated settings will be saved in '/.balena-sync.yml' and will be used in later invocations. You can also change any option by editing '.balena-sync.yml' directly.

Here is an example '.balena-sync.yml' :

$ cat $PWD/.balena-sync.yml
local_balenaos:
	app-name: local-app
	build-triggers:
		- Dockerfile: file-hash-abcdefabcdefabcdefabcdefabcdefabcdef
		- package.json: file-hash-abcdefabcdefabcdefabcdefabcdefabcdef
	environment:
		- MY_VARIABLE=123

Command line options have precedence over the ones saved in '.balena-sync.yml'.

If '.gitignore' is found in the source directory then all explicitly listed files will be excluded when using rsync to update the container. You can choose to change this default behavior with the '--skip-gitignore' option.

Examples:

$ balena local push
$ balena local push --app-name test-server --build-triggers package.json,requirements.txt
$ balena local push --force-build
$ balena local push --force-build --skip-logs
$ balena local push --ignore lib/
$ balena local push --verbose false
$ balena local push 192.168.2.10 --source . --destination /usr/src/app
$ balena local push 192.168.2.10 -s /home/user/balenaProject -d /usr/src/app --before 'echo Hello' --after 'echo Done'

Options

--source, -s <path>

root of project directory to push

--destination, -d <path>

destination path on device container

--ignore, -i <paths>

comma delimited paths to ignore when syncing with 'rsync'

--skip-gitignore

do not parse excluded/included files from .gitignore

--before, -b <command>

execute a command before pushing

--after, -a <command>

execute a command after pushing

--progress, -p

show progress

--skip-logs

do not stream logs after push

--verbose, -v

increase verbosity

--app-name, -n <name>

application name - may contain lowercase characters, digits and one or more dashes. It may not start or end with a dash.

--build-triggers, -r <files>

comma delimited file list that will trigger a container rebuild if changed

--force-build, -f

force a container build and run

--env, -e <env>

environment variable (e.g. --env 'ENV=value'). Multiple --env parameters are supported.

local stop [deviceIp]

Examples:

$ balena local stop
$ balena local stop --app-name myapp
$ balena local stop --all
$ balena local stop 192.168.1.10
$ balena local stop 192.168.1.10 --app-name myapp

Options

--all

stop all containers

--app-name, -a <name>

name of container to stop

Deploy

build [source]

Use this command to build an image or a complete multicontainer project with the provided docker daemon in your development machine or balena device. (See also the balena push command for the option of building images in the balenaCloud build servers.)

You must provide either an application or a device-type/architecture pair to use the balena Dockerfile pre-processor (e.g. Dockerfile.template -> Dockerfile).

This command will look into the given source directory (or the current working directory if one isn't specified) for a compose file. If one is found, this command will build each service defined in the compose file. If a compose file isn't found, the command will look for a Dockerfile, and if yet that isn't found, it will try to generate one.

The --registry-secrets option specifies a JSON or YAML file containing private Docker registry usernames and passwords to be used when pulling base images. Sample registry-secrets YAML file:

'my-registry-server.com:25000':
	username: ann
	password: hunter2
'':  # Use the empty string to refer to the Docker Hub
	username: mike
	password: cze14
'eu.gcr.io':  # Google Container Registry
	username: '_json_key'
	password: '{escaped contents of the GCR keyfile.json file}'

Examples:

$ balena build
$ balena build ./source/
$ balena build --deviceType raspberrypi3 --arch armv7hf --emulated
$ balena build --application MyApp ./source/
$ balena build --docker '/var/run/docker.sock'
$ balena build --dockerHost my.docker.host --dockerPort 2376 --ca ca.pem --key key.pem --cert cert.pem

Options

--arch, -A <arch>

The architecture to build for

--deviceType, -d <deviceType>

The type of device this build is for

--application, -a <application>

The target balena application this build is for

--projectName, -n <projectName>

Specify an alternate project name; default is the directory name

--emulated, -e

Run an emulated build using Qemu

--logs

Display full log output

--registry-secrets, -R <secrets.yml|.json>

Path to a YAML or JSON file with passwords for a private Docker registry

--docker, -P <docker>

Path to a local docker socket (e.g. /var/run/docker.sock)

--dockerHost, -h <dockerHost>

Docker daemon hostname or IP address (dev machine or balena device)

--dockerPort, -p <dockerPort>

Docker daemon TCP port number (hint: 2375 for balena devices)

--ca <ca>

Docker host TLS certificate authority file

--cert <cert>

Docker host TLS certificate file

--key <key>

Docker host TLS key file

--tag, -t <tag>

The alias to the generated image

--buildArg, -B <arg>

Set a build-time variable (eg. "-B 'ARG=value'"). Can be specified multiple times.

--nocache

Don't use docker layer caching when building

--squash

Squash newly built layers into a single new layer

deploy <appName> [image]

Usage: deploy <appName> ([image] | --build [--source build-dir])

Use this command to deploy an image or a complete multicontainer project to an application, optionally building it first. The source images are searched for (and optionally built) using the docker daemon in your development machine or balena device. (See also the balena push command for the option of building the image in the balenaCloud build servers.)

Unless an image is specified, this command will look into the current directory (or the one specified by --source) for a compose file. If one is found, this command will deploy each service defined in the compose file, building it first if an image for it doesn't exist. If a compose file isn't found, the command will look for a Dockerfile, and if yet that isn't found, it will try to generate one.

To deploy to an app on which you're a collaborator, use balena deploy <appOwnerUsername>/<appName>.

When --build is used, all options supported by balena build are also supported by this command.

The --registry-secrets option specifies a JSON or YAML file containing private Docker registry usernames and passwords to be used when pulling base images. Sample registry-secrets YAML file:

'my-registry-server.com:25000':
	username: ann
	password: hunter2
'':  # Use the empty string to refer to the Docker Hub
	username: mike
	password: cze14
'eu.gcr.io':  # Google Container Registry
	username: '_json_key'
	password: '{escaped contents of the GCR keyfile.json file}'

Examples:

$ balena deploy myApp
$ balena deploy myApp --build --source myBuildDir/
$ balena deploy myApp myApp/myImage

Options

--source, -s <source>

Specify an alternate source directory; default is the working directory

--build, -b

Force a rebuild before deploy

--nologupload

Don't upload build logs to the dashboard with image (if building)

--projectName, -n <projectName>

Specify an alternate project name; default is the directory name

--emulated, -e

Run an emulated build using Qemu

--logs

Display full log output

--registry-secrets, -R <secrets.yml|.json>

Path to a YAML or JSON file with passwords for a private Docker registry

--docker, -P <docker>

Path to a local docker socket (e.g. /var/run/docker.sock)

--dockerHost, -h <dockerHost>

Docker daemon hostname or IP address (dev machine or balena device)

--dockerPort, -p <dockerPort>

Docker daemon TCP port number (hint: 2375 for balena devices)

--ca <ca>

Docker host TLS certificate authority file

--cert <cert>

Docker host TLS certificate file

--key <key>

Docker host TLS key file

--tag, -t <tag>

The alias to the generated image

--buildArg, -B <arg>

Set a build-time variable (eg. "-B 'ARG=value'"). Can be specified multiple times.

--nocache

Don't use docker layer caching when building

--squash

Squash newly built layers into a single new layer

Platform

join [deviceIp]

Use this command to move a local device to an application on another balena server.

For example, you could provision a device against an openBalena installation where you perform end-to-end tests and then move it to balenaCloud when it's ready for production.

Moving a device between applications on the same server is not supported.

If you don't specify a device hostname or IP, this command will automatically scan the local network for balenaOS devices and prompt you to select one from an interactive picker. This usually requires root privileges.

Examples:

$ balena join
$ balena join balena.local
$ balena join balena.local --application MyApp
$ balena join 192.168.1.25
$ balena join 192.168.1.25 --application MyApp

Options

--application, -a <application>

The name of the application the device should join

leave [deviceIp]

Use this command to make a local device leave the balena server it is provisioned on. This effectively makes the device "unmanaged".

The device entry on the server is preserved after running this command, so the device can subsequently re-join the server if needed.

If you don't specify a device hostname or IP, this command will automatically scan the local network for balenaOS devices and prompt you to select one from an interactive picker. This usually requires root privileges.

Examples:

$ balena leave
$ balena leave balena.local
$ balena leave 192.168.1.25

Utilities

util available-drives

Use this command to list your machine's drives usable for writing the OS image to. Skips the system drives.