CLI Reference

Complete reference for all ctx commands.

Context Management

`ctx`

Show current context status.

ctx

Displays:

Current context name
Environment (development, staging, production)
Active cloud providers
Active orchestration (Kubernetes, Nomad)
VPN status
Running tunnels

`ctx list`

List available contexts.

ctx list                         # List usable contexts (hides abstract)
ctx list --all                   # List all contexts including abstract/base

Output columns:

NAME - Context name (abstract contexts prefixed with ~)
ENVIRONMENT - Environment type
CLOUD - Configured cloud providers
ORCHESTRATION - Configured orchestrators

`ctx use <name>`

Switch to a context.

ctx use myproject-dev            # Switch to context
ctx use myproject-prod --confirm # Switch to production (skip confirmation)
ctx use myproject-prod --replace # Switch and deactivate previous context

Flags:

Flag	Description
`--confirm`	Skip production confirmation prompt
`--replace`	Deactivate previous context before switching

What happens:

Validates context exists and is not abstract
If production, prompts for confirmation (unless --confirm)
Sets environment variables
Connects VPN (if auto_connect: true)
Starts tunnels (if auto_connect: true)
Runs auto-login for cloud providers (if configured)
Fetches secrets and injects as environment variables

`ctx show <name>`

Show detailed context configuration.

ctx show myproject-prod

For inherited contexts, shows the merged configuration.

`ctx deactivate`

Deactivate current context.

ctx deactivate

What happens:

Clears context environment variables
Disconnects VPN (unless deactivate.disconnect_vpn: false)
Stops tunnels (unless deactivate.stop_tunnels: false)
Keeps credentials for next activation

`ctx logout [context]`

Fully disconnect and clear all credentials.

ctx logout                       # Logout current context
ctx logout myproject-prod        # Logout specific context

What happens:

Everything ctx deactivate does
Removes stored tokens (Vault, etc.) from keychain
Clears cached credentials

`ctx init`

Initialize ctx configuration.

ctx init

Creates ~/.config/ctx/ directory structure.

SSH Tunnels

`ctx tunnel list`

List defined tunnels for current context.

ctx tunnel list

`ctx tunnel up [name]`

Start tunnels.

ctx tunnel up                    # Start all tunnels
ctx tunnel up postgres           # Start specific tunnel

`ctx tunnel down [name]`

Stop tunnels.

ctx tunnel down                  # Stop all tunnels
ctx tunnel down postgres         # Stop specific tunnel

`ctx tunnel status`

Show running tunnel status.

ctx tunnel status

VPN

`ctx vpn connect`

Connect VPN for current context.

ctx vpn connect

`ctx vpn disconnect`

Disconnect VPN.

ctx vpn disconnect

`ctx vpn status`

Show VPN connection status.

ctx vpn status

Browser

`ctx browser list`

List detected browser profiles.

ctx browser list

`ctx browser open [url]`

Open browser with context profile.

ctx browser open                 # Open browser
ctx browser open https://example.com  # Open URL

Quick URLs

`ctx open [name]`

Open URLs defined in context.

ctx open                         # List available URLs
ctx open grafana                 # Open grafana URL in browser

Uses the configured browser profile if set.

Shell Integration

`ctx shell-hook <shell>`

Output shell integration script.

ctx shell-hook zsh               # Output Zsh integration
ctx shell-hook bash              # Output Bash integration
ctx shell-hook fish              # Output Fish integration

Add to your shell config:

ZshBashFish

eval "$(ctx shell-hook zsh)"

eval "$(ctx shell-hook bash)"

ctx shell-hook fish | source

Deactivate vs Logout

Command	VPN	Tunnels	Env Vars	Credentials
`ctx deactivate`	Disconnect*	Stop*	Clear	Keep
`ctx logout`	Disconnect	Stop	Clear	Remove

*Configurable per-context via deactivate.disconnect_vpn and deactivate.stop_tunnels

Exit Codes

Code	Meaning
`0`	Success
`1`	General error
`2`	Context not found
`3`	Abstract context (cannot use)
`4`	Production confirmation declined