---
name: codeengine-cli-install
title: Setting up the CLI
description: Install, update, and delete the required CLIs and set up your environment to use IBM Cloud® Code Engine.
last-updated: 2026-07-20
---

> ## Documentation Index
> The table of contents for this documentation set is at https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/codeengine?format=markdown
> The index for all IBM Cloud docs is at: https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use these files to discover more information as needed.

# Setting up the CLI
{: #install-cli}

Install, update, and delete the required CLIs and set up your environment to use IBM Cloud® Code Engine.
{: shortdesc}


## Supported environments for Code Engine CLI
{: #cli-env}

The Code Engine CLI supports the following environments:

- Linux 64 bit
- Linux 64 bit ARM
- Linux 32 bit
- Mac OS X 64 bit
- Mac OS X M1/ARM
- Windows 64 bit
- Windows 32 bit


## Installing the IBM Cloud CLI
{: #cli-setup}

Install the latest version of the IBM Cloud CLI.
{: shortdesc}

Before you begin

You must create an [IBM Cloud account](https://cloud.ibm.com/){: external}.

1. Download and install the [IBM Cloud CLI](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cli?topic=cli-getting-started&format=markdown).

    This installation includes the following files:

    * IBM Cloud Object Storage plug-in
    * IBM Cloud Container Registry plug-in
    * IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service plug-in

    For more information, see [IBM Cloud CLI](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cli?topic=cli-getting-started&format=markdown).

2. Log in to the IBM Cloud CLI.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud login
    ```
    {: pre}

3. If you have more than one account, you are prompted to select which account to use. Follow the prompts or use the **`target`** command to select your IBM Cloud account.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud target -c <account_id>
    ```
    {: pre}

4. You must also specify a region. You can use the **`target`** command to target or change regions.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud target -r <region>
    ```
    {: pre}

5. You must specify a resource group. To get a list of your resource groups, run the following command.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud resource groups
    ```
    {: pre}

    Example output

    ```txt
    Retrieving all resource groups under account <account_id> as email@ibm.com...
    OK
    Name      ID                                 Default Group   State
    default   a8a12accd63b437bbd6d58fb8b462ca7   true            ACTIVE
    test      a8a12abbbd63b437cca6d58fb8b462ca7  false           ACTIVE
    ```
    {: screen}

6. Target a resource group by running the following command.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud target -g <resource_group>
    ```
    {: pre}

    Example output

    ```txt
    Targeted resource group default
    ```
    {: screen}

## Installing the Code Engine CLI plug-in
{: #install-cli-plugin}

Install the latest version of the Code Engine CLI.
{: shortdesc}

Be sure that you installed the latest version of the IBM Cloud CLI. Otherwise, your Code Engine CLI installation might fail with a message similar to `Could not find compatible binary to install for plug-in code-engine`.
{: tip}



1. Install the Code Engine plug-in.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin install code-engine
    ```
    {: pre}

2. Use the **`ibmcloud plugin show code-engine`** command to verify that the plug-in is installed.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin show code-engine
    ```
    {: pre}

    Example output

    ```txt
    Plugin Name                              code-engine[ce]
    Plugin Version                           1.31.0
    Plugin SDK Version                       0.9.0
    Minimal IBM Cloud CLI version required   1.0.0
    Private endpoints supported              true

    Commands:
    code-engine,ce                    Manage Code Engine components.
    [...]
    ```
    {: screen}

3. To run Code Engine commands, use **`ibmcloud code-engine`** or **`ibmcloud ce`**. To see everything that you can do with the Code Engine plug-in, run **`ibmcloud ce`** with no arguments.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud ce
    ```
    {: pre}

Optionally, you can install the [`jq` package](https://stedolan.github.io/jq){: external}. Many Code Engine commands include an option (`--output JSON`) to create JSON output. With this package, you can view and parse JSON responses from the command line.
{: tip}

For more information about Code Engine commands, see the [**`ibmcloud ce`** commands](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/codeengine?topic=codeengine-cli&format=markdown).

## Updating the Code Engine CLI
{: #update-cli}

Update the CLI periodically to take advantage of new features.

1. View your current plug-in list by running the **`ibmcloud plugin list`** command.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin list
    ```
    {: pre}

    Example output

    ```txt
    Listing installed plug-ins...

    Plugin Name                                  Version   Status             Private endpoints supported
    code-engine[ce]                              1.31.0                       true
    container-registry                           0.1.571                      true
    container-service[kubernetes-service]        1.0.408                      false
    ```
    {: screen}

2. If an update is available, run the **`ibmcloud plugin update`** command.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin update code-engine
    ```
    {: pre}


## Uninstalling the CLI
{: #uninstall-cli}

If you no longer need the CLI, you can uninstall it.

1. List the plug-ins that are installed.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin list
    ```
    {: pre}

2. Uninstall the plug-ins. For example, to uninstall the Code Engine CLI plug-in:

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin uninstall code-engine
    ```
    {: pre}

3. Verify the plug-ins were uninstalled by running the following command and checking the list of the plug-ins that are installed.

    ```txt
    ibmcloud plugin list
    ```
    {: pre}

The plug-ins that you deleted are not displayed in the results.

## Accessing the IBM Cloud Shell in your web browser
{: #cloud-shell}

With the [IBM&reg; Cloud Shell](https://cloud.ibm.com/shell){: external}, you can use the IBM Cloud CLI and other CLI plug-ins directly from your web browser.
{: shortdesc}

The IBM Cloud Shell is enabled with several [plug-ins and tools](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/cloud-shell?topic=cloud-shell-plugins-tools&format=markdown), including the base IBM Cloud CLI (`ibmcloud`) and the Code Engine CLI.

While you use the Cloud Shell, keep in mind the following limitations.
- You can open up to five concurrent sessions, which operate independently so you can work with different resources, regions, and accounts at once.
- Any files that you download and edit locally, such as YAML files, are stored temporarily in the Cloud Shell and don't persist across sessions.
- Cloud Shell has a usage quota that limits you to 50 hours within a week.

To launch and use the IBM Cloud Shell, in the [IBM Cloud console](https://cloud.ibm.com/){: external} menu bar, click the Cloud Shell icon ![IBM Cloud Shell icon](../icons/terminal-cloud-shell.svg).  A session starts and automatically logs you in to the IBM Cloud CLI with your current account credentials.