clickhousectl - ClickHouse Documentation

clickhousectl is the CLI for ClickHouse: local and cloud. With clickhousectl you can:

Install and manage local ClickHouse versions
Launch and manage local ClickHouse servers
Execute queries against ClickHouse servers
Set up ClickHouse Cloud and create cloud-managed ClickHouse clusters
Manage ClickHouse Cloud resources
Install the official ClickHouse agent skills into supported coding agents
Push your local ClickHouse development to cloud

clickhousectl helps humans and AI-agents to develop with ClickHouse.

Installation

Quick install

curl https://clickhouse.com/cli | sh

The install script downloads the correct version for your OS and installs to ~/.local/bin/clickhousectl. A chctl alias is also created automatically for convenience.

Requirements

macOS (aarch64, x86_64) or Linux (aarch64, x86_64)
Cloud commands require a ClickHouse Cloud API key

Local

Installing and managing ClickHouse versions

clickhousectl downloads ClickHouse binaries from GitHub releases.

# Install a version
clickhousectl local install stable          # Latest stable release
clickhousectl local install lts             # Latest LTS release
clickhousectl local install 26.3            # Latest 26.3.x.x
clickhousectl local install 26.3.4.3        # Exact version

# List versions
clickhousectl local list                    # Installed versions
clickhousectl local list --remote           # Available for download

# Manage default version
clickhousectl local use stable              # Latest stable (installs if needed)
clickhousectl local use lts                 # Latest LTS (installs if needed)
clickhousectl local use 26.3                # Latest 26.3.x.x (installs if needed)
clickhousectl local use 26.3.4.3            # Exact version
clickhousectl local which                   # Show current default

# Remove a version
clickhousectl local remove 26.3.4.3

ClickHouse binary storage

ClickHouse binaries are stored in a global repository, so they can be used by multiple projects without duplicating storage. Binaries are stored in ~/.clickhousectl/:

~/.clickhousectl/
├── versions/
│   └── 26.3.4.3/
│       └── clickhouse
└── default              # tracks the active version

Initializing a project

clickhousectl local init

init bootstraps your current working directory with a standard folder structure for your ClickHouse project files. It is optional; you are welcome to use your own folder structure if preferred. It creates the following structure:

clickhouse/
├── tables/                 # Table definitions (CREATE TABLE ...)
├── materialized_views/     # Materialized view definitions
├── queries/                # Saved queries
└── seed/                   # Seed data / INSERT statements

Running queries

# Connect to a running server with clickhouse-client
clickhousectl local client                           # Connects to "default" server
clickhousectl local client --name dev                # Connects to "dev" server
clickhousectl local client --query "SHOW DATABASES"  # Run a query
clickhousectl local client --queries-file schema.sql # Run queries from a file
clickhousectl local client --host remote-host --port 9000  # Connect to a specific host/port

Creating and managing ClickHouse servers

Start and manage ClickHouse server instances. Each server gets its own isolated data directory at .clickhousectl/servers/<name>/data/.

# Start a server (runs in background by default)
clickhousectl local server start                          # Named "default"
clickhousectl local server start --name dev               # Named "dev"
clickhousectl local server start --foreground             # Run in foreground (-F / --fg)
clickhousectl local server start --http-port 8124 --tcp-port 9001  # Explicit ports
clickhousectl local server start -- --config-file=/path/to/config.xml

# List all servers (running and stopped)
clickhousectl local server list

# Stop servers
clickhousectl local server stop default                   # Stop by name
clickhousectl local server stop-all                       # Stop all running servers

# Remove a stopped server and its data
clickhousectl local server remove test

Server naming: Without --name, the first server is called “default”. If “default” is already running, a random name is generated (e.g. “bold-crane”). Use --name for stable identities you can start/stop repeatedly. Ports: Defaults are HTTP 8123 and TCP 9000. If these are already in use, free ports are automatically assigned and shown in the output. Use --http-port and --tcp-port to set explicit ports.

Project-local data directory

All server data lives inside .clickhousectl/ in your project directory:

.clickhousectl/
├── .gitignore              # auto-created, ignores everything
├── credentials.json        # cloud API credentials (if configured)
└── servers/
    ├── default/
    │   └── data/           # ClickHouse data files for "default" server
    └── dev/
        └── data/           # ClickHouse data files for "dev" server

Each named server has its own data directory, so servers are fully isolated from each other. Data persists between restarts — stop and start a server by name to pick up where you left off. Use clickhousectl local server remove <name> to permanently delete a server’s data.

Authentication

Authenticate to ClickHouse Cloud using OAuth (browser-based) or API keys.

clickhousectl cloud auth login

This opens your browser for authentication via the OAuth device flow. Tokens are saved to .clickhousectl/tokens.json (project-local).

API key/secret

# Non-interactive (CI-friendly)
clickhousectl cloud auth login --api-key YOUR_KEY --api-secret YOUR_SECRET

# Interactive prompt
clickhousectl cloud auth login --interactive

Credentials are saved to .clickhousectl/credentials.json (project-local). You can also use environment variables:

export CLICKHOUSE_CLOUD_API_KEY=your-key
export CLICKHOUSE_CLOUD_API_SECRET=your-secret

Or pass credentials directly via flags on any command:

clickhousectl cloud --api-key KEY --api-secret SECRET ...

Auth status and logout

clickhousectl cloud auth status    # Show current auth state
clickhousectl cloud auth logout    # Clear all saved credentials (credentials.json & tokens.json)

Credential resolution order: CLI flags > OAuth tokens > .clickhousectl/credentials.json > environment variables.

Cloud

Manage ClickHouse Cloud services via the API.

Organizations

clickhousectl cloud org list              # List organizations
clickhousectl cloud org get <org-id>      # Get organization details
clickhousectl cloud org update <org-id> --name "Renamed Org"
clickhousectl cloud org update <org-id> \
  --remove-private-endpoint pe-1,cloud-provider=aws,region=us-east-1 \
  --enable-core-dumps false
clickhousectl cloud org prometheus <org-id> --filtered-metrics true
clickhousectl cloud org usage <org-id> \
  --from-date 2024-01-01 \
  --to-date 2024-01-31

Services

# List services
clickhousectl cloud service list

# Get service details
clickhousectl cloud service get <service-id>

# Create a service (minimal)
clickhousectl cloud service create --name my-service

# Create with scaling options
clickhousectl cloud service create --name my-service \
  --provider aws \
  --region us-east-1 \
  --min-replica-memory-gb 8 \
  --max-replica-memory-gb 32 \
  --num-replicas 2

# Create with specific IP allowlist
clickhousectl cloud service create --name my-service \
  --ip-allow 10.0.0.0/8 \
  --ip-allow 192.168.1.0/24

# Create from backup
clickhousectl cloud service create --name restored-service --backup-id <backup-uuid>

# Create with release channel
clickhousectl cloud service create --name my-service --release-channel fast

# Start/stop a service
clickhousectl cloud service start <service-id>
clickhousectl cloud service stop <service-id>

# Connect to a cloud service with clickhouse-client
clickhousectl cloud service client --name my-service --password secret
clickhousectl cloud service client --id <service-id> -q "SELECT 1" --password secret

# Use CLICKHOUSE_PASSWORD env var (recommended for scripts/agents)
CLICKHOUSE_PASSWORD=secret clickhousectl cloud service client \
  --name my-service -q "SELECT count() FROM system.tables"

# Update service metadata and patches
clickhousectl cloud service update <service-id> \
  --name my-renamed-service \
  --add-ip-allow 10.0.0.0/8 \
  --remove-ip-allow 0.0.0.0/0 \
  --release-channel fast

# Update replica scaling
clickhousectl cloud service scale <service-id> \
  --min-replica-memory-gb 24 \
  --max-replica-memory-gb 48 \
  --num-replicas 3 \
  --idle-scaling true \
  --idle-timeout-minutes 10

# Reset password with generated credentials
clickhousectl cloud service reset-password <service-id>

# Delete a service (must be stopped first)
clickhousectl cloud service delete <service-id>

# Force delete: stops a running service then deletes
clickhousectl cloud service delete <service-id> --force

Service create options

Option	Description
`--name`	Service name (required)
`--provider`	Cloud provider: `aws`, `gcp`, `azure` (default: `aws`)
`--region`	Region (default: `us-east-1`)
`--min-replica-memory-gb`	Min memory per replica in GB (8-356, multiple of 4)
`--max-replica-memory-gb`	Max memory per replica in GB (8-356, multiple of 4)
`--num-replicas`	Number of replicas (1-20)
`--idle-scaling`	Allow scale to zero (default: `true`)
`--idle-timeout-minutes`	Min idle timeout in minutes (>= 5)
`--ip-allow`	IP CIDR to allow (repeatable, default: `0.0.0.0/0`)
`--backup-id`	Backup ID to restore from
`--release-channel`	Release channel: `slow`, `default`, `fast`

Query endpoint management

clickhousectl cloud service query-endpoint get <service-id>
clickhousectl cloud service query-endpoint create <service-id> \
  --role admin \
  --open-api-key key-1 \
  --allowed-origins https://app.example.com
clickhousectl cloud service query-endpoint delete <service-id>

Private endpoint management

clickhousectl cloud service private-endpoint create <service-id> --endpoint-id vpce-123
clickhousectl cloud service private-endpoint get-config <service-id>

Backup configuration

clickhousectl cloud service backup-config get <service-id>
clickhousectl cloud service backup-config update <service-id> \
  --backup-period-hours 24 \
  --backup-retention-period-hours 720 \
  --backup-start-time 02:00

Backups

clickhousectl cloud backup list <service-id>
clickhousectl cloud backup get <service-id> <backup-id>

Members

clickhousectl cloud member list
clickhousectl cloud member get <user-id>
clickhousectl cloud member update <user-id> --role-id <role-id>
clickhousectl cloud member remove <user-id>

Invitations

clickhousectl cloud invitation list
clickhousectl cloud invitation create --email dev@example.com --role-id <role-id>
clickhousectl cloud invitation get <invitation-id>
clickhousectl cloud invitation delete <invitation-id>

Keys

clickhousectl cloud key list
clickhousectl cloud key get <key-id>
clickhousectl cloud key create --name ci-key --role-id <role-id> --ip-allow 10.0.0.0/8
clickhousectl cloud key update <key-id> \
  --name renamed-key \
  --expires-at 2025-12-31T00:00:00Z \
  --state disabled \
  --ip-allow 0.0.0.0/0
clickhousectl cloud key delete <key-id>

Activity

clickhousectl cloud activity list --from-date 2024-01-01 --to-date 2024-12-31
clickhousectl cloud activity get <activity-id>

JSON output

Use the --json flag to print JSON-formatted responses.

clickhousectl cloud --json service list
clickhousectl cloud --json service get <service-id>

Skills

Install the official ClickHouse Agent Skills from ClickHouse/agent-skills.

# Default: interactive mode for humans, choose scope, then choose agents
clickhousectl skills

# Non-interactive: install into every supported project-local agent folder
clickhousectl skills --all

# Non-interactive: install only into detected agents
clickhousectl skills --detected-only

# Non-interactive: install into every supported global agent folder
clickhousectl skills --global --all

# Non-interactive: install into specific project-local agents
clickhousectl skills --agent claude --agent codex

Non-interactive flags

Flag	Description
`--agent <name>`	Install Skills for a specific agent (can be repeated)
`--global`	Use global scope; if omitted, project scope is used
`--all`	Install Skills for all supported agents
`--detected-only`	Install Skills for supported agents that were detected on the system

​Installation

​Quick install

​Requirements

​Local

​Installing and managing ClickHouse versions

​ClickHouse binary storage

​Initializing a project

​Running queries

​Creating and managing ClickHouse servers

​Project-local data directory

​Authentication

​OAuth login (recommended)

​API key/secret

​Auth status and logout

​Cloud

​Organizations

​Services

​Service create options

​Query endpoint management

​Private endpoint management

​Backup configuration

​Backups

​Members

​Invitations

​Keys

​Activity

​JSON output

​Skills

​Non-interactive flags