Getting started

This page walks a normal workspace member through one successful CLI setup: sign in, create an API token with the right permissions, and authenticate the Spanline CLI. You do not need to be a platform admin.

If you already use API tokens, jump to Guides → API tokens.

What you will need

Need Notes
Spanline account Sign in at app.spanline.dev
Workspace membership At least Viewer in the workspace you will target
Spanline CLI Install from spanline.dev/cli

Step 1 — Sign in

  1. Open app.spanline.dev/login.
  2. Enter your work email → Continue with email.
  3. Enter your password → Sign in.
  4. If your organization requires MFA, complete enrollment under Account → Security before other pages unlock.

Pick the correct workspace in the header switcher — tokens can optionally be pinned to that workspace.

Step 2 — Open API tokens

  1. Go to Settings → Account → API tokens (/account/tokens).
  2. Set a Label you will recognize later (for example laptop or github-actions).
  3. Choose Expires (90 days is a good default for laptops; CI may use shorter).
Create API token form with CLI preset selected
CLI / CI preset — Platform read, Performance read+write, Capture read.

Step 3 — Choose permissions

Under Permissions, pick a preset:

Preset Typical use
CLI / CI spanline test run, upload results, read Capture
Read-only Dashboards, audits, no mutations
Full access Read and write across Platform, Performance, Capture
Custom Pick each product area: None · Read · Read & write · Full

Write includes read for the same product area (like GitHub personal access tokens). You do not need to tick both.

For Performance test runs you need Performance · Read & write (included in CLI / CI).

Custom token permissions with radio options per resource
Custom — granular control per Platform, Performance, and Capture.

Optional: turn on Restrict token to … so the token only works in the current workspace.

Step 4 — Create and copy the token

  1. Click Create token.
  2. Copy the sl_… value from the green reveal panel — it will not be shown again.
Token reveal panel with copy button and CLI snippet
Shown once — copy immediately; store in your password manager or CI secret store.

Never paste tokens into chat, tickets, or screenshots you share publicly.

Step 5 — Authenticate the CLI

On the machine that will run tests:

spanline auth login --token sl_…
spanline auth workspace list
spanline auth workspace use <workspace-name-or-id>
spanline auth status

spanline auth status should show your user, workspace, and that a token is configured.

CI one-off

For a single job you can skip writing credentials to disk:

SPANLINE_TOKEN=sl_… spanline test run --scenario-id <id>

Set SPANLINE_TOKEN as a protected secret in your CI provider.

Enterprise self-host: set SPANLINE_API to your deployment URL in CI when the default cloud API does not apply.

Step 6 — Confirm in the app

Return to API tokens. Your new token appears in the list with permission badges and Last used (updates after the first API call).

API tokens table with permission badges
List view — permissions, workspace scope, expiry, and revoke.

Next steps