Local runtime commands

Start local Zitadel:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha start

By default, start boots the runtime with the platform project and creates a local admin, admin@zitadel.localhost, so you exist on your own server without signing up. Its password is generated, kept in .zitadel/local/admin.json, and never printed. start ends by printing a one-time sign-in link for the management console.

Open the consoleCopy Anchor Link

The link start printed works once. Print a fresh one whenever you need to get back in:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha console

The command signs in as admin@zitadel.localhost and opens the link in a browser. Add --no-open to print it without opening anything, which is what you want over SSH or on a headless machine.

If there is no local admin in this directory, because start never ran here or ran with the platform bootstrap turned off, the command fails with E_VALIDATION and tells you to run start first.

The credential file, how the password is handled, and how to turn the local admin off are described in SKILL.md.

Inspect and stopCopy Anchor Link

Show status:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha status

Print logs:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha logs

Stop the runtime while preserving data:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha stop

Delete runtime data:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha reset --force

The runtime listens on http://localhost:8080 by default. Choose another port when needed:

npx @zitadel/cli@alpha start --port 8081

Defaults to SQLite under the local data directory. See Databases.