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Auth

Use vsdk auth to sign in, check your account, or sign out of the VideoSDK CLI.

When you need to sign in​

vsdk init requires a VideoSDK token to configure an application that can join calls. It checks for credentials in the following order:

  1. VIDEOSDK_TOKEN, if set.
  2. Credentials saved by vsdk auth login.
  3. Interactive sign-in. If you decline, you can provide a token manually or continue without one.

You do not need to run vsdk auth login before using vsdk init. The interactive setup offers sign-in when authentication is required.

Use --skip-token to skip all token sources and leave the application's credential placeholder unchanged.

You can browse templates, search and read documentation, and configure MCP or Agent Skills without signing in to VideoSDK.

Sign in​

Use vsdk auth login to sign in to your VideoSDK account.

The CLI opens a sign-in page in your browser and waits for you to approve the request. After approval, the CLI saves your credentials for use by future commands.

vsdk auth login
Example output

After successful authentication:

✓ Successfully authenticated

Sign in when you are already signed in​

If a sign-in is already saved, vsdk auth login asks whether to replace it. Answer no to keep the current one.

Without a terminal the CLI cannot ask, so the command exits with code 1. Pass --yes to replace the saved sign-in without the question:

vsdk auth login --yes

An expired sign-in is replaced without asking.

Sign in without opening a browser​

If you are working over SSH or the CLI cannot open a browser automatically, use --no-browser to display the authentication URL.

vsdk auth login --no-browser

Open the displayed URL manually in a browser and approve the request.

note

The terminal continues to wait for authentication approval. The --no-browser option prevents the CLI from opening the browser automatically, but it does not make the authentication process unattended.

Check authentication status​

Use vsdk auth status to check the account associated with your saved CLI credentials.

vsdk auth status
Example output

The following account details are illustrative:

◆ Account

Name              Alex Example
Email             alex@example.com
…
API key           abcd1234…5678
info

vsdk auth status checks your saved CLI sign-in. It does not check the VIDEOSDK_TOKEN environment variable.

An application can use an environment token even when vsdk auth status reports that you are not signed in.

Sign out​

Use vsdk auth logout to remove the credentials saved by the VideoSDK CLI.

vsdk auth logout

Signing out does not:

  • Unset the VIDEOSDK_TOKEN environment variable.
  • Remove credentials that have already been written to a project.

You can sign in again at any time using:

vsdk auth login

Authentication in scripts​

For unattended vsdk init commands, provide a valid VIDEOSDK_TOKEN through your environment or CI secret settings, or sign in beforehand on the same machine.

The VIDEOSDK_TOKEN environment variable takes precedence over saved credentials. If the environment token is invalid or expired, the CLI returns an error instead of falling back to the saved sign-in.

The --yes option confirms setup prompts but does not provide credentials or approve browser-based authentication.

If init runs without a terminal and no usable credentials are available, it exits with code 3.

To create a project without credentials, use --skip-token. See Non-interactive setup for complete examples.

Missing-credentials JSON error

When --json is used, authentication errors are written to stderr.

Example output:

{
  "error": {
    "name": "AuthError",
    "message": "Not signed in",
    "code": 3,
    "hint": "Run \"vsdk auth login\" first, set VIDEOSDK_TOKEN, or pass --skip-token."
  }
}

The auth commands also accept the options shared by every command, such as --yes, --json and --quiet. See Global options.

Get help​

To view the available authentication commands and options:

vsdk auth --help

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