Starting cqlsh

Launch the cqlsh utility with the default settings.

Execute the cqlsh python script to start the CQL shell. The CQL shell is a python-based command line client for executing CQL commands interactively. The CQL shell supports tab completion. The cqlsh command run in either Python 2 or 3.

To connect to a security-enabled cluster, see Using cqlsh with authentication.

Tip: For a complete list, see cqlsh (startup options).

Procedure

  1. Navigate to the DataStax Distribution of Apache Cassandra installation directory.
  2. Start cqlsh on the Mac OSX, for example.
    bin/cqlsh
    If you use security features, provide a user name and password.
  3. Print the help menu for cqlsh.
    bin/cqlsh --help
  4. Optionally, specify the IP address and port to start cqlsh on a different node.
    bin/cqlsh 100.0.0.75 9042
    Note: You can use tab completion to see hints about how to complete a cqlsh command. Some platforms, such as Mac OSX, do not ship with tab completion installed. Use easy_install to install tab completion capabilities on Mac OSX:
    easy_install readline