Use and configure the Cassandra Query Language (CQL) shell (cqlsh)

Objective

The main way that you interact with DataStax Enterprise (DSE) is through the CQL shell (cqlsh), a Python-based command-line shell for accessing the database and issuing CQL (Cassandra Query Language) commands. This tutorial shows you how to configure and use cqlsh.

Prerequisites

DataStax Enterprise (DSE) is installed and running.

Location and how to run `cqlsh`

The cqlsh command is located in the bin directory of the DSE installation. If you install the standalone cqlsh, the command is located in the bin directory where the download file is extracted, or unzipped.

Running `cqlsh`

To run `cqlsh` locally

No IP address is required when running cqlsh locally.

bin/cqlsh

Results

Connected to Test Cluster at 127.0.0.1:9042
Connected to dse-6.9.0-early-preview-cluster at 127.0.0.1:9042.
[cqlsh 6.8.0 | DSE 6.9.0-early-preview | CQL spec 3.4.5 | DSE protocol v2]
Use HELP for help.
cqlsh>

To run `cqlsh` remotely

To run cqlsh, you’ll specify the IP address of a node in the cluster.

bin/cqlsh 10.0.0.1

Results

Connected to Test Cluster at 10.0.0.1:9042
[cqlsh 6.8.0 | DSE 6.9.0 | CQL spec 3.4.5 | DSE protocol v2]
Use HELP for help.
cqlsh>

To use a username and password

If you use security features, provide the username and password to authenticate with the database:

bin/cqlsh -u jane -p ScoobiePeanut&!

bin/cqlsh --help

There are a number of options that can be used with cqlsh. For a complete list of options, see the cqlsh reference page.

Using the `cqlshrc` file for configuration

bin/cqlsh CQLSHRC="~/<directory_name>"