Authentication

The Tektii CLI requires an API key to authenticate with the platform. This guide covers how to configure authentication.

Get Your API Key

Log in to your Tektii account
Navigate to Developers → API Keys
Click Create New Key
Copy the key and store it securely

Important

The API key is only shown once when created. Store it securely as you cannot retrieve it later.

Configure the CLI

There are two ways to authenticate the CLI: environment variable (recommended) or command-line flag.

Environment Variable (Recommended)

Set the TEKTII_API_KEY environment variable in your shell:

export TEKTII_API_KEY="your-api-key"

To make this permanent, add the export line to your shell profile:

# For bash
echo 'export TEKTII_API_KEY="your-api-key"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

# For zsh
echo 'export TEKTII_API_KEY="your-api-key"' >> ~/.zshrc
source ~/.zshrc

Command-Line Flag

Alternatively, pass the key with the --api-key flag on each command:

tektii --api-key "your-api-key" strategy list

Best Practice

The environment variable is recommended: you set the key once instead of retyping it on every command, and the single line in your shell profile is the one place to update when you rotate the key.

Test Your Connection

Once configured, verify your authentication works:

tektii strategy list

If authenticated correctly, you'll see a list of your strategies (or an empty list if you haven't created any yet).

Troubleshooting

If the CLI reports a missing or invalid key, your key may have been revoked or copied incompletely — mint a new one from Developers → API Keys. For the full list of errors and fixes (PATH, network, Docker), see Troubleshooting.

Next Steps

Your First Backtest - Run a complete backtest end to end
Installation - Install the CLI if you haven't already
Read Workflow - List strategies and download results