> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.zeroruntime.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# CLI Setup

> Install the Zero Runtime CLI with pip and authenticate your account so you can build and deploy agents.

The Zero Runtime CLI (`zrt`) is a Python package: it is both the developer CLI and the
console-mode engine, so there is just one thing to install. Install it once, authenticate,
and you are ready to deploy.

## Install the CLI

Install `zrt` with pip:

```bash theme={null}
pip install zrt
```

<Note>
  Requires **Python 3.11 or newer**. If `pip` maps to Python 2 on your system, use
  `pip3 install zrt`. To keep it isolated, install it inside a virtual environment.
</Note>

### Verify the install

```bash theme={null}
zrt --version
```

You should see the installed version printed back, for example `zrt 0.0.1`.

## Authenticate

Log in to connect the CLI to your Zero Runtime account. This opens your browser to confirm
the login; the CLI waits for approval and then stores your token locally.

```bash theme={null}
zrt auth login
```

```text Expected output theme={null}
◆ Authentication
▸ Initiating browser authentication...
✓ Opened authentication URL in browser
  https://app.zeroruntime.ai/cli/confirm-auth?requestId=...
⠋ Waiting for authentication...
✓ Successfully authenticated!
```

<Tip>
  If the link expires or the browser doesn't open, run `zrt auth login` again. You can
  copy the printed URL into a browser manually.
</Tip>

## Try a live agent instantly

Once you're signed in, the fastest way to see Zero Runtime working is `zrt quickstart`. It
downloads a ready-made example into a new folder and runs it locally, opening a
**playground** in your browser so you can talk to it in about 30 seconds.

```bash theme={null}
zrt quickstart
```

Pass an example to skip the picker, or `--no-open` to run without opening the browser:

```bash theme={null}
zrt quickstart --template <example-id>
zrt quickstart --no-open
```

<Note>
  `quickstart` is the quickest way to try an agent and get a working project to build on. To
  deploy it to the cloud, follow [Deploy an Agent](/deployments/deploy-an-agent).
</Note>

## Sign out

When you want to disconnect the CLI from your account on this machine:

```bash theme={null}
zrt auth logout
```

## Next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Deploy an Agent" icon="rocket" href="/deployments/deploy-an-agent">
    Create a project, test it locally, then deploy, step by step.
  </Card>

  <Card title="CLI Reference" icon="book" href="/deployments/cli-reference">
    Browse every command and flag.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>