The Versa CLI is the text-based command-line interface for viewing, configuring, and managing Versa Director, Versa Analytics nodes, and VOS devices. Administrators reach it from a shell account – on Director, Analytics, or a VOS device – and issue the cli command to enter it, then configure to make changes.
Key takeaways
- The Versa CLI manages Director, Analytics, and VOS devices from a shell.
- You enter it from a shell account by issuing the cli command.
- The configure command switches to configuration mode; commit saves changes.
- WebSSH replaced Shell In a Box as the browser-based shell method.
- Director CLI cluster access covers primary, secondary, and arbiter nodes.
On this page: Why it mattersHow it worksVersa CLI access methodsVersa CLI & the VersaONE platformFAQ
Why is the Versa CLI important?
The Director GUI covers the great majority of day-to-day administration, but it isn’t the whole surface. Deep troubleshooting, one-off diagnostic checks, and settings that the GUI doesn’t expose all still go through a shell prompt. Because Director, Analytics, and VOS devices all follow the same underlying pattern – log in to a shell account, issue cli to enter the interface, optionally configure to change something – an administrator who learns the Versa CLI once can work confidently across every layer of the deployment: the orchestration console, the telemetry backend, and the branch devices themselves.
It’s also the fallback when something else is broken. If a device’s configuration has drifted, if a service needs restarting, or if the GUI itself is unreachable, the CLI is the direct line to the box. That directness cuts both ways, though: changes made and committed from a VOS device’s CLI put its running configuration out of sync with what’s stored in Director’s database, which is why CLI access is treated as a deliberate, audited capability rather than a casual alternative to the UI.
What is the Versa CLI?
Each node type has its own default shell account – admin on VOS devices, Administrator on Director, versa on Analytics – and the Versa CLI itself is reached the same way from any of them: issue the cli command at the shell prompt, and the prompt changes to > to show you’re in the CLI. At any prompt, typing ? lists the commands available, which vary depending on the node type and the current CLI mode.
Entering configure switches the prompt to %, configuration mode, where you can issue configuration and show commands – for example, setting the interfaces bound to a routing instance on a branch device. A commit command saves the changes; exit returns to the > prompt, and exit again returns to the shell. It’s a small, consistent vocabulary – shell, cli, configure, commit, exit – reused everywhere the CLI runs.
Versa CLI access methods
How you reach a shell account depends on the node type. Director nodes are reached from the Director UI itself: select Director CLI from the username menu, and (from Release 23.1.2) choose which node in a Director cluster – primary, secondary, or arbiter – to connect to, viewing each node’s configured status and northbound/southbound IP addresses before connecting. Analytics nodes use the standard SSH utility to log in directly to the shell.
VOS devices split by release. From Release 23.1.1, WebSSH – a browser-based SSH interface needing no external client like PuTTY – opens from the Shell icon on the Appliances screen in Director’s Administration tab, and supports session logging with downloadable logs and in-browser clipboard support. Releases 22.1.4 and earlier instead use Shell In a Box, a web-based terminal emulator opened from the same Appliances screen. WebSSH also added double authentication: only Provider Data Center System Admin (PDCSA) users get direct shell access, while everyone else must re-enter a username and password specifically for CLI access.
Versa CLI & the VersaONE platform
The Versa CLI is one of three ways administrators reach VersaONE, alongside the Director GUI and northbound REST APIs – the direct, text-based option when precision or troubleshooting depth matters more than a graphical workflow. WebSSH is what unifies that access across node types today: rather than requiring a locally installed SSH client and direct network reachability to every device, it centralizes terminal access inside Director’s own browser UI, which matters where security policy restricts SSH straight from an administrator’s laptop.
That consistency doesn’t erase the differences between node types, though – shell account names, available commands, and even the access method itself (SSH, WebSSH, or the Director menu) still depend on whether you’re on Director, Analytics, or a VOS device, as detailed in Access the Versa CLI.
Frequently asked questions
How do you start the Versa CLI?
Log in to a shell account on a Director node, Analytics node, or VOS device, then issue the cli command at the shell prompt. The prompt changes to >, indicating you’re in the CLI; from there, configure switches to configuration mode for making changes.
What’s the difference between operational mode and configuration mode?
At the > prompt, you’re in operational mode, where you can run show commands and type ? to list what’s available. Issuing configure switches the prompt to %, configuration mode, where you enter configuration changes and then save them with a commit command.
Does changing a VOS device’s configuration from the CLI affect Director?
Yes. When you modify a VOS device’s configuration from the CLI and commit it, the device’s running configuration falls out of sync with the configuration stored in Director’s database – a state that needs to be reconciled separately from ordinary CLI use.
What replaced Shell In a Box for accessing the VOS device CLI?
WebSSH, starting in Release 23.1.1. It’s a browser-based Secure Shell interface that needs no external SSH client, adds full session audit logging with downloadable logs, and requires most users to re-authenticate with a username and password even after logging in to Director.
Do Director, Analytics, and VOS devices use the same CLI?
They share the same command paradigm – a shell account, the cli command to enter, configure for configuration mode – but the default shell account name and the specific commands available differ by node type, and the access method (SSH, WebSSH, or the Director UI) varies too.
More on the Versa CLI
If you want to learn more, these are sources we trust.
| Versa Networks: platform | Versa Networks: secure SD-WAN | Versa Academy |
|---|---|---|
| The vendor’s product pages for the VersaONE platform the Versa CLI provides direct, text-based access into. | How the SD-WAN service the CLI helps configure and troubleshoot is packaged and delivered, from the vendor. | Versa’s training portal: courses and labs that build CLI fluency on Director, Analytics, and VOS devices. |
Related terms
If you’re reading about the Versa CLI, these are worth looking at next.
| Versa Director | Versa Analytics | Versa Operating System |
|---|---|---|
| The orchestration console whose CLI is reached from the Director UI menu, including cluster node access. | The telemetry and reporting headend component whose nodes an administrator reaches over SSH to use its CLI. | The software running on VOS devices, where the CLI’s shell account and commands differ from Director’s. |