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# Controlling `headscale` with remote CLI
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## Prerequisit
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- A workstation to run `headscale` (could be Linux, macOS, other supported platforms)
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- A `headscale` server (version `0.13.0` or newer)
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- Access to create API keys (local access to the `headscale` server)
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- `headscale` _must_ be served over TLS/HTTPS
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  - Remote access does _not_ support unencrypted traffic.
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## Goal
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This documentation has the goal of showing a user how-to set control a `headscale` instance
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from a remote machine with the `headscale` command line binary.
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## Create an API key 
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We need to create an API key to authenticate our remote `headscale` when using it from our workstation.
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To create a API key, log into your `headscale` server and generate a key:
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```shell
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headscale apikeys create --expiration 90d
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```
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Copy the output of the command and save it for later. Please not that you can not retrieve a key again, 
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if the key is lost, expire the old one, and create a new key.
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To list the keys currently assosicated with the server:
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```shell
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headscale apikeys list
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```
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and to expire a key:
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```shell
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headscale apikeys expire --prefix "<PREFIX>"
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```
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## Download and configure `headscale`
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1. Download the latest [`headscale` binary from GitHub's release page](https://github.com/juanfont/headscale/releases):
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2. Put the binary somewhere in your `PATH`, e.g. `/usr/local/bin/headcale`
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3. Make `headscale` executable:
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```shell
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chmod +x /usr/local/bin/headscale
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```
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4. Configure the CLI through Environment Variables
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```shell
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export HEADSCALE_CLI_ADDRESS="<HEADSCALE ADDRESS>"
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export HEADSCALE_CLI_API_KEY="<API KEY FROM PREVIOUS STAGE>"
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```
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This will tell the `headscale` binary to connect to a remote instance, instead of looking
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for a local instance (which is what it does on the server). 
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The API key is needed to make sure that your are allowed to access the server. The key is _not_
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needed when running directly on the server, as the connection is local.
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5. Test the connection
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Let us run the headscale command to verify that we can connect by listing our nodes:
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```shell
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headscale nodes list
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```
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You should now be able to see a list of your nodes from your workstation, and you can
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now control the `headscale` server from your workstation.
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## Troubleshooting
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Checklist:
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- Make sure you have the _same_ `headscale` version on your server and workstation
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- Make sure you use version `0.13.0` or newer.
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- Verify that your TLS certificate is valid 
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  - If it is not valid, set the environment variable `HEADSCALE_CLI_INSECURE=true` to allow insecure certs.
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