---
layout: commands
page_title: 'Commands: ACL Token Create'
description: |
  The `consul acl token create` command creates new ACL tokens. Optional arguments can set TTL duration and attach new tokens to existing policies and roles.
---

# Consul ACL Token Create

Command: `consul acl token create`

Corresponding HTTP API Endpoint: [\[PUT\] /v1/acl/token](/consul/api-docs/acl/tokens#create-a-token)

This command creates new tokens. When creating a new token, policies may be linked using
either the `-policy-id` or the `-policy-name` options. When specifying policies by IDs you
may use a unique prefix of the UUID as a shortcut for specifying the entire UUID.

The table below shows this command's [required ACLs](/consul/api-docs/api-structure#authentication). Configuration of
[blocking queries](/consul/api-docs/features/blocking) and [agent caching](/consul/api-docs/features/caching)
are not supported from commands, but may be from the corresponding HTTP endpoint.

| ACL Required |
| ------------ |
| `acl:write`  |

## Usage

Usage: `consul acl token create [options] [args]`

#### Command Options

- `-accessor=<string>` - Create the token with this Accessor ID. It must be a UUID. If not
  specified one will be auto-generated

- `-description=<string>` - A description of the token.

- `-expires-ttl=<duration>` - Duration of time this token should be valid for.

- `-local` - Create this as a datacenter local token.

- `-meta` - Indicates that token metadata such as the content hash and raft indices should be shown
  for each entry.

- `-node-identity=<value>` - Name of a node identity to use for this role. May
  be specified multiple times. Format is `NODENAME:DATACENTER`. Added in Consul
  1.8.1.

- `-policy-id=<value>` - ID of a policy to use for this token. May be specified multiple times.

- `-policy-name=<value>` - Name of a policy to use for this token. May be specified multiple times.

- `-role-id=<value>` - ID of a role to use for this token. May be specified multiple times.

- `-role-name=<value>` - Name of a role to use for this token. May be specified multiple times.

- `-service-identity=<value>` - Name of a service identity to use for this
  token. May be specified multiple times. Format is the `SERVICENAME` or
  `SERVICENAME:DATACENTER1,DATACENTER2,...`

- `-secret=<string>` - Create the token with this Secret ID. It must be a UUID. If not
  specified one will be auto-generated.
  **Note**: The SecretID is used to authorize operations against Consul and should
  be generated from an appropriate cryptographic source.

- `-format={pretty|json}` - Command output format. The default value is `pretty`.

#### Enterprise Options

@include 'http_api_partition_options.mdx'

@include 'http_api_namespace_options.mdx'

#### API Options

@include 'http_api_options_client.mdx'

@include 'http_api_options_server.mdx'

## Examples

The following examples describe how to create ACL tokens for common scenarios.

### Create a token with policy by name

The following example creates a token that includes a policy by its name.

```shell-session
$ consul acl token create -description "Read Nodes and Services" -policy-name node-services-read
AccessorID:   986193b5-e2b5-eb26-6264-b524ea60cc6d
SecretID:     ec15675e-2999-d789-832e-8c4794daa8d7
Description:  Read Nodes and Services
Local:        false
Create Time:  2018-10-22 15:33:39.01789 -0400 EDT
Policies:
   06acc965-df4b-5a99-58cb-3250930c6324 - node-services-read
```

### Create a token for a service

The following example creates a token with the privileges necessary
for registering a service named `my-api`.
If `my-api` is in the service mesh, the token also has the privileges necessary
to register its associated sidecar proxy and must be provided to the proxy when
launched with [`consul connect envoy`](/consul/commands/connect/envoy#sidecar-proxy-with-acls-enabled).

```shell-session
$ consul acl token create -description 'my-api token' -service-identity 'my-api'
AccessorID:       0c083aca-6c15-f0cc-c4d9-30578db54cd9
SecretID:         930dafb6-5c08-040b-23fb-a368a95256f9
Description:      api token
Local:            false
Create Time:      2019-04-25 16:45:49.337687334 -0500 CDT
Service Identities:
   my-api (Datacenters: all)
```

### Create a temporary and highly-privileged token

The following example creates a token with a lifetime of 15 minutes that
includes the built-in [`global-management` policy](/consul/docs/security/acl/acl-policies#global-management).

```shell-session
$ consul acl token create -description "Temp Super User" -policy-name global-management -expires-ttl '15m'
AccessorID:   59f86a9b-d3b6-166c-32a0-be4ab3f94caa
SecretID:     ada7f751-f654-8872-7f93-498e799158b6
Description:  Temp Super User
Local:        false
Create Time:      2019-04-25 16:45:49.337687334 -0500 CDT
Expiration Time:  2019-04-25 17:00:49.337687334 -0500 CDT
Policies:
   00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000001 - global-management
```

### Create a local token with policy by ID

The following example creates a token that is only valid in this datacenter
and includes a policy by its UUID.

```shell-session
$ consul acl token create -description "Read Nodes and Services" -policy-id 06acc965 -local
AccessorID:   986193b5-e2b5-eb26-6264-b524ea60cc6d
SecretID:     ec15675e-2999-d789-832e-8c4794daa8d7
Description:  Read Nodes and Services
Local:        true
Create Time:  2018-10-22 15:33:39.01789 -0400 EDT
Policies:
   06acc965-df4b-5a99-58cb-3250930c6324 - node-services-read
```