description: Environment variables, config files, and configuration options for the Sentry CLI

The Sentry CLI can be configured through config files, environment variables, and a local database. Most users don't need to set any of these — the CLI auto-detects your project from your codebase and stores credentials locally after `sentry auth login`.

The CLI supports a `.sentryclirc` config file using standard INI syntax. This is the same format used by the legacy `sentry-cli` tool, so existing config files are automatically picked up.

The CLI looks for `.sentryclirc` files by walking up from your current directory toward the filesystem root. If multiple files are found, values from the closest file take priority, with `~/.sentryclirc` serving as a global fallback.

org = my-org

project = my-project

token = sntrys_...

| Section | Key | Description |

|---------|-----|-------------|

| `[defaults]` | `org` | Default organization slug |

| `[defaults]` | `project` | Default project slug |

| `[defaults]` | `url` | Sentry base URL (for self-hosted) |

| `[auth]` | `token` | Auth token (mapped to `SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN`) |

In monorepos, place a `.sentryclirc` at the repo root with your org, then add per-package configs with just the project:

When you run a command from `packages/frontend/`, the CLI resolves `org = my-company` from the root and `project = frontend-web` from the closest file.

When the CLI needs to determine your org and project, it checks these sources in order:

1. **Explicit CLI arguments** — `sentry issue list my-org/my-project`

2. **Environment variables** — `SENTRY_ORG` / `SENTRY_PROJECT`

3. **`.sentryclirc` config file** — walked up from CWD, merged with `~/.sentryclirc`

4. **DSN auto-detection** — scans source code and `.env` files

5. **Directory name inference** — matches your directory name against project slugs

The first source that provides both org and project wins. For org-only commands, only the org is needed.

If you previously used the legacy `sentry-cli` and have a `~/.sentryclirc` file, the new CLI reads it automatically. The `[defaults]` and `[auth]` sections are fully compatible. The `[auth] token` value is mapped to the `SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN` environment variable internally (only if the env var is not already set).

The CLI automatically detects your Sentry project from your codebase, eliminating the need to specify the target for every command. DSN detection is one part of the [resolution priority chain](./configuration/#resolution-priority) — it runs after checking for explicit arguments, environment variables, and `.sentryclirc` config files.

For monorepos or when DSN detection picks up the wrong project, use a [`.sentryclirc` config file](./configuration/#configuration-file-sentryclirc) to pin your org/project explicitly.

- **The CLI auto-detects org/project** — most commands work without explicit targets by checking `.sentryclirc` config files, scanning for DSNs in `.env` files and source code, and matching directory names. Only specify `<org>/<project>` when the CLI reports it can't detect the target or detects the wrong one.

- **Specifying org/project when not needed**: Auto-detection resolves org/project from `.sentryclirc` config files, DSNs, env vars, and directory names. Let it work first — only add `<org>/<project>` if the CLI says it can't detect the target or detects the wrong one.

import { applySentryCliRcEnvShim } from "./lib/sentryclirc.js";

// Load .sentryclirc config and apply env shims for auth token and URL.

// Must run before any auth or API calls so the env vars are in place.

applySentryCliRcEnvShim(process.cwd());

import { logger } from "./logger.js";

const log = logger.withTag("ini");

export type IniData = Record<string, Record<string, string>>;

const BOM = "\uFEFF";

const SECTION_RE = /^\[([^\]]+)\]$/;

const CR_RE = /\r$/;

function stripQuotes(value: string): string {

if (value.length < 2) {

return value;

}

const first = value[0];

const last = value.at(-1);

if ((first === '"' || first === "'") && first === last) {

return value.slice(1, -1);

}

return value;

export function parseIni(content: string): IniData {

const data: IniData = {};

let currentSection = "";

// Ensure the global section always exists

data[currentSection] = {};

// Strip UTF-8 BOM if present

const text = content.startsWith(BOM) ? content.slice(1) : content;

for (const rawLine of text.split("\n")) {

const line = rawLine.replace(CR_RE, "").trim();

// Skip empty lines and comments (lines starting with # or ;)

if (line === "" || line[0] === "#" || line[0] === ";") {

continue;

}

// Check for section header

const sectionMatch = SECTION_RE.exec(line);

if (sectionMatch?.[1]) {

currentSection = sectionMatch[1].trim().toLowerCase();

if (!(currentSection in data)) {

data[currentSection] = {};

}

continue;

}

// Check for key = value pair

const eqIndex = line.indexOf("=");

if (eqIndex === -1) {

log.debug(`Skipping malformed INI line: ${line}`);

continue;

}

const key = line.slice(0, eqIndex).trim().toLowerCase();

if (key === "") {

log.debug(`Skipping INI line with empty key: ${line}`);

continue;

}

const rawValue = line.slice(eqIndex + 1).trim();

const value = stripQuotes(rawValue);

// biome-ignore lint/style/noNonNullAssertion: section is always initialized above

data[currentSection]![key] = value;

}

return data;