---
title: influx v1 shell
description: The influx v1 shell subcommand starts an InfluxQL shell (REPL).
url: https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influx/v1/shell/
estimated_tokens: 1569
product: InfluxDB OSS v2
version: v2
---

# influx v1 shell

-   influx CLI 2.4.0+
-   InfluxDB 2.0.1+

This page documents an earlier version of InfluxDB OSS. [InfluxDB 3 Core](/influxdb3/core/) is the latest stable version.

#### API token hashing is enabled by default in InfluxDB OSS 2.9.0

Stronger token security: tokens are stored as hashes on disk, so a copy of the database file doesn’t expose usable tokens. Existing tokens are hashed on first startup and the original strings can’t be recovered afterward — **capture any plaintext tokens you still need before you upgrade**.

For more information, see [Token hashing](/influxdb/v2/admin/tokens/#token-hashing).

The `influx v1 shell` subcommand starts an InfluxQL shell (REPL).

#### Set up database and retention policy (DBRP) mapping

InfluxQL queries require a database and retention policy to query data. In InfluxDB 2.9, databases and retention policies have been combined and replaced with [buckets](/influxdb/v2/reference/glossary/#bucket). To use the InfluxQL to query an InfluxDB 2.9 bucket, first map your DBRP combinations to an appropriate bucket. For more information, see [Query data with InfluxQL](/influxdb/v2/query-data/influxql/).

## Usage

```sh
influx v1 shell [flags]
```

## Flags

| Flag |  | Description | Input type | Maps to ? |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| -c | --active-config | Config name to use for command | string | INFLUX_ACTIVE_CONFIG |
|  | --configs-path | Path to the influx CLI configurations (default: ~/.influxdbv2/configs) | string | INFLUX_CONFIGS_PATH |
|  | --host | HTTP address of InfluxDB | string | INFLUX_HOST |
|  | --http-debug | Inspect communication with InfluxDB servers. |  |  |
| -o | --org | Organization name (mutually exclusive with --org-id) | string | INFLUX_ORG |
|  | --org-id | Organization ID (mutually exclusive with --org) | string | INFLUX_ORG_ID |
|  | --skip-verify | Skip TLS certificate verification |  | INFLUX_SKIP_VERIFY |
| -t | --token | API token | string | INFLUX_TOKEN |

## Examples

#### Authentication credentials

The examples below assume your InfluxDB **host**, **organization**, and **token** are provided by either the [active `influx` CLI configuration](/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influx/#provide-required-authentication-credentials) or by environment variables (`INFLUX_HOST`, `INFLUX_ORG`, and `INFLUX_TOKEN`). If you do not have a CLI configuration set up or the environment variables set, include these required credentials for each command with the following flags:

-   `--host`: [InfluxDB host](/influxdb/v2/reference/urls/)
-   `-o, --org` or `--org-id`: InfluxDB organization name or ID
-   `-t, --token`: InfluxDB API token

##### Start an InfluxQL shell

```sh
influx v1 shell
```

#### Related

-   [influx CLI—Provide required authentication credentials](/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influx/#provide-required-authentication-credentials)
-   [influx CLI—Flag patterns and conventions](/influxdb/v2/reference/cli/influx/#flag-patterns-and-conventions)
-   [Query data with InfluxQL](/influxdb/v2/query-data/influxql/)
-   [Use the InfluxQL shell](/influxdb/v2/tools/influxql-shell/)

[InfluxQL](/influxdb/v2/tags/influxql/)