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CLI command syntax - AWS Client VPN
connectdisconnectimport-profiledelete-profilelist-profilesget-configget-connection-statuslist-connectionsput-preferencelist-preferencessend-diagnostic-logsExit codes

CLI command syntax

You can use CLI commands by using the following syntax:

aws-vpn-client <COMMAND> [OPTIONS]

The CLI tool supports the following commands.

Usage: aws-vpn-client <COMMAND>

Commands:
  connect                Connect a profile through the AWS VPN Client
  disconnect             Disconnect a profile from the AWS VPN Client
  delete-profile         Delete a profile from the AWS VPN Client
  import-profile         Import a VPN connection profile
  list-profiles          List all VPN profiles
  get-config             Get configuration for a profile
  put-preference         Put a preference value
  list-preferences       List all preferences
  get-connection-status  Get the current connection status for a VPN profile
  list-connections       List all active VPN connections
  send-diagnostic-logs   Send diagnostic logs to AWS for troubleshooting
  help                   Print this message or the help of the given subcommand(s)

Options:
  -h, --help     Print help
  -V, --version  Print version

connect

Description

Establish a VPN connection to a profile.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client connect
  --profile-name <PROFILE>
  [--auth-user-pass <AUTH_USER_PASS>]

Options

--profile-name (string)

The name of the profile to connect. This option is required.

--auth-user-pass (string)

Path to a file containing the username (line 1), password (line 2), and optional MFA code (line 3). This option is not required.

Examples

Example: Connect to a VPN profile

The following connect example establishes a VPN connection to a profile.

aws-vpn-client connect --profile-name "Production-VPN"

Output:

{
  "status": "Connected"
}

disconnect

Description

Terminate an active VPN connection.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client disconnect
  --profile-name <PROFILE_NAME>

Options

--profile-name (string)

The name of the connected profile to disconnect. This option is required.

Examples

Example: Disconnect from a VPN profile

The following disconnect example terminates a VPN connection. There is no output on success.

aws-vpn-client disconnect --profile-name "Production-VPN"

Example: Disconnect error

The following disconnect example shows the error when the profile is not connected.

aws-vpn-client disconnect --profile-name "Production-VPN"

Output:

{
  "status": "Error",
  "message": "Profile is not connected"
}

import-profile

Description

Import a VPN connection profile.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client import-profile
  --profile-name <PROFILE_NAME>
  --config-path <CONFIG_PATH>
  [--global]

Options

--profile-name (string)

Custom name for the imported profile. This option is required.

--config-path (string)

Path to the OpenVPN configuration file (.ovpn). This option is required.

--global (boolean)

Import as a global profile available to all users. This option requires administrator privileges.

Examples

Example: Import a profile

The following import-profile example imports a VPN connection profile.

aws-vpn-client import-profile --profile-name "Production-VPN" --config-path /path/to/vpn-config.ovpn

Output:

{
  "status": "Success"
}

Example: Import a global profile

The following import-profile example imports a global profile. This requires administrator privileges.

sudo aws-vpn-client import-profile --profile-name "Company-VPN" --config-path /path/to/config.ovpn --global

Output:

{
  "status": "Success"
}

Example: Import error with invalid file path

The following import-profile example shows the error when the configuration file is not found.

aws-vpn-client import-profile --profile-name "test" --config-path /invalid/path.ovpn

Output:

{
  "status": "Error",
  "message": "Failed to read OpenVPN config file: No such file or directory (os error 2)"
}

delete-profile

Description

Delete a profile from the client.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client delete-profile
  --profile-name <PROFILE_NAME>

Options

--profile-name (string)

The name of the profile to delete. This option is required.

Examples

Example: Delete a profile

The following delete-profile example deletes a VPN profile. There is no output on success.

aws-vpn-client delete-profile --profile-name "Production-VPN"

Example: Delete error with nonexistent profile

The following delete-profile example shows the error when the profile does not exist.

aws-vpn-client delete-profile --profile-name "nonexistent"

Output:

{
  "status": "Error",
  "message": "Profile not found"
}

list-profiles

Description

List all VPN profiles.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client list-profiles

Examples

Example: List all VPN profiles

The following list-profiles example lists all imported VPN profiles.

aws-vpn-client list-profiles

Output:

[
  {
    "profile-name": "Production-VPN",
    "owned-by": "jdoe",
    "auth-type": "saml",
    "imported-at": "2026-07-21T13:04:42-07:00"
  },
  {
    "profile-name": "Staging-VPN",
    "owned-by": "jdoe",
    "auth-type": "ma",
    "imported-at": "2026-07-22T10:30:00-07:00"
  }
]
Note

Global profiles (imported with --global) do not have an owned-by field.

get-config

Description

Retrieve the OpenVPN configuration for a profile.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client get-config
  --profile-name <PROFILE_NAME>

Options

--profile-name (string)

The name of the profile to retrieve configuration for. This option is required.

Examples

Example: Retrieve OpenVPN configuration

The following get-config example retrieves the OpenVPN configuration for a profile.

aws-vpn-client get-config --profile-name "Production-VPN"

Output:

client
dev tun
proto udp
remote cvpn-endpoint-0123456789abcdef0.prod.clientvpn.us-east-1.amazonaws.com 443
remote-random-hostname
resolv-retry infinite
nobind
remote-cert-tls server
cipher AES-256-GCM
verb 3
<ca>
-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
...
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
</ca>
auth-user-pass
reneg-sec 0

get-connection-status

Description

Get the current connection status for a VPN profile.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client get-connection-status
  --profile-name <PROFILE_NAME>
  [--show-details]

Options

--profile-name (string)

The name of the profile to retrieve connection status for. This option is required.

--show-details (boolean)

Include connection byte statistics in the output.

Examples

Example: Get connection status

The following get-connection-status example retrieves the connection status for a profile.

aws-vpn-client get-connection-status --profile-name "Production-VPN"

Output:

{
  "connection-status": "Connected",
  "latest-connection-attempt": {
    "initiated-by": "jdoe",
    "updated-at": "2026-07-24T15:50:36-07:00"
  }
}

Example: Get connection status with details

The following get-connection-status example includes byte statistics by using the --show-details option.

aws-vpn-client get-connection-status --profile-name "Production-VPN" --show-details

Output:

{
  "connection-status": "Connected",
  "latest-connection-attempt": {
    "initiated-by": "jdoe",
    "updated-at": "2026-07-24T15:50:36-07:00",
    "details": {
      "tunnel-bytes-in": 0,
      "tunnel-bytes-out": 0,
      "transport-bytes-in": 9674,
      "transport-bytes-out": 11413
    }
  }
}

list-connections

Description

List all active VPN connections.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client list-connections

Examples

Example: List active connections

The following list-connections example lists all active VPN connections.

aws-vpn-client list-connections

Output:

[
  {
    "profile-name": "Production-VPN",
    "initiated-by": "jdoe",
    "connection-status": "Connected",
    "last-updated-at": "2026-07-24T15:50:36-07:00"
  }
]

Example: No active connections

The following list-connections example shows the output when there are no active connections.

aws-vpn-client list-connections

Output:

[]

put-preference

Description

Set a global configuration preference. Most settings require administrator privileges.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client put-preference
  --key <PREFERENCE_KEY>
  --value <PREFERENCE_VALUE>

Options

--key (string)

The name of the preference key to set. This option is required.

--value (string)

The value to set for the preference key. This option is required.

The following preference keys are available:

enable-telemetry

Enable or disable telemetry (true/false).

enable-user-profile-management

Allow or disallow end users to import or delete profiles (true/false).

max-connections

Maximum number of concurrent connections (integer, 1-5).

Examples

Example: Set a preference

The following put-preference example sets the maximum number of connections. This requires administrator privileges. There is no output on success.

sudo aws-vpn-client put-preference --key max-connections --value 4

Example: Error without administrator privileges

The following put-preference example shows the error when you run the command without administrator privileges.

aws-vpn-client put-preference --key max-connections --value 4

Output:

{
  "status": "Error",
  "message": "Permission denied: admin privileges required"
}

Example: Error with invalid value

The following put-preference example shows the error when you provide an invalid value.

sudo aws-vpn-client put-preference --key max-connections --value 8

Output:

{
  "status": "Error",
  "message": "Preference value is invalid"
}

list-preferences

Description

Display all global configuration preferences and current values.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client list-preferences

Examples

Example: List all preferences

The following list-preferences example displays all global configuration preferences and their current values.

aws-vpn-client list-preferences

Output:

{
  "enable-telemetry": true,
  "enable-user-profile-management": true,
  "max-connections": 1
}

send-diagnostic-logs

Description

Collect and submit diagnostic logs to AWS for troubleshooting.

Synopsis

aws-vpn-client send-diagnostic-logs

Examples

Example: Send diagnostic logs

The following send-diagnostic-logs example collects and submits diagnostic logs to AWS.

aws-vpn-client send-diagnostic-logs

Output:

{
  "reference-id": "us-west-2:78ff6531-5dc4-c706-7149-e6cfd8adadc7/2026-07-24-16-03-55.zip"
}
Note

Share the reference-id value with AWS Support when reporting issues.

Exit codes

The AWS Client VPN CLI tool returns the following exit codes.

Exit code Meaning
0 Success
1 General error
2 Invalid command syntax