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Installation Guide

This guide will help you install the Helmet CLI on your system. The Helmet CLI is the primary tool for interacting with the Helmet platform.

The fastest way to install Helmet is using our automated installation script:

curl -LsSf https://install.helmet.sh | sh

What the Installer Does​

  1. Platform Detection: Identifies if you're running Linux or macOS
  2. Architecture Detection: Determines if you're on x86_64 (AMD64) or ARM64
  3. Smart Installation:
    • Attempts to install to /usr/local/bin (system-wide)
    • Falls back to $HOME/bin if no system permissions
    • Creates $HOME/bin if it doesn't exist
  4. PATH Configuration: Alerts you if the installation directory isn't in your PATH

Manual Installation Steps​

  1. Download the binary for your platform using one of the URLs above
  2. Make it executable: 
    chmod +x helmet
  3. Move to your PATH: 
    # System-wide installation (requires sudo)
    sudo mv helmet /usr/local/bin/

    # User installation
    mkdir -p $HOME/bin
    mv helmet $HOME/bin/

Installation Locations​

The installer tries these locations in order:

  1. /usr/local/bin - System-wide installation (preferred)

    • Available to all users
    • Usually already in PATH
    • Requires write permissions

  2. $HOME/bin - User-specific installation

    • No special permissions needed
    • Only available to your user
    • May need to be added to PATH

Configuring Your PATH​

If you installed to $HOME/bin, you'll need to add it to your PATH:

Bash (Linux/macOS)​

Add to ~/.bashrc or ~/.bash_profile:

export PATH="$HOME/bin:$PATH"

Zsh (macOS default)​

Add to ~/.zshrc:

export PATH="$HOME/bin:$PATH"

Fish​

Add to ~/.config/fish/config.fish:

set -gx PATH $HOME/bin $PATH

After adding, reload your shell configuration:

source ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zshrc, etc.

Verify Installation​

After installation, verify that Helmet is correctly installed:

Test that Helmet can run:

helmet --help

Updating Helmet​

To update to the latest version, simply run the installation script again:

curl -LsSf https://install.helmet.sh | sh

The installer will overwrite the existing binary with the latest version.

Configuration​

Environment Variables​

Helmet supports configuration through environment variables. Add these to your shell configuration file:

# Set logging verbosity
export HELMET_LOG_LEVEL=INFO  # or DEBUG

# API endpoint (defaults to production)
export HELMET_API_URL=https://api.helmet.sh

# Authentication token (obtained after login)
export HELMET_SESSION_TOKEN=your-token-here

# Additional configuration options
export HELMET_METRICS_INTERVAL=30s
export HELMET_LOG_FILE=/path/to/logfile

Supported Platforms​

Operating Systems​

  • macOS: 11.0 (Big Sur) and later
  • Linux: Most modern distributions
    • Ubuntu 20.04+
    • Debian 10+
    • RHEL/CentOS 8+
    • Amazon Linux 2
    • Alpine Linux (musl libc)

Architectures​

  • x86_64/AMD64: Intel and AMD processors
  • ARM64/aarch64: Apple Silicon, AWS Graviton, Raspberry Pi 4

Troubleshooting​

Installation Script Fails​

"Unsupported OS"

  • The installer only supports Linux and macOS
  • For other systems, download manually

"Unsupported architecture"

  • Currently only AMD64 and ARM64 are supported
  • Contact support for other architectures

Permission Denied​

If you get permission errors:

# Option 1: Use sudo for system-wide install
curl -LsSf https://install.helmet.sh | sudo sh

# Option 2: Let it install to $HOME/bin
curl -LsSf https://install.helmet.sh | sh

Command Not Found​

If helmet is not found after installation:

  1. Check where it was installed:

    ls -la /usr/local/bin/helmet
    ls -la $HOME/bin/helmet

  2. Verify your PATH:

    echo $PATH

  3. Add the installation directory to PATH (see above)

Binary Not Executable​

If you downloaded manually, ensure it's executable:

chmod +x helmet
ls -la helmet  # Should show 'x' permissions

Network Issues​

If download fails:

  • Check your internet connection
  • Try using a different DNS server
  • Use manual download with a browser
  • Check if your firewall blocks the CDN

Uninstalling​

To remove Helmet:

# If installed in /usr/local/bin
sudo rm /usr/local/bin/helmet

# If installed in $HOME/bin
rm $HOME/bin/helmet

# Remove configuration (optional)
rm -rf ~/.helmet

Getting Help​

If you encounter issues:

  1. Contact support at [email protected]

Next Steps​

Now that you have Helmet installed: