CLI Options Reference

Complete reference of all Bruno CLI command-line options and flags

CLI Options Reference

Complete reference for all Bruno CLI commands, options, and flags.

Global Options

These options are available for all commands:

--help · boolean

Show help information.

Aliases: -h

bru --help
bru run --help

--version · boolean

Show version number.

bru --version

Run Command

Execute API requests and tests from your collection.

bru run [paths...] [options]

Paths

paths · string[]

One or more request files or folders to run. If omitted, runs all requests in the current directory recursively.

bru run                          # Run all requests
bru run request.bru              # Run single request
bru run folder                   # Run folder
bru run auth users -r            # Run multiple paths recursively

Execution Options

-r · boolean · default: false

Run requests recursively in subdirectories.

bru run tests -r

--tests-only · boolean · default: false

Only run requests that have tests or active assertions.

bru run --tests-only

--bail · boolean · default: false

Stop execution immediately after a failure of a request, test, or assertion.

bru run --bail

--delay · number

Add delay between each request in milliseconds.

bru run --delay 1000  # 1 second delay
bru run --delay 500   # 500ms delay

--verbose · boolean · default: false

Enable verbose output for debugging purposes.

bru run --verbose

Environment Options

--env · string

Specify environment to run with. Loads from environments/<name>.bru or environments/<name>.yml.

bru run --env production
bru run --env local

--env-file · string

Path to environment file (.bru, .json, or .yml) - absolute or relative.

bru run --env-file custom-env.bru
bru run --env-file /path/to/env.json

--env-var · string

Override a single environment variable. Can be used multiple times.

bru run --env-var apiKey=secret123
bru run --env-var baseUrl=https://api.test.com --env-var token=xyz

--global-env · string

Global environment name (requires collection to be in a workspace).

bru run --global-env production
bru run --global-env staging --workspace-path /path/to/workspace

--workspace-path · string

Path to workspace directory (auto-detected if not provided).

bru run --global-env production --workspace-path ~/my-workspace

Output and Reporting

--output · string

Path to write file results to. Use with --format to specify format.

Aliases: -o

bru run --output results.json
bru run --output results.xml --format junit
bru run -o report.html --format html

--format · string · default: "json"

Format of the file results.

Aliases: -f

Options: json, junit, html

bru run --output results.xml --format junit

--reporter-json · string

Path to generate a JSON report.

bru run --reporter-json results.json

--reporter-junit · string

Path to generate a JUnit XML report.

bru run --reporter-junit results.xml

--reporter-html · string

Path to generate an HTML report.

bru run --reporter-html report.html

Reporter Customization

--reporter-skip-all-headers · boolean · default: false

Omit all headers from the reporter output.

bru run --reporter-skip-all-headers

--reporter-skip-headers · array · default: []

Skip specific headers from the reporter output.

bru run --reporter-skip-headers Authorization Cookie
bru run --reporter-skip-headers "X-Api-Key"

--reporter-skip-request-body · boolean · default: false

Omit request body from the reporter output.

bru run --reporter-skip-request-body

--reporter-skip-response-body · boolean · default: false

Omit response body from the reporter output.

bru run --reporter-skip-response-body

--reporter-skip-body · boolean · default: false

Omit both request and response bodies from the reporter output.

bru run --reporter-skip-body

Security and Certificates

--cacert · string

CA certificate to verify peer against. By default, uses system truststore + custom cert.

bru run --cacert myCustomCA.pem
bru run --cacert corporate-ca.crt

--ignore-truststore · boolean · default: false

Use only the specified custom CA certificate (—cacert) and ignore the default truststore.

bru run --cacert myCustomCA.pem --ignore-truststore

--insecure · boolean · default: false

Allow insecure server connections (skip SSL certificate verification).

Only use in development/testing environments.

bru run --insecure

--client-cert-config · string

Path to client certificate configuration JSON file.

bru run --client-cert-config client-certs.json

Config format:

{
  "enabled": true,
  "certs": [
    {
      "domain": "https://api.example.com",
      "certFilePath": "/path/to/cert.pem",
      "keyFilePath": "/path/to/key.pem",
      "passphrase": "optional"
    }
  ]
}

Network Options

--noproxy · boolean · default: false

Disable all proxy settings (both collection-defined and system proxies).

bru run --noproxy

--disable-cookies · boolean · default: false

Disable automatic cookie saving and sending with requests.

bru run --disable-cookies

Advanced Options

--sandbox · string · default: "safe"

JavaScript sandbox runtime to use.

Options:

• safe - Uses QuickJS (secure, limited features)
• developer - Uses Node.js VM (more features, less secure)

bru run --sandbox developer

--tags · string

Comma-separated list of tags to include in the run.

bru run --tags=smoke,critical
bru run --tags=api

--exclude-tags · string

Comma-separated list of tags to exclude from the run.

bru run --exclude-tags=skip,wip
bru run --tags=api --exclude-tags=slow

Import Command

Import collections from other formats.

bru import <type> [options]

Import Types

type · string · required

Type of collection to import.

Options: openapi, wsdl

bru import openapi --source api.yml --output ./collection
bru import wsdl --source service.wsdl --output ./soap

Import Options

--source · string · required

Path to the source file or URL.

Aliases: -s

bru import openapi --source api.yml
bru import openapi -s https://api.example.com/openapi.json

--output · string

Path to the output directory. Conflicts with --output-file.

Aliases: -o

bru import openapi -s api.yml -o ~/Desktop/my-collection

--output-file · string

Path to the output JSON file. Conflicts with --output.

Aliases: -f

bru import openapi -s api.yml -f ~/Desktop/collection.json

--collection-name · string

Name for the imported collection.

Aliases: -n

bru import openapi -s api.yml -o ./collection -n "My API"

--collection-format · string · default: "opencollection"

Format of the imported collection.

Options: bru, opencollection

bru import openapi -s api.yml -o ./collection --collection-format bru

--insecure · boolean · default: false

Skip SSL certificate verification when fetching from URLs.

bru import openapi -s https://self-signed.com/api.json --insecure

--group-by · string · default: "tags"

How to group imported requests (OpenAPI only).

Aliases: -g

Options: tags, path

bru import openapi -s api.yml -o ./collection --group-by path
bru import openapi -s api.yml -o ./collection -g tags

Exit Codes

Bruno CLI returns specific exit codes for scripting and automation:

Exit Code	Constant	Description
0	-	Execution successful
1	ERROR_FAILED_COLLECTION	An assertion, test, or request failed
2	ERROR_MISSING_OUTPUT_DIR	The specified output directory does not exist
3	ERROR_INFINITE_LOOP	The request chain loops endlessly
4	ERROR_NOT_IN_COLLECTION	Bru was called outside of a collection root
5	ERROR_FILE_NOT_FOUND	The specified input file does not exist
6	ERROR_ENV_NOT_FOUND	The specified environment does not exist
7	ERROR_MALFORMED_ENV_OVERRIDE	Environment override not presented as string or object
8	ERROR_INCORRECT_ENV_OVERRIDE	Environment override format incorrect
9	ERROR_INCORRECT_OUTPUT_FORMAT	Invalid output format requested
10	ERROR_INVALID_FILE	Invalid file format
11	ERROR_WORKSPACE_NOT_FOUND	The specified workspace was not found
12	ERROR_GLOBAL_ENV_REQUIRES_WORKSPACE	Global environment requires a workspace
13	ERROR_GLOBAL_ENV_NOT_FOUND	The specified global environment was not found
255	ERROR_GENERIC	Another error occurred

Using Exit Codes in Scripts

#!/bin/bash

bru run --env production
EXIT_CODE=$?

if [ $EXIT_CODE -eq 0 ]; then
  echo "All tests passed!"
elif [ $EXIT_CODE -eq 1 ]; then
  echo "Some tests failed"
  exit 1
elif [ $EXIT_CODE -eq 6 ]; then
  echo "Environment not found"
  exit 1
else
  echo "Error occurred: $EXIT_CODE"
  exit 1
fi

Environment Variables

Bruno CLI respects the following environment variables:

HTTP_PROXY · string

HTTP proxy server URL.

export HTTP_PROXY=http://proxy.example.com:8080
bru run

HTTPS_PROXY · string

HTTPS proxy server URL.

export HTTPS_PROXY=https://proxy.example.com:8443
bru run

NO_PROXY · string

Comma-separated list of hosts to exclude from proxying.

export NO_PROXY=localhost,127.0.0.1,.example.com
bru run

Complete Examples

Production Test Suite

bru run \
  --env production \
  --env-var apiKey=$PROD_API_KEY \
  --reporter-junit results.xml \
  --reporter-html report.html \
  --reporter-skip-headers Authorization \
  --bail \
  --cacert corporate-ca.pem

Development Testing

bru run \
  --env local \
  --env-var baseUrl=http://localhost:3000 \
  --tests-only \
  --verbose \
  --insecure

CI/CD Integration

bru run \
  --env staging \
  --reporter-junit test-results.xml \
  --reporter-json test-results.json \
  --bail \
  --tags=smoke,regression \
  --exclude-tags=manual

Import and Test

# Import collection
bru import openapi \
  --source https://api.example.com/openapi.json \
  --output ./my-api \
  --collection-name "Example API" \
  --group-by path

# Run tests
cd my-api
bru run --env production --reporter-html results.html

Next Steps

CLI Overview

Learn about Bruno CLI fundamentals

Running Tests

Practical guide to running API tests

Importing Collections

Import from OpenAPI and other formats

Installation

Install Bruno CLI in your environment