kibana/docs/dev-tools/console/console.asciidoc

[[console-kibana]]
== Run API requests

Interact with the REST APIs of {es} and {kib} with *Console*. With *Console*, you can:

* Send requests and view the responses
* View API documentation
* Get your request history

To get started, open the main menu, click *Dev Tools*, then click *Console*.

[role="screenshot"]
image::dev-tools/console/images/console.png["Console"]

[float]
[[console-api]]
=== Write requests

*Console* understands commands in a cURL-like syntax.
For example, the following is a `GET` request to the {es} `_search` API.

[source,js]
----------------------------------
GET /_search
{
  "query": {
    "match_all": {}
  }
}
----------------------------------

Here is the equivalent command in cURL:

[source,bash]
----------------------------------
curl -XGET "http://localhost:9200/_search" -d'
{
  "query": {
    "match_all": {}
  }
}'
----------------------------------

Prepend requests to a {kib} API endpoint with `kbn:`

[source,bash]
--------------------------------------------------
GET kbn:/api/index_management/indices
--------------------------------------------------

When you paste the command into *Console*, {kib} automatically converts it
to *Console* syntax.  Alternatively, if you want to see *Console* syntax in cURL,
click the action icon (image:dev-tools/console/images/wrench.png[]) and select *Copy as cURL*.
Once copied, the username and password will need to be provided
for the calls to work from external environments.

[float]
[[console-autocomplete]]
==== Autocomplete

When you're typing a command, *Console* makes context-sensitive suggestions.
These suggestions show you the parameters for each API and speed up your typing.
To configure your preferences for autocomplete, go to
<<configuring-console, Settings>>.

[float]
[[console-comments]]
==== Comments

You can write comments or temporarily disable parts of a request by using double forward slashes
or pound signs to create single-line comments.

[source,js]
----------------------------------
# This request searches all of your indices.
GET /_search
{
  // The query parameter indicates query context.
  "query": {
    "match_all": {} // Matches all documents.
  }
}
----------------------------------

You can also use a forward slash followed by an asterisk to mark the beginning of multi-line
comments. An asterisk followed by a forward slash marks the end.

[source,js]
----------------------------------
GET /_search
{
  "query": {
    /*"match_all": {
      "boost": 1.2
    }*/
    "match_none": {}
  }
}
----------------------------------

[float]
[[console-variables]]
==== Variables

Click *Variables* to create, edit, and delete variables.

[role="screenshot"]
image::dev-tools/console/images/variables.png["Variables", width=60%]

You can refer to these variables in the paths and bodies of your requests.
Each variable can be referenced multiple times.

[source,js]
----------------------------------
GET ${pathVariable}
{
  "query": {
    "match": {
      "${bodyNameVariable}": "${bodyValueVariable}"
    }
  }
}
----------------------------------

By default, variables in the body may be substituted as a boolean, number, array, or
object by removing nearby quotes instead of a string with surrounding quotes. Triple
quotes overwrite this default behavior and enforce simple replacement as a string.

[source,js]
----------------------------------
GET /locations/_search
{
  "query": {
    "bool": {
      "must": {
        "match": {
          // ${shopName} shall be replaced as a string if the variable exists.
          "shop.name": """${shopName}"""
        }
      },
      "filter": {
        "geo_distance": {
          "distance": "12km",
          // "${pinLocation}" may be substituted with an array such as [-70, 40].
          "pin.location": "${pinLocation}"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}
----------------------------------

[float]
[[auto-formatting]]
==== Auto-formatting

The auto-formatting
capability can help you format requests. Select one or more requests that you
want to format, click the action icon (image:dev-tools/console/images/wrench.png[]),
and then select *Auto indent*.

For example, you might have a request formatted like this:

[role="screenshot"]
image::dev-tools/console/images/unformatted-request.png["Unformatted request", width=75%]

*Console* adjusts the JSON body of the request to apply the indents.

[role="screenshot"]
image::dev-tools/console/images/formatted-request.png["Formatted request", width=75%]

If you select *Auto indent* on a request that is already well formatted,
*Console* collapses the request body to a single line per document.
This is helpful when working with the {es} {ref}/docs-bulk.html[bulk APIs].

[float]
[[console-request]]
=== Submit requests

When you're ready to submit the request to {es}, click the green triangle.

You can select multiple requests and submit them together.
*Console* sends the requests to {es} one by one and shows the output
in the response pane. Submitting multiple requests is helpful
when you're debugging an issue or trying query
combinations in multiple scenarios.

[float]
[[console-view-api]]
=== View API docs

To view the documentation for an API endpoint, click
the action icon (image:dev-tools/console/images/wrench.png[]) and select
*Open documentation*.

[float]
[[console-history]]
=== Get your request history

*Console* maintains a list of the last 500 requests that {es} successfully executed.
To view your most recent requests, click *History*. If you select a request
and click *Apply*, {kib} adds it to the editor at the current cursor position.

[float]
[[configuring-console]]
=== Configure Console settings

You can configure the *Console* font size, JSON syntax,
and autocomplete suggestions in *Settings*.

[role="screenshot"]
image::dev-tools/console/images/console-settings.png["Console Settings", width=60%]

[float]
[[keyboard-shortcuts]]
=== Get keyboard shortcuts

For a list of available keyboard
shortcuts, click *Help*.

[float]
[[console-settings]]
=== Disable Console

If you don’t want to use *Console*, you can disable it by setting `console.ui.enabled`
to `false` in your `kibana.yml` configuration file. Changing this setting
causes the server to regenerate assets on the next startup,
which might cause a delay before pages start being served.