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Version: v5

Quickstart

The examples use the OECD and Cboe provider extensions, which need no API key. Install them next to the CLI with pip install openbb-oecd openbb-cboe.

One command, in-process​

Without a backend flag, the CLI imports the local openbb package and calls the matching function under obb:

openbb oecd.gdp_real --country japan --frequency annual

The first argument is the dotted command path, and each --key value pair becomes a keyword argument. The output is one JSON line on stdout with ok, plus result on success or error on failure. The exit status is 0 when ok is true and 1 when it is false. Modes describes the full wire format and how values are parsed.

One command, through a server​

openbb-api, from the openbb-platform-api package, serves every installed extension over HTTP on http://127.0.0.1:6900 by default. Start it in one terminal and point the CLI at it from another:

openbb-api
openbb --server http://127.0.0.1:6900 oecd.gdp_real --country japan

On each invocation the CLI downloads <URL>/openapi.json, builds an argument parser for the requested command from the schema, validates the flags against it, and sends the request.

One command, from a .spec file​

A .spec file stores the processed OpenAPI document on disk, so later calls skip the download:

openbb --generate-spec --server http://127.0.0.1:6900 --output platform.spec
openbb --spec platform.spec oecd.gdp_real --country japan

The file records the server URL it was generated against, so --server is not needed alongside --spec.

Batch​

--batch reads one JSON request per line from stdin and writes one JSON response per line to stdout:

cat <<'EOF' | openbb --spec platform.spec --batch
{"id":"gdp","command":"oecd.gdp_real","params":{"country":"japan"}}
{"id":"spy","command":"cboe.equity.historical","params":{"symbol":"SPY"}}
EOF

Requests run concurrently, eight at a time unless --batch-concurrency or OPENBB_CLI_BATCH_CONCURRENCY says otherwise, and responses are written in completion order. Each response echoes the request's id, which is how you match them up.

Interactive REPL​

openbb -i

The REPL presents the installed extensions as menus. With --spec platform.spec or --server URL, the menus mirror that API instead. Anything after -i runs as the first input, using the REPL's slash-separated paths:

openbb -i /oecd/gdp_real --country japan

See Structure and Navigation for how menus and paths work.

Inspect the command catalog​

--list-commands prints a JSON response whose result lists the name and short description of every command in a spec or on a server. --describe does the same for the parameters and response schema of one command.

openbb --spec platform.spec --list-commands
openbb --spec platform.spec --describe oecd.gdp_real

Both need --spec or --server; the in-process backend has no catalog to read. In batch mode, the same information is available through the reserved commands __commands__ and __schema__.

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