The CLI’s target context determines which organization and project your commands operate on. You must authenticate before setting target context.
Flags
| Flag | Short | Default | Description |
|---|
--org | -o | — | Target organization by name. Mutually exclusive with --organization-id. |
--organization-id | — | — | Target organization by ID. Mutually exclusive with --org. |
--project | -p | — | Target project by name. Mutually exclusive with --project-id. |
--project-id | — | — | Target project by ID. Mutually exclusive with --project. |
--show | -s | false | Show the current target context. |
--clear | — | false | Clear the stored target context. |
--json | -j | false | Output as JSON. In non-TTY environments (CI/CD, pipes), JSON output is automatic. |
--org and --organization-id are mutually exclusive — use one or the other. The same applies to --project and --project-id.
How operations use target context
| Operation type | Scope |
|---|
| Control plane (indexes, backups) | Target project |
| Data plane (vectors, namespaces) | Target project + specified index |
| Admin API (organizations) | No target context needed |
| Admin API (projects) | Target organization |
| Admin API (API keys) | Target project (unless --id specified) |
Target context by auth method
User login
After pc auth login, the CLI auto-targets your default organization and its first project.
# Change target
pc target -o "my-org" -p "my-project"
Service account
Via CLI command: After pc auth configure --client-id --client-secret, the CLI auto-targets the service account’s organization. For the project:
- If one project exists, it’s auto-targeted
- If multiple exist, you’re prompted (or use
--project-id)
- If none exist, create one and target it manually
Via environment variables: If using PINECONE_CLIENT_ID and PINECONE_CLIENT_SECRET without running pc auth configure, no target context is set automatically. Run pc target to set it.
# Change project (org is fixed to the service account's org)
pc target -p "my-project"
# Or select interactively
pc target
API key
When using an API key, control plane and data plane operations use the key’s org/project scope, not the CLI’s stored target context. The pc target --show output does not reflect what these operations actually use.
Managing target context
pc target --show # View current target
pc target --clear # Clear target context
JSON mode and non-TTY environments
Running pc target --json with no targeting flags returns the current target context as a JSON object. This is a local-state read — no authentication is required:
In non-TTY environments (CI/CD pipelines, shell pipes, scripts), JSON output is automatic — the same as passing --json explicitly. You do not need to add the flag in automation contexts.
Use --organization-id and --project-id (instead of name flags) to set context reliably in scripts, since IDs are stable and unaffected by renames:
pc target --organization-id "org-abc123" --project-id "proj-xyz789" --json
