Connect

Various means of connecting to ZenML.

Once ZenML is deployed, there are various ways to connect to it.

Choose how to connect

Use this quick guide to pick the right method based on your context:

Context	Use	Credentials	Docs
You are a human using the CLI and browser	Interactive login (device flow)	Your user session (24h/30d)	Connect with your user
Script/notebook needs to make quick API calls to an OSS server	Service account + API key	Long‑lived API key	Connect with a service account
Script/notebook needs to make quick API calls to a ZenML Pro workspace	ZenML Pro Personal Access Token	Long‑lived PAT	Connect with a personal access token
CI/CD or long‑lived automation calling an OSS server	Service account + API key	Long‑lived API key	Connect with a service account
CI/CD or long‑lived automation calling a ZenML Pro workspace	ZenML Pro API service account + API key	Long‑lived API key	Connect with a ZenML Pro service account
CI/CD or long‑lived automation calling the ZenML Pro management API (cloudapi.zenml.io)	ZenML Pro service account + API key	Long-lived API key	Connect with a ZenML Pro service account

Which base URL should you call?

• Workspace/OSS API: your server or workspace URL (e.g., https://<workspace-id>.zenml.io).

• ZenML Pro management API: https://cloudapi.zenml.io.

In ZenML Pro, use Personal Access Tokens or organization‑level service accounts and API keys (workspace‑level service accounts are deprecated). PATs and org‑level service accounts can be used for both the Workspace API and the Pro management API. See ZenML Pro Personal Access Tokens and ZenML Pro Organization Service Accounts.

Common pitfalls

• 401 Unauthorized: verify you’re using the correct base URL, the token hasn’t expired, and the header is Authorization: Bearer <token>.

• Automation fails after 1 hour: check the expiration date of the PAT or API key and rotate it if it has expired.

• Can’t find Run Template endpoints: they exist on the Workspace/OSS API, not on cloudapi.zenml.io.