---
title: Service authentication
description: Service authentication uses the OAuth 2.0 client credentials flow to authenticate as an application rather than a user. No browser or human interaction is required, making it the right choice for automated and unattended environments.
component: pingcli
version: 1.0
page_id: pingcli:using_pingcli:authenticating-service
canonical_url: https://developer.pingidentity.com/pingcli/1.0/using_pingcli/authenticating-service.html
revdate: June 9, 2026
section_ids:
  when-to-use-service-authentication: When to use service authentication
  configuration: Configuration
  no-login-step-required: No login step required
  verify-credentials: Verify credentials
  learn-more: Learn more
---

# Service authentication

Service authentication uses the OAuth 2.0 client credentials flow to authenticate as an application rather than a user. No browser or human interaction is required, making it the right choice for automated and unattended environments.

## When to use service authentication

Use service authentication when:

* Ping CLI is running inside a CI/CD pipeline (for example, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or similar).

* You are running scheduled or scripted operations where no human operator is present.

* You are using a service account or a dedicated application client rather than a personal administrator account.

## Configuration

Service authentication is configured for each connector when you connect a service to Ping CLI. The relevant setting is `service.<connector>.authentication.type`, which must be set to `client_credentials`. Client credentials (client ID and client secret) are also set at this stage.

If you have not yet connected a service, see [Connect Ping Identity services](connecting-ping-services.html) first.

## No login step required

When client credentials are correctly provided, either through environment variables or a pre-seeded configuration file, Ping CLI authenticates automatically using those credentials whenever it needs to call a service. There is no need to run `auth login` or `auth logout` in this flow; those commands are for interactive user authentication and do not apply to service authentication.

### Verify credentials

To confirm that credentials are present and valid without running a full command, use:

```console
pingcli auth status
```

## Learn more

* [pingcli auth status](../command_reference/pingcli_auth_status.html)

* [Configuration settings reference](../settings_reference/configuration-settings-reference.html)

* [Overview](authenticating-to-services.html)

* [Interactive user sign-on](authenticating-interactive.html)

* [Connect Ping Identity services](connecting-ping-services.html)