# Account

An account is not required to use the Vela CLI. Creating, generating, building, testing and deploying all work without one. Paid features, templates and the AI options require an account. An API key is generated for the CLI and stored in `~/.vela/config.json`.

### Commands

- [`vela signup`](/account/signup) - Sign up for an account
- [`vela login`](/account/login) - Log in
- [`vela whoami`](/account/whoami) - Show the current user
- [`vela logout`](/account/logout) - Log out

### Linking a project

Logging in authenticates the CLI. [`vela create`](/create) links a new project to velastack.dev on its own while you are logged in, and [`vela link`](/link) does the same for a project that already exists. The AI options on the [generators](/generate) need both a login and a link.

### Deploy History

If logged in, you can view your deploy history on velastack.dev.