Application Management

Managing Applications

Platform: This skill applies to ACE (Acquia Cloud Enterprise) subscriptions only. For MEO (Multi-site Enterprise Operations), see MEO Overview.

Use when:

• Listing applications you have access to
• Linking or unlinking a local repo to a Cloud application
• Creating a new Drupal or Next.js project
• Checking branch/tag deployment status
• Waiting for an async task to complete
• Exporting a full site archive

List Applications

acli api:applications:list

Returns a JSON array of all applications you have access to. Each entry includes id, uuid, name, type, status, and organization.

To display a readable table:

acli api:applications:list | python3 -c "
import json, sys
apps = json.load(sys.stdin)
for a in apps:
    print(f\"{a['id']:<10} {a['name']:<40} {a.get('type',''):<10} {a.get('status',''):<10}\")
"

Open Application in Browser

acli app:open

Aliases: acli open, acli o

Opens the selected Cloud application in your default browser.

Link and Unlink a Local Repository

Associate your local checkout with a Cloud application so commands like env:deploy can detect the app automatically:

cd /path/to/project
acli app:link

To remove the association:

acli app:unlink

Tail Application Logs

Stream live logs from a Cloud environment:

acli app:log:tail

Prompts for the application and environment, then tails all available log streams in real time. Useful for monitoring deployments or debugging live issues.

Check Branch and Tag Deployment Status

acli app:vcs:info

Lists all branches and tags in the application's git repository along with which environment (if any) each is currently deployed to.

Wait for an Async Task

Some Cloud operations (database copies, environment mirrors) return a notification UUID. Wait for them to complete:

acli app:task-wait <notification-uuid>

Useful in CI/CD pipelines to block until a task finishes before proceeding.

Create a New Local Project

Scaffold a new Drupal or Next.js project from an Acquia-recommended template:

# Interactive — prompts for template and directory
acli app:new:local

# Non-interactive
acli app:new:local my-project --template=acquia_drupal_recommended
acli app:new:local my-project --template=acquia_drupal_cms

Alias: acli new

Available templates:

• acquia_drupal_recommended — Standard Acquia Drupal project
• acquia_drupal_cms — Acquia Drupal CMS project

Migrate from Drupal 7

Generate a new Drupal 9+ project from an existing Drupal 7 application using Acquia Migrate Accelerate:

acli app:new:from:drupal7

Options: --drupal7-directory, --drupal7-uri, --stored-analysis, --recommendations, --directory

Aliases: acli ama, acli from:d7

Export a Site Archive

Export an application's code, files, and database as a single archive file:

acli archive:export /path/to/destination/

Options:

# Exclude public files
acli archive:export /path/to/destination/ --no-files

# Exclude database
acli archive:export /path/to/destination/ --no-database

# Use a specific source directory
acli archive:export /path/to/destination/ --dir=/path/to/drupal

Best Practices

1. Link your repo — Run acli app:link in every project checkout so app-aware commands work without extra flags.
2. Check VCS status before deploying — Use acli app:vcs:info to confirm the right branch is ready.
3. Use app:task-wait in CI — Ensures async Cloud operations complete before the next pipeline step runs.

Related Topics

• Environment Management — List environments, deploy, create CDEs
• Pull & Push — Sync code, database, and files
• Remote Access — SSH, Drush, and log tailing
• SSH Key Management — Secure access setup