---
title: 'Tutorial: Manage Access Server Services via Command Line'
canonical: https://openvpn.net/as-docs/v3/tutorials/tutorial--manage-services-via-command-line/
product: Access Server Docs
description: Follow this tutorial to monitor and manage your Access Server services from the command line.
---

# Tutorial: Manage Access Server Services via Command Line

## Overview

This tutorial provides instructions for managing Access Server services using command-line interface (CLI) commands. You'll learn to view detailed VPN status, monitor connected users, and manage internal services using the `sacli` tool. Additionally, you’ll see how to start, stop, and restart the Access Server daemon itself.

## Prerequisites

- Console access and the ability to get root access.
- A basic understanding of Linux commands and navigating directories.
- An installed Access Server.

## Step 1: Access the command line

1. Connect to the console and get root privileges.
2. Run the commands below for your desired outcome with Access Server services.

## Get live VPN status information (JSON format)

- Use this command to retrieve live, detailed VPN status from the OpenVPN daemons in JSON format:

  ```
  sacli VPNStatus
  ```

## Show the number of connected VPN users

- Use this command to see how many users are currently connected to the VPN:

  ```
  sacli VPNSummary
  ```

## Check the status of internal Access Server services

- This command shows the current status of internal services within the Access Server:

  ```
  sacli status
  ```

## Stop or start/restart internal Access Server services

- To stop internal services (without stopping the Access Server daemon itself):

  ```
  sacli stop
  ```
- To start or restart internal services (if the server is already running, only the services with modified settings will restart):

  ```
  sacli start
  ```

## Start/stop/restart the Access Server daemon

Use the following traditional UNIX commands to manage the entire Access Server daemon.

- Start the Access Server daemon:

  ```
  systemctl start openvpnas
  ```
- Stop the Access Server daemon:

  ```
  systemctl stop openvpnas
  ```
- Restart the Access Server daemon:

  ```
  systemctl restart openvpnas
  ```

> **Important**
>
> If you make changes to the configuration file, `/usr/local/openvpn_as/etc/as.conf`, it requires a full restart using the daemon commands to take effect.

---

Prev: [Service Management](https://openvpn.net/as-docs/v3/tutorials/service-management.md)
Next: [Log Database Queries](https://openvpn.net/as-docs/v3/tutorials/log-database-queries.md)
Index: https://openvpn.net/as-docs/llms.txt