How to use the command 'gcloud version' (with examples)

This article will guide you through the different use cases of the ‘gcloud version’ command. The ‘gcloud version’ command is used to print version information for Google Cloud CLI components. It allows you to check the version of all installed components and also provides information on available updates for them.

Use case 1: Print the version information for all installed components, along with available updates to them

Code:

gcloud version

Motivation: This use case is useful when you want to quickly check the version of all the Google Cloud CLI components installed on your system and see if there are any updates available. It helps you ensure that you are using the latest version of the components.

Explanation: The ‘gcloud version’ command is used to print version information for Google Cloud CLI components. When you run the command without any additional arguments, it will display the version of all installed components, along with information on available updates (if any).

Example output:

Google Cloud SDK [309.0.0]
bq 2.0.72
core 2021.07.09
gsutil 4.66

Updates are available for some Cloud SDK components. To install them,
please run:
  $ gcloud components update

In the example output above, the version information for the Google Cloud SDK, bq, core, and gsutil components is displayed. It also informs the user that updates are available for some components and provides a suggested command to update them.

Use case 2: Display help

Code:

gcloud version --help

Motivation: This use case is helpful when you need assistance or want to understand the available options and functionality of the ‘gcloud version’ command. It provides the necessary information to use the command effectively.

Explanation: The ‘–help’ option is used with the ‘gcloud version’ command to display the help information. It provides details on how to use the command, the available options, and their meanings.

Example output:

Print version information for Google Cloud CLI components.

USAGE:
gcloud version [--help]

POSITIONAL ARGUMENTS:
  <COMMAND>                   Name of the command to show help for.

FLAGS:
  --help                      Show help text for the command.

To change to the interactive mode, run:
  $ gcloud interactive

To get the latest release notes, please run:
  $ gcloud version --release-notes

The example output above provides a summary of the ‘gcloud version’ command usage and further instructions, such as changing to interactive mode or accessing the latest release notes.

Conclusion:

The ‘gcloud version’ command is a useful tool for checking the version information of Google Cloud CLI components and staying up-to-date with the latest releases. The different use cases demonstrated in this article help users understand how to effectively utilize the command and its various options.