[Yandex Cloud documentation](../../index.md) > [Yandex Cloud Console](../index.md) > Getting started > Cloud Shell

# Getting started with Yandex Cloud Shell

With Cloud Shell, you can use [Yandex Cloud CLI](../../cli/index.md) and other terminal tools without any prior setup, directly in your browser. The Cloud Shell environment provides essential cloud management tools and popular programming language SDKs.

To get started with Cloud Shell:

1. Navigate to the [management console](https://console.yandex.cloud) and log in to Yandex Cloud or sign up if not signed up yet.

1. On the **[Yandex Cloud Billing](https://center.yandex.cloud/billing/accounts)** page, make sure you have a billing account linked and it has the `ACTIVE` or `TRIAL_ACTIVE` [status](../../billing/concepts/billing-account-statuses.md). If you do not have a billing account, [create one](../../billing/quickstart/index.md) and [link](../../billing/operations/pin-cloud.md) a cloud to it.

1. In the [management console](https://console.yandex.cloud), select ![Cloud Shell](../../_assets/console-icons/cloud-shell.svg) **Cloud Shell** in the left-hand panel.

    A terminal window will open: wait for the session to start and the development environment to be created.

1. Use Yandex Cloud CLI commands to manage cloud resources from the terminal. For example, to list all VMs in the cloud, run this command:

    ```bash
    yc compute instance list
    ```

   ![screen01](../../_assets/console/cloud-shell-01.png)

    For more command examples, see [Getting started with the CLI](../../cli/quickstart.md#example). To view the full list of available commands, run the `yc --help` command or open the [CLI reference](../../cli/cli-ref/index.md).

    {% note info %}

    You can run up to four parallel sessions in the terminal. To run a new session, click ![plus-sign](../../_assets/console-icons/plus.svg). Once started, a session can remain active for up to 12 hours. Inactive sessions are automatically terminated after 30 minutes of inactivity. For more information about limitations in Cloud Shell, see [Limits](../concepts/cloud-shell/limits.md).

    {% endnote %}
   
1. Install the required applications using the `apt` tool. For example, to install `postgresql-client` for [connecting to a Yandex Managed Service for PostgreSQL cluster](../../managed-postgresql/operations/connect/index.md), run this command:

    ```bash
    sudo apt update && sudo apt install --yes postgresql-client
    ```

    {% note info %}

    The Cloud Shell VM will be automatically stopped and deleted 15 after the last active session ends. Any system changes, including installed applications and packages, will be reset.

    {% endnote %}


## See also {#see-also}

* [Managing Cloud Shell](../operations/cloud-shell-options.md)
* [Cloud Shell limits](../concepts/cloud-shell/limits.md)
* [CLI reference](../../cli/cli-ref/index.md)