> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.controlplane.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create an Agent

> Define an agent and generate the bootstrap config needed to install it in your internal environment or a cloud provider.

## Overview

Follow the steps below to define an [agent](/reference/agent) and generate a bootstrap config file that will be used when installing
the agent within your internal environment or at one of the cloud providers.

## Prerequisites

* Review the [agent](/reference/agent) reference page.
* Have [permissions](/reference/policy#permissions) to create an [agent](/reference/agent).
* Optional:
  * Install the [CLI](/cli-reference/installation).

## Create using the UI Console

1. Create a new agent using one of the following methods:
   * Click `Agents` in the left menu, then click `New`.
   * Click the `Create` dropdown in the upper right corner and select `Agent`.
2. Enter a unique name and optional description.
3. Optional: Click `Tags` in the left pane. Enter any optional [tags](/core/misc#tags).
4. Click `Create`. The console will display the bootstrap config JSON. Save the JSON manually or click `Download Config File`.
5. Click `Next`. The scripts displayed are generated using the bootstrap config. Copy or download the appropriate script (`User Data script` for AWS and Azure and `Startup script` for GCP), as it will be used during the installation of the agent.
6. Click `Done`.

<Warning>
  Properly save the bootstrap config JSON text. It will not be accessible after closing the modal. If you lose the text, you will need to delete and recreate the agent.
</Warning>

## Create using the CLI

1. At a command prompt, execute the following to create an agent:

```bash theme={null}
cpln agent create --name NEW_AGENT_NAME --org ORG_NAME > bootstrap-config.json
```

2. The output of the command will be the bootstrap config JSON text. Executing the command above will save the text in a file called `bootstrap-config.json`. This file will be used when configuring an agent.

<Tip>
  Detailed CLI documentation is available in the [agent CLI reference](/cli-reference/commands/agent).
</Tip>

## Next Steps

Once the bootstrap config file and/or scripts have been generated and saved, follow the [Configure an Agent](/guides/setup-agent) guide to install and configure an agent:

* [Amazon Web Services (AWS)](/guides/setup-agent#aws)
* [Microsoft Azure](/guides/setup-agent#azure)
* [Google Cloud Platform (GCP)](/guides/setup-agent#gcp)
* [Running locally in Docker](/guides/setup-agent#running-locally-in-docker)
* [Kubernetes (k8s) Cluster](/guides/setup-agent#kubernetes-k8s-cluster)