Start up the command line client and verify the connection to the server

  1. Start up the command line client:

    $ p4

  2. To verify a connection, issue the p4 info command. If P4PORT is set correctly, information like the following is displayed:

    User name: bruno
    Client name: bruno_ws
    Client host: computer_12
    Client root: c:\bruno_ws
    Current directory: c:\bruno_ws
    Peer address: 10.0.102.24:61122
    Client address: 10.0.0.196
    Server address: ssl:example.com:1818
    Server root: /usr/depot/p4d
    Server date: 2020/09/28 15:03:05 -0700 PDT
    Server uptime: 752:41:33
    Server version: P4D/FREEBSD/2012.1/406375 (2020/08/25)
    ServerID: Master
    Server license: P4Admin <p4adm> 20 users (expires 2021/01/01)
    Server license-ip: 10.0.0.2
    Case handling: sensitive

    The Server address: field shows the host to which p4 connected and also displays the host and port number on which the Helix Server is listening. If P4PORT is set incorrectly, you receive a message like the following:

    Perforce client error:
    Connect to server failed; check $P4PORT.
    TCP connect to perforce:1666 failed.
    perforce: host unknown.

  3. If the host:port value is perforce:1666, P4PORT has not been set. Set P4PORT and try to connect again.
  4. If your installation requires SSL, make sure your P4PORT is of the form ssl:hostname:port.
  5. You will be asked to verify the server’s fingerprint the first time you attempt to connect to the server. If the fingerprint is accurate, use the p4 trust command to install the fingerprint into a file (pointed to by the P4TRUST environment variable) that holds a list of known/trusted Helix Server and their respective fingerprints. If P4TRUST is unset, this file is .p4trust in the user’s home directory. For more information, see SSL-encrypted connections.
  6. If your installation requires plain text (in order to support older Helix Server applications), set P4PORT to tcp:hostname:port.