Bitwarden CLI

Full read/write vault access via bw command.

Prerequisites

brew install bitwarden-cli
bw login <email>  # one-time, prompts for master password

Session Management

Bitwarden requires an unlocked session. Use the helper script:

source scripts/bw-session.sh <master_password>
# Sets BW_SESSION env var

Or manually:

export BW_SESSION=$(echo '<password>' | bw unlock --raw)
bw sync  # always sync after unlock

Common Operations

Retrieve credentials

bw get password "Site Name"
bw get username "Site Name"
bw get item "Site Name" --pretty | jq '.login'

Create login

bw get template item | jq '
  .type = 1 |
  .name = "Site Name" |
  .login.username = "user@email.com" |
  .login.password = "secret123" |
  .login.uris = [{uri: "https://example.com"}]
' | bw encode | bw create item

Create credit card

bw get template item | jq '
  .type = 3 |
  .name = "Card Name" |
  .card.cardholderName = "John Doe" |
  .card.brand = "Visa" |
  .card.number = "4111111111111111" |
  .card.expMonth = "12" |
  .card.expYear = "2030" |
  .card.code = "123"
' | bw encode | bw create item

Get card for payment automation

bw get item "Card Name" | jq -r '.card | "\(.number) \(.expMonth)/\(.expYear) \(.code)"'

List items

bw list items | jq -r '.[] | "\(.type)|\(.name)"'
# Types: 1=login, 2=note, 3=card, 4=identity

Search

bw list items --search "vilaviniteca" | jq '.[0]'

Item Types

| Type | Value | Use | |------|-------|-----| | Login | 1 | Website credentials | | Secure Note | 2 | Freeform text | | Card | 3 | Credit/debit cards | | Identity | 4 | Personal info |

References

• templates.md — Full jq templates for all item types
• Bitwarden CLI docs

Tips

1. Always sync after creating/editing items: bw sync
2. Session expires — re-unlock if you get auth errors
3. Delete sensitive messages after receiving credentials
4. Card numbers may not import from other managers (security restriction)