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Before you can create or update a resource, you need to know two things: which resource types Datum Cloud offers, and what fields each type accepts. datumctl answers both questions directly from the API server, so what you see always reflects the exact version of the platform you are connected to. Three commands cover discovery:
CommandAnswers
datumctl api-resourcesWhich resource types can I manage?
datumctl api-versionsWhich API group/version pairs are available?
datumctl explain <type>What fields does this type have, and what do they mean?
These commands read from the control plane for your currently configured context. Make sure you are logged in (see Logging in) and have an organization or project selected first — pass --organization <org-id> or --project <project-id>, or set a default context. See Contexts & scoping for how that scope is chosen.

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List available resource types

datumctl api-resources prints a table of every resource type the current control plane supports. It is the starting point for discovering what you can manage with datumctl get, datumctl apply, and datumctl explain. The table includes each type’s short names, API group, whether it is namespaced, and its kind. 
# List all available resource types
datumctl api-resources
The list is fetched fresh from the server on each run. To reuse a locally cached copy, pass --cached.

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Narrow and sort the list

For a busy control plane, filter and reshape the output to find what you need: 
# Show extra detail, including verbs and short names
datumctl api-resources -o wide

# Sort by name
datumctl api-resources --sort-by=name

# Only namespaced resource types
datumctl api-resources --namespaced=true

# Only resource types in a specific API group
datumctl api-resources --api-group=networking.datumapis.com
The short names shown here are the same aliases you can use anywhere a resource type is expected — for example in datumctl get, datumctl explain, or datumctl describe.

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List API versions

datumctl api-versions prints every API group/version combination the current control plane exposes, one per line in the form group/version (for example, networking.datumapis.com/v1alpha). 
# List all API group/version pairs
datumctl api-versions
This is the value you place in the apiVersion field of a manifest. Use api-versions when you need the group/version string, and api-resources when you also want to see the individual resource types within each group.

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Inspect a type’s schema

Once you know a type exists, datumctl explain shows its schema and field-level documentation. Information is retrieved from the API server in OpenAPI format, so it always matches the platform version you are connected to. 
# Show the schema for the Project resource type
datumctl explain projects
Fields are referenced with dot notation — TYPE.fieldName.subFieldName — so you can drill into any part of the tree: 
# Show documentation for just the spec field
datumctl explain projects.spec
To see the whole schema tree at once instead of one level at a time, use --recursive: 
# Expand every field recursively
datumctl explain projects --recursive
If you prefer the OpenAPI v2 rendering, request it explicitly: 
# Use the OpenAPI v2 output format
datumctl explain projects --output=plaintext-openapiv2

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From discovery to a manifest

Discovery feeds directly into authoring manifests for datumctl apply and datumctl create. A typical flow:
1

Find the type

Run datumctl api-resources to confirm the resource type exists and note its kind and API group.
datumctl api-resources --api-group=networking.datumapis.com
2

Get the apiVersion

Run datumctl api-versions to find the exact group/version string for that group.
datumctl api-versions
3

Learn the fields

Run datumctl explain <type> (add --recursive for the full tree) to see which fields are required and what they do.
datumctl explain projects --recursive
4

Write and validate the manifest

Author your YAML with the apiVersion, kind, and spec fields you discovered, then validate it against the server before persisting.
datumctl apply -f ./project.yaml --organization <org-id> --dry-run=server
datumctl explain <type>.spec is the fastest way to see exactly which fields belong under spec when you are filling out a new manifest.
  • Changing resources — author, apply, and edit resources once you know which types exist and what fields they take.
  • Reading resources — list, retrieve, and inspect resources of the types you discover here.
  • Output formats & scripting — render this discovery output as JSON or YAML and pipe it into other tooling.
  • Logging in — sign in before querying the control plane.
  • datumctl api-resources --help, datumctl api-versions --help, and datumctl explain --help for the full flag reference.
Last modified on July 2, 2026