Create a GitLab Personal Access Token
How to create a GitLab Personal Access Token (PAT) for IronSled — recommended scopes (read_user, read_repository, read_api, write_repository, api), setting an expiration, copying the token before it disappears, and persisting GITLAB_TOKEN in your shell so Git over HTTPS and the GitLab API authenticate as you.
A GitLab Personal Access Token (PAT) authenticates you to the GitLab API and to Git over HTTP on IronSled. Once Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) is enabled on your account, a PAT is the only accepted password — IronSled GitLab connections use HTTPS with a PAT, not SSH. Create a PAT once, give it the scopes you need, and store it in your shell so Git and the API can use it automatically.
Create the Token
Create a PAT from your GitLab profile:
- Open Preferences → Access Tokens → Add new token.
- Give the token a name that identifies where you use it.
- Set an expiration date — an administrator sets the maximum lifetime allowed.
- Select the scopes you need (see Recommended Scopes below).
- Click Generate token and copy the value immediately — GitLab shows the token only once and you cannot retrieve it afterward.
If you lose the token value, you cannot recover it — create a new token and revoke the old one.
Recommended Scopes
Scopes control what a Personal Access Token is allowed to do. A typical developer token enables the following:
| Scope | Purpose |
|---|---|
read_user | Read-only access to your profile via the /user API endpoint. |
read_repository | Read-only access to repositories over Git-over-HTTP / the Repository Files API. |
read_api | Read access to the API, including groups, projects, the container registry, and the package registry. |
write_repository | Read-write access to repositories over Git-over-HTTP (needed to push). |
api | Complete read-write API access (groups, projects, container registry, dependency proxy, package registry). |
Leave self_rotate, ai_features, create_runner, manage_runner, and k8s_proxy unchecked unless you specifically need them. Grant the narrowest set of scopes that lets you do your work.
Persist the Token in Your Shell
Add the token to your shell profile (~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc) so it persists across sessions:
export GITLAB_TOKEN="your-pat-value"
export GITLAB_USERNAME="first.last" # Match your GitLab usernameReload your shell so the change takes effect:
source ~/.zshrc # or: source ~/.bashrcWith GITLAB_TOKEN set, you can clone and push over HTTPS and call the GitLab API without re-entering the token each time. Treat the token like a password: never commit it to Git, paste it into a chat, or share it. If it is ever exposed, revoke it under Preferences → Access Tokens and generate a new one.
Deploy & Troubleshoot
How to deploy your application on IronSled and keep it healthy — how deployment works for code/build projects (GitOps with Fleet and Helm through CI/CD) and for upload projects (bring your own Helm chart, request an environment, and roll out in Rancher), how to watch running workloads, pods, ingress, and runtime security in the project Environments section, and how to troubleshoot by jumping into Rancher or debugging pods directly.
Set Up Git and GPG Commit Signing
Set up Git with GPG commit signing for IronSled GitLab — a platform requirement. Covers installing GnuPG on macOS/Windows, generating an RSA key pair, adding your public key to GitLab, configuring git to sign every commit, verifying the Verified badge, IDE integration, and troubleshooting gpg signing errors.