Start and Stop a VPN with scutil --nc start/stop
Drive built-in VPN services (IKEv2, L2TP) from the command line without opening System Settings.
Run `scutil --nc start <service>` to connect and `scutil --nc stop <service>` to disconnect, confirming with `scutil --nc status <service>`.
01Command
Command
$ scutil --nc start <service-name>
scutil --nc status <service-name>
scutil --nc stop <service-name>02What it does
Every VPN entry the OS understands has a service name shown by `scutil --nc list`; passing it to `--nc start` triggers the same connect path as the System Settings switch. `--nc start` also accepts `--userinfo user --password pass` for services that need credentials not stored in the keychain. The status command is pollable, which makes this ideal for launchd scripts that wait for a tunnel before starting jobs.
03Risk
!Warning: This only works for VPN types macOS can drive natively; some third-party plugins must be started from their own apps.
04Undo
✓No undo needed — this command does not change persistent state.
05Sources
- scutil — macOS Command ReferenceEvidence: Documents --nc start/stop/status and the optional --userinfo flag.
Last verified: 2026-09-17 · Category: Network