---
title: database print-baseline
versions: # DO NOT MANUALLY EDIT. CHANGES WILL BE OVERWRITTEN BY A 🤖
  fpt: '*'
  ghec: '*'
  ghes: '*'
topics:
  - Advanced Security
  - Code scanning
  - CodeQL
type: reference
product: '{% data reusables.gated-features.codeql %}'
autogenerated: codeql-cli
intro: '[Plumbing] Print a summary of the baseline lines of code seen.'
redirect_from:
  - /code-security/codeql-cli/manual/database-print-baseline
---


<!-- Content after this section is automatically generated -->

{% data reusables.codeql-cli.man-pages-version-note %}

## Synopsis

```shell copy
codeql database print-baseline <options>... -- <database>
```

## Description

\[Plumbing] Print a summary of the baseline lines of code seen.

This command will print to standard out the baseline lines of code seen
within the source root specified at [codeql database init](/code-security/codeql-cli/codeql-cli-manual/database-init) time for each language present in the database.

The baseline is an estimate of the non-empty, non-comment lines of code
in a database. This count is different from the lines of code counted by
CodeQL metrics queries, which only counts code that is passed to the
CodeQL evaluator. In some cases, the baseline count may be lower than
the count in metrics queries since metrics queries may include external
files that are passed to the evaluator, but are not included in the
source root.

## Options

### Primary Options

#### `<database>`

\[Mandatory] Path to the CodeQL database under construction. This must
have been prepared for extraction with [codeql database init](/code-security/codeql-cli/codeql-cli-manual/database-init).

If the `--db-cluster` option is given, this is not a database itself,
but a directory that _contains_ databases, and all of those databases
will be processed together.

#### `--[no-]db-cluster`

Indicates that the directory given on the command line is not a database
itself, but a directory that _contains_ one or more databases under
construction. Those databases will be processed together.

### Common options

#### `-h, --help`

Show this help text.

#### `-J=<opt>`

\[Advanced] Give option to the JVM running the command.

(Beware that options containing spaces will not be handled correctly.)

#### `-v, --verbose`

Incrementally increase the number of progress messages printed.

#### `-q, --quiet`

Incrementally decrease the number of progress messages printed.

#### `--verbosity=<level>`

\[Advanced] Explicitly set the verbosity level to one of errors,
warnings, progress, progress+, progress++, progress+++. Overrides `-v`
and `-q`.

#### `--logdir=<dir>`

\[Advanced] Write detailed logs to one or more files in the given
directory, with generated names that include timestamps and the name of
the running subcommand.

(To write a log file with a name you have full control over, instead
give `--log-to-stderr` and redirect stderr as desired.)

#### `--common-caches=<dir>`

\[Advanced] Controls the location of cached data on disk that will
persist between several runs of the CLI, such as downloaded QL packs and
compiled query plans. If not set explicitly, this defaults to a
directory named `.codeql` in the user's home directory; it will be
created if it doesn't already exist.

Available since `v2.15.2`.