Cline is an AI coding assistant that integrates directly into your VS Code environment, providing autonomous coding capabilities. While Cline offers powerful AI assistance for development tasks, Portkey adds essential enterprise controls for production deployments:
  • Unified AI Gateway - Single interface for 250+ LLMs with API key management
  • Centralized AI observability: Real-time usage tracking for 40+ key metrics and logs for every request
  • Governance - Real-time spend tracking, set budget limits and RBAC in your Cline setup
  • Security Guardrails - PII detection, content filtering, and compliance controls
This guide will walk you through integrating Portkey with Cline and setting up essential enterprise features including usage tracking, access controls, and budget management.
If you are an enterprise looking to standardize Cline usage across your development teams, check out this section.

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1. Setting up Portkey

Portkey allows you to use 250+ LLMs with your Cline setup, with minimal configuration required. Let’s set up the core components in Portkey that you’ll need for integration.
1

Create Virtual Key

Virtual Keys are Portkey’s secure way to manage your LLM provider API keys. Think of them like disposable credit cards for your LLM API keys, providing essential controls like:
  • Budget limits for API usage
  • Rate limiting capabilities
  • Secure API key storage
To create a virtual key: Go to Virtual Keys in the Portkey App. Save and copy the virtual key ID
Save your virtual key ID - you’ll need it for the next step.
2

Create Default Config

Configs in Portkey are JSON objects that define how your requests are routed. They help with implementing features like advanced routing, fallbacks, and retries.We need to create a default config to route our requests to the virtual key created in Step 1.To create your config:
  1. Go to Configs in Portkey dashboard
  2. Create new config with: 
    {
    "virtual_key": "YOUR_VIRTUAL_KEY_FROM_STEP1",
    "override_params": {
      "model": "gpt-4o" // Your preferred model name
    }
}
  3. Save and note the Config name for the next step
This basic config connects to your virtual key. You can add more advanced portkey features later.
3

Configure Portkey API Key

Now create Portkey API key access point and attach the config you created in Step 2:
  1. Go to API Keys in Portkey and Create new API key
  2. Select your config from Step 2
  3. Generate and save your API key
Save your API key securely - you’ll need it for Cline integration.

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2. Integrate Portkey with Cline

Now that you have your Portkey components set up, let’s connect them to Cline. Since Portkey provides OpenAI API compatibility, integration is straightforward and requires just a few configuration steps in your VS Code settings.
You need your Portkey API Key from Step 1 before going further.

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Opening Cline Settings

  1. Open VS Code with Cline installed
  2. Press Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + P to open the command palette
  3. Search for Cline: Open in new tab
  4. Click on the settings gear icon ⚙️ in the Cline tab
This method uses the default config you created in Portkey, making it easier to manage model settings centrally.
  1. In the Cline settings, navigate to API Configuration
  2. Configure the following settings:
    • API Provider: Select OpenAI Compatible
    • Base URL: https://api.portkey.ai/v1
    • API Key: Your Portkey API key from the setup
    • Model ID: dummy (since the model is defined in your Portkey config)
Using a default config with override_params is recommended as it allows you to manage all model settings centrally in Portkey, reducing maintenance overhead.

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Method 2: Using Custom Headers

If you prefer more direct control or need to use multiple providers dynamically, you can pass Portkey headers directly:
  1. Configure the basic settings as in Method 1:
    • API Provider: OpenAI Compatible
    • Base URL: https://api.portkey.ai/v1
    • API Key: Your Portkey API key
    • Model ID: Your desired model (e.g., gpt-4o, claude-3-opus-20240229)
  2. Add custom headers by clicking “Add Header” and include: 
    x-portkey-virtual-key: YOUR_VIRTUAL_KEY
    Optional headers: 
    x-portkey-provider: google  // Only if not using virtual key
x-portkey-config: YOUR_CONFIG_ID  // For additional config
Custom headers give you flexibility but require updating headers in Cline whenever you want to change providers or models.
You can now use Cline with all of Portkey’s enterprise features enabled. Monitor your requests and usage in the Portkey Dashboard.

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3. Set Up Enterprise Governance for Cline

Why Enterprise Governance? When deploying Cline across development teams in your organization, you need to consider several governance aspects:
  • Cost Management: Controlling and tracking AI spending across developers
  • Access Control: Managing which teams can use specific models
  • Usage Analytics: Understanding how AI is being used in development workflows
  • Security & Compliance: Protecting sensitive code and maintaining security standards
  • Reliability: Ensuring consistent service across all developers
Portkey adds a comprehensive governance layer to address these enterprise needs. Let’s implement these controls step by step. Enterprise Implementation Guide

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Step 1: Implement Budget Controls & Rate Limits

Virtual Keys enable granular control over LLM access at the team/developer level. This helps you:
  • Set up budget limits per developer
  • Prevent unexpected usage spikes using Rate limits
  • Track individual developer spending

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Setting Up Developer-Specific Controls:

  1. Navigate to Virtual Keys in Portkey dashboard
  2. Create new Virtual Key for each developer or team with budget limits
  3. Configure appropriate limits based on seniority or project needs

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Step 2: Define Model Access Rules

As your development team scales, controlling which developers can access specific models becomes crucial. Portkey Configs provide this control layer with features like:

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Access Control Features:

  • Model Restrictions: Limit access to expensive models
  • Code Protection: Implement guardrails for sensitive code
  • Reliability Controls: Add fallbacks and retry logic

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Example Configuration for Development Teams:

{
	"strategy": {
		"mode": "fallback"
	},
	"targets": [
		{
			"virtual_key": "YOUR_OPENAI_VIRTUAL_KEY",
			"override_params": {
				"model": "gpt-4o"
			}
		},
		{
			"virtual_key": "YOUR_ANTHROPIC_VIRTUAL_KEY",
			"override_params": {
				"model": "claude-3-sonnet-20240229"
			}
		}
	]
}
Create your config on the Configs page in your Portkey dashboard.
Configs can be updated anytime to adjust controls without developers needing to update their Cline settings.

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Step 3: Implement Developer Access Controls

Create Developer-specific API keys that automatically:
  • Track usage per developer with virtual keys
  • Apply appropriate configs to route requests
  • Collect metadata about coding sessions
  • Enforce access permissions
Create API keys through:Example using Python SDK:
from portkey_ai import Portkey

portkey = Portkey(api_key="YOUR_ADMIN_API_KEY")

api_key = portkey.api_keys.create(
    name="frontend-team-developer",
    type="organisation",
    workspace_id="YOUR_WORKSPACE_ID",
    defaults={
        "config_id": "your-config-id",
        "metadata": {
            "environment": "development",
            "team": "frontend",
            "developer": "john.doe"
        }
    },
    scopes=["logs.view", "configs.read"]
)
For detailed key management instructions, see our API Keys documentation.

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Step 4: Deploy & Monitor

After distributing API keys to your developers, your enterprise-ready Cline setup is ready. Each developer can now use their designated API keys with appropriate access levels and budget controls.Monitor usage in Portkey dashboard:
  • Cost tracking by developer
  • Model usage patterns
  • Code generation metrics
  • Error rates and performance

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Enterprise Features Now Available

Cline now has:
  • Per-developer budget controls
  • Model access governance
  • Usage tracking & attribution
  • Code security guardrails
  • Reliability features for development workflows

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Portkey Features

Now that you have enterprise-grade Cline setup, let’s explore the comprehensive features Portkey provides to ensure secure, efficient, and cost-effective AI-assisted development.

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1. Comprehensive Metrics

Using Portkey you can track 40+ key metrics including cost, token usage, response time, and performance across all your LLM providers in real time. Filter these metrics by developer, team, or project using custom metadata.

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2. Advanced Logs

Portkey’s logging dashboard provides detailed logs for every request made by Cline. These logs include:
  • Complete request and response tracking
  • Code context and generation metrics
  • Developer attribution
  • Cost breakdown per coding session

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3. Unified Access to 250+ LLMs

Easily switch between 250+ LLMs for different coding tasks. Use GPT-4 for complex architecture decisions, Claude for detailed code reviews, or specialized models for specific languages - all through a single interface.

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4. Advanced Metadata Tracking

Track coding patterns and productivity metrics with custom metadata:
  • Language and framework usage
  • Code generation vs completion tasks
  • Time-of-day productivity patterns
  • Project-specific metrics

Custom Metadata

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5. Enterprise Access Management

Budget Controls

Set and manage spending limits per developer or team. Prevent budget overruns with automatic cutoffs.

Single Sign-On (SSO)

Enterprise-grade SSO integration for seamless developer onboarding and offboarding.

Organization Management

Hierarchical structure with teams, projects, and role-based access control for development organizations.

Access Rules & Audit Logs

Comprehensive audit logging for security compliance and code generation tracking.

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6. Reliability Features

Fallbacks

Automatically switch between models if one fails, ensuring uninterrupted coding.

Conditional Routing

Route requests based on code complexity or language requirements.

Load Balancing

Distribute requests across multiple API keys or providers.

Caching

Cache common code patterns to reduce costs and improve response times.

Smart Retries

Automatic retry handling for failed requests with exponential backoff.

Budget Limits

Enforce spending limits to control development costs.

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7. Advanced Guardrails

Protect your codebase and enhance security with real-time checks on AI interactions:
  • Prevent exposure of API keys and secrets
  • Block generation of malicious code patterns
  • Enforce coding standards and best practices
  • Custom security rules for your organization
  • License compliance checks

Guardrails

Implement real-time protection for your development environment with automatic detection and filtering of sensitive code, credentials, and security vulnerabilities.

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FAQs

Portkey provides several ways to track developer costs:
  • Create separate Virtual Keys for each developer
  • Use metadata tags to identify developers
  • Set up developer-specific API keys
  • View detailed analytics in the dashboard
When a developer reaches their budget limit:
  1. Further requests will be blocked
  2. The developer and admin receive notifications
  3. Coding history remains available
  4. Admins can adjust limits as needed
Yes! Portkey supports local models through Ollama and other self-hosted solutions. Configure your local endpoint as a custom provider in Portkey and use it with Cline just like any other provider.
Portkey provides multiple security layers:
  • Guardrails to prevent sensitive data exposure
  • Request/response filtering
  • Audit logs for all interactions
  • Custom security rules
  • PII detection and masking

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Next Steps

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Schedule a 1:1 call with our team to see how Portkey can transform your development workflow with Cline. Get personalized recommendations for your team’s specific needs.
For enterprise support and custom features for your development teams, contact our enterprise team.