# How to create locks

> Guide to creating distributed locks in etcd

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LLMS index: [llms.txt](/llms.txt)

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LOCK acquires a distributed mutex with a given name. Once the lock is acquired, it will be held until etcdctl is terminated.

## Prerequisites

* Install [`etcd` and `etcdctl`](/docs/etcd/install/)

## Creating a lock

`lock` for distributed lock:

![08_etcdctl_lock_2016050501](/docs/etcd/tasks/img/create-lock.gif)

```shell
etcdctl --endpoints=$ENDPOINTS lock mutex1
```

### Options
- endpoints - defines a comma-delimited list of machine addresses in the cluster.
- ttl - time out in seconds of lock session.