# Overview

{% hint style="success" %}
For documentation about the available Lenses Apache 2.0 Connectors, see the [Stream Reactor documentation](https://docs.lenses.io/kafka-connectors).

To connect your Connect Clusters see [provisioning](https://github.com/lensesio-dev/docs/blob/release/6.0/deployment/installation/automation/README.md).

Lenses connects to Connect Clusters via Connects APIs. You can deploy connectors outside of Lenses and Lenses will still be able to see and manage them
{% endhint %}

You can connect Lenses to one or more Kafka Connect clusters. Once connected, Lenses will list the available Connector plugins installed in each Cluster. Additionally, Connectors can automatically be [restarted ](https://docs.lenses.io/latest/devx/6.0/monitoring-and-alerting/alerting#apps)and alert notifications sent.

## Listing Connectors

To list the deployed connectors go to **Environments->\[Your Environment]->Workspace->Connectors**. Lenses will display a list of connectors and their status.

## View Connector details

Once a connector has been created, selecting the connector allows us to:

1. View its configuration
2. Update its configurations (Action)
3. View individual task configurations
4. View metrics
5. View exceptions.

## View a Connector as Code

To view the YAML specification as Code, select the **Code** tab in the Connector details page.

## Download a Connector as Code

To download the YAML specification, click the **Download** button.

## Creating a Connector

To create a new connector go to **Environments->\[Your Environment]->Workspace->Connectors->New Connectors**.

Select the Connect Cluster you want to use and Lenses will display the plugins installed in the Connect Cluster.

Connectors are searchable by:

1. Type
2. Author

After selecting a connector, enter the configuration of the connector instance. Lenses will show the documentation for the currently selected option.

To deploy and start the connector, click Create.

## Create a Connector as Code

Creation of a Connector as code can be done via either

1. Selecting **Environments->\[Your Environment]->Connectors->Configure Connector->Configure As Code** from the main connector page, or
2. Selecting a Connect Cluster and Connector, then the **Code** tab

Both options allow for direct input of a Connectors YAML specification or uploading of an existing file.

## Managing a Connector's lifecycle

Connectors can be stopped, restarted, and deleted via the **Actions** button.


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