diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index ff3b6f2..e2eb1fa 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -25,6 +25,19 @@ set(CMAKE_INCLUDE_CURRENT_DIR ON)
 add_definitions("-std=c++17 -Wall -Wextra -Wno-unused-parameter -Wno-sign-compare")
 set(CMAKE_CXX_FLAGS_DEBUG "${CMAKE_CXX_FLAGS_DEBUG} -Werror -DDEBUG")
 
+# Allow passing in the version string, for e.g. patched/packaged versions
+if(NOT LAMINAR_VERSION AND EXISTS ${CMAKE_SOURCE_DIR}/.git)
+    execute_process(COMMAND git describe --tags --abbrev=8 --dirty
+        WORKING_DIRECTORY ${CMAKE_SOURCE_DIR}
+        OUTPUT_VARIABLE LAMINAR_VERSION
+        OUTPUT_STRIP_TRAILING_WHITESPACE)
+endif()
+if(NOT LAMINAR_VERSION)
+    set(LAMINAR_VERSION xx-unversioned)
+endif()
+set_source_files_properties(src/version.cpp PROPERTIES COMPILE_DEFINITIONS
+	LAMINAR_VERSION=${LAMINAR_VERSION})
+
 # This macro takes a list of files, gzips them and converts the output into
 # object files so they can be linked directly into the application.
 # ld generates symbols based on the string argument given to its executable,
@@ -93,6 +106,7 @@ set(LAMINARD_CORE_SOURCES
     src/rpc.cpp
     src/run.cpp
     src/server.cpp
+    src/version.cpp
     laminar.capnp.c++
     index_html_size.h
 )
@@ -102,7 +116,7 @@ add_executable(laminard ${LAMINARD_CORE_SOURCES} src/main.cpp ${COMPRESSED_BINS}
 target_link_libraries(laminard capnp-rpc capnp kj-http kj-async kj pthread sqlite3 z)
 
 ## Client
-add_executable(laminarc src/client.cpp laminar.capnp.c++)
+add_executable(laminarc src/client.cpp src/version.cpp laminar.capnp.c++)
 target_link_libraries(laminarc capnp-rpc capnp kj-async kj pthread)
 
 ## Tests
diff --git a/pkg/centos7-x86_64.sh b/pkg/centos7-x86_64.sh
index b72e6f4..77932c4 100755
--- a/pkg/centos7-x86_64.sh
+++ b/pkg/centos7-x86_64.sh
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ Lightweight Continuous Integration Service
 %prep
 
 %build
-cmake3 -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DSYSTEMD_UNITDIR=%{_unitdir} %{_sourcedir}/laminar-$VERSION
+cmake3 -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DLAMINAR_VERSION=$VERSION -DSYSTEMD_UNITDIR=%{_unitdir} %{_sourcedir}/laminar-$VERSION
 pwd
 make
 
diff --git a/pkg/centos8-x86_64.sh b/pkg/centos8-x86_64.sh
index a2f41c1..ac1e486 100755
--- a/pkg/centos8-x86_64.sh
+++ b/pkg/centos8-x86_64.sh
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ Lightweight Continuous Integration Service
 %prep
 
 %build
-cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DSYSTEMD_UNITDIR=%{_unitdir} %{_sourcedir}/laminar-$VERSION
+cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DLAMINAR_VERSION=$VERSION -DSYSTEMD_UNITDIR=%{_unitdir} %{_sourcedir}/laminar-$VERSION
 pwd
 make
 
diff --git a/pkg/debian10-amd64.sh b/pkg/debian10-amd64.sh
index 127ed36..3d4e41c 100755
--- a/pkg/debian10-amd64.sh
+++ b/pkg/debian10-amd64.sh
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ docker run --rm -i -v $SOURCE_DIR:/laminar:ro -v $OUTPUT_DIR:/output $DOCKER_TAG
 mkdir /build
 cd /build
 
-cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DZSH_COMPLETIONS_DIR=/usr/share/zsh/functions/Completion/Unix /laminar
+cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DLAMINAR_VERSION=$VERSION -DZSH_COMPLETIONS_DIR=/usr/share/zsh/functions/Completion/Unix /laminar
 make -j4
 mkdir laminar
 make DESTDIR=laminar install/strip
diff --git a/pkg/debian10-armhf.sh b/pkg/debian10-armhf.sh
index 6010e3e..eac3063 100755
--- a/pkg/debian10-armhf.sh
+++ b/pkg/debian10-armhf.sh
@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@ cmake \
 	-DCMAKE_STRIP=/usr/bin/arm-linux-gnueabihf-strip \
 	-DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release \
 	-DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr \
+	-DLAMINAR_VERSION=$VERSION \
 	-DZSH_COMPLETIONS_DIR=/usr/share/zsh/functions/Completion/Unix \
 	/laminar
 make -j4
diff --git a/src/client.cpp b/src/client.cpp
index d803e52..1ea9b8b 100644
--- a/src/client.cpp
+++ b/src/client.cpp
@@ -17,10 +17,12 @@
 /// along with Laminar.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>
 ///
 #include "laminar.capnp.h"
+#include "log.h"
 
 #include <capnp/ez-rpc.h>
 #include <kj/vector.h>
 
+#include <iostream>
 #include <stdio.h>
 #include <stdlib.h>
 #include <unistd.h>
@@ -77,11 +79,35 @@ static void printTriggerLink(const char* job, uint run) {
     printf("\033[{%s:%d\033\\\n", job, run);
 }
 
+static void usage(std::ostream& out) {
+    out << "laminarc version " << laminar_version() << "\n";
+    out << "Usage: laminarc [-h|--help] COMMAND [PARAMETERS...]]\n";
+    out << "  -h|--help       show this help message\n";
+    out << "where COMMAND is:\n";
+    out << "  queue JOB_LIST...     queues one or more jobs for execution and returns immediately.\n";
+    out << "  start JOB_LIST...     queues one or more jobs for execution and blocks until it starts.\n";
+    out << "  run JOB_LIST...       queues one or more jobs for execution and blocks until it finishes.\n";
+    out << "  set PARAMETER_LIST... sets the given parameters as environment variables in the currently\n";
+    out << "                        runing job. Fails if run outside of a job context.\n";
+    out << "  abort NAME NUMBER     aborts the run identified by NAME and NUMBER.\n";
+    out << "  show-jobs             lists all known jobs.\n";
+    out << "  show-queued           lists currently queued jobs.\n";
+    out << "  show-running          lists currently running jobs.\n";
+    out << "JOB_LIST is of the form:\n";
+    out << "  [JOB_NAME [PARAMETER_LIST...]]...\n";
+    out << "PARAMETER_LIST is of the form:\n";
+    out << "  [KEY=VALUE]...\n";
+    out << "Example:\n";
+    out << "  laminarc start \\\n";
+    out << "    nightly-build branch=master type=release \\\n";
+    out << "    nightly-build branch=master type=debug\n";
+}
+
 int main(int argc, char** argv) {
-    if(argc < 2) {
-        fprintf(stderr, "Usage: %s <command> [parameters...]\n", argv[0]);
-        return EXIT_BAD_ARGUMENT;
-    }
+    if(argc < 2)
+        return usage(std::cerr), EXIT_BAD_ARGUMENT;
+    else if(strcmp("-h", argv[1]) == 0 || strcmp("--help", argv[1]) == 0)
+        return usage(std::cout), EXIT_SUCCESS;
 
     struct: public kj::TaskSet::ErrorHandler {
         void taskFailed(kj::Exception&& e) override {
diff --git a/src/laminar.cpp b/src/laminar.cpp
index 191d1bf..2ac59de 100644
--- a/src/laminar.cpp
+++ b/src/laminar.cpp
@@ -227,6 +227,7 @@ std::string Laminar::getStatus(MonitorScope scope) {
     Json j;
     j.set("type", "status");
     j.set("title", getenv("LAMINAR_TITLE") ?: "Laminar");
+    j.set("version", laminar_version());
     j.set("time", time(nullptr));
     j.startObject("data");
     if(scope.type == MonitorScope::RUN) {
diff --git a/src/log.h b/src/log.h
index 54020c2..a0ccff4 100644
--- a/src/log.h
+++ b/src/log.h
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 ///
-/// Copyright 2015-2019 Oliver Giles
+/// Copyright 2015-2020 Oliver Giles
 ///
 /// This file is part of Laminar
 ///
@@ -67,5 +67,7 @@ namespace _ {
     for (::kj::_::Debug::Fault f(__FILE_BASE__, __LINE__, \
       _kjSyscallResult.getErrorNumber(), #call, #__VA_ARGS__, ##__VA_ARGS__);; f.fatal())
 
+const char* laminar_version();
+
 #endif // LAMINAR_LOG_H_
 
diff --git a/src/main.cpp b/src/main.cpp
index 8b37e26..2b47993 100644
--- a/src/main.cpp
+++ b/src/main.cpp
@@ -20,7 +20,9 @@
 #include "leader.h"
 #include "server.h"
 #include "log.h"
+
 #include <fcntl.h>
+#include <iostream>
 #include <kj/async-unix.h>
 #include <kj/filesystem.h>
 #include <signal.h>
@@ -44,6 +46,13 @@ constexpr const char* INTADDR_HTTP_DEFAULT = "*:8080";
 constexpr const char* ARCHIVE_URL_DEFAULT = "/archive/";
 }
 
+static void usage(std::ostream& out) {
+    out << "laminard version " << laminar_version() << "\n";
+    out << "Usage:\n";
+    out << "  -h|--help       show this help message\n";
+    out << "  -v              enable verbose output\n";
+}
+
 int main(int argc, char** argv) {
     if(argv[0][0] == '{')
         return leader_main();
@@ -51,6 +60,11 @@ int main(int argc, char** argv) {
     for(int i = 1; i < argc; ++i) {
         if(strcmp(argv[i], "-v") == 0) {
             kj::_::Debug::setLogLevel(kj::_::Debug::Severity::INFO);
+        } else if(strcmp(argv[i], "-h") == 0 || strcmp(argv[i], "--help") == 0) {
+            return usage(std::cout), EXIT_SUCCESS;
+        } else {
+            std::cerr << "Unknown argument " << argv[i] << "\n";
+            return usage(std::cerr), EXIT_FAILURE;
         }
     }
 
@@ -79,6 +93,8 @@ int main(int argc, char** argv) {
     signal(SIGINT, &laminar_quit);
     signal(SIGTERM, &laminar_quit);
 
+    printf("laminard version %s started\n", laminar_version());
+
     server->start();
 
     delete laminar;
diff --git a/src/resources/index.html b/src/resources/index.html
index f84ebea..cb5a57f 100644
--- a/src/resources/index.html
+++ b/src/resources/index.html
@@ -177,7 +177,7 @@
  </div></template>
 
  <main id="app" style="display: grid; grid-template-rows: auto 1fr auto; height: 100%;">
-  <nav id="nav-top" style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: auto auto 1fr auto; grid-gap: 15px;">
+  <nav id="nav-top" style="display: grid; grid-template-columns: auto auto 1fr auto auto; grid-gap: 15px;">
    <router-link to="/" style="display: grid; grid-auto-flow: column; align-items: center; margin: 5px; font-size: 20px;">
     <img src="icon.png"> {{title}}
    </router-link>
@@ -186,6 +186,7 @@
     <router-link v-for="(crumb,i) in _route.path.slice(1).split('/').slice(1,-1)" :to="_route.path.split('/').slice(0,i+3).join('/')">{{crumb}}</router-link>
    </div>
    <div></div>
+   <span class="version">{{version}}</span>
    <div style="display: grid; align-items: center; padding: 0 15px">
     <a v-on:click="toggleNotifications(!notify)" class="nav-icon" :class="{active:notify}" v-show="supportsNotifications" :title="(notify?'Disable':'Enable')+' notifications'">
      <svg width="18" viewBox="0 0 12 12">
diff --git a/src/resources/js/app.js b/src/resources/js/app.js
index 636de2f..dea03ed 100644
--- a/src/resources/js/app.js
+++ b/src/resources/js/app.js
@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ const ServerEventHandler = function() {
           comp.esReconnectInterval = 500;
           // Update html and nav titles
           document.title = comp.$root.title = msg.title;
+          comp.$root.version = msg.version;
           // Calculate clock offset (used by ProgressUpdater)
           comp.$root.clockSkew = msg.time - Math.floor((new Date()).getTime()/1000);
           comp.$root.connected = true;
@@ -726,6 +727,7 @@ new Vue({
   el: '#app',
   data: {
     title: '', // populated by status ws message
+    version: '',
     clockSkew: 0,
     connected: false,
     notify: 'localStorage' in window && localStorage.getItem('showNotifications') == 1
diff --git a/src/resources/style.css b/src/resources/style.css
index 8b961df..121d724 100644
--- a/src/resources/style.css
+++ b/src/resources/style.css
@@ -40,6 +40,12 @@ body {
 #nav-top a       { color: var(--nav-fg); }
 #nav-top a:hover { color: white; text-decoration: none; }
 
+.version {
+ align-self: center;
+ font-size: x-small;
+ color: rgba(255,255,255,0.3);
+}
+
 /* navbar svg icons (enable notifications) */
 .nav-icon            { display: inherit; }
 .nav-icon svg        { fill: var(--nav-fg); stroke: #000; }
diff --git a/src/version.cpp b/src/version.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..353a33f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/version.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+///
+/// Copyright 2020 Oliver Giles
+///
+/// This file is part of Laminar
+///
+/// Laminar is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+/// it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
+/// the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
+/// (at your option) any later version.
+///
+/// Laminar is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+/// but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+/// MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+/// GNU General Public License for more details.
+///
+/// You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
+/// along with Laminar.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>
+///
+
+#define str(x) #x
+#define xstr(x) str(x)
+
+const char* laminar_version() {
+    return xstr(LAMINAR_VERSION);
+}