diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -3,3 +3,34 @@
 
 Provenance DB module to query the provenance of source code artifacts present
 in the Software Heritage archive.
+
+This project allows to build such a provenance db from the Software Heritage
+Archive, and query this database.
+
+## Building a provenance database
+
+Building the provenance database requires a read access to the Software
+Heritage archive, either via a direct access to the database (preferred for
+better performances), or using the RPC API to a Software Heritage Storage
+instance.
+
+It also need a postgresql database in which the provenance db will be written
+into.
+
+A configuration file is needed with with the access to both these databases:
+
+```
+archive:
+  cls: api
+  storage:
+      cls: remote
+      url: http://uffizi.internal.softwareheritage.org:5002
+
+provenance:
+  cls: ps
+  db:
+    dbname: provenance
+    host: localhost
+
+
+```
diff --git a/swh/provenance/__init__.py b/swh/provenance/__init__.py
--- a/swh/provenance/__init__.py
+++ b/swh/provenance/__init__.py
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@
 def get_archive(cls: str, **kwargs) -> ArchiveInterface:
     if cls == "api":
         return ArchiveStorage(**kwargs["storage"])
-    elif cls == "ps":
+    elif cls == "direct":
         conn = connect(kwargs["db"])
         return ArchivePostgreSQL(conn)
     else:
@@ -18,11 +18,11 @@
 
 
 def get_provenance(cls: str, **kwargs) -> ProvenanceInterface:
-    if cls == "ps":
+    if cls == "local":
         conn = connect(kwargs["db"])
-        return ProvenancePostgreSQL(conn)
-    elif cls == "ps_np":
-        conn = connect(kwargs["db"])
-        return ProvenancePostgreSQLNoPath(conn)
+        if kwargs.get("with_path", True):
+            return ProvenancePostgreSQL(conn)
+        else:
+            return ProvenancePostgreSQLNoPath(conn)
     else:
         raise NotImplementedError
diff --git a/swh/provenance/cli.py b/swh/provenance/cli.py
--- a/swh/provenance/cli.py
+++ b/swh/provenance/cli.py
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
 
 import click
 import yaml
+from psycopg2.extensions import parse_dsn
 
 from swh.core import config
 from swh.core.cli import CONTEXT_SETTINGS
@@ -106,26 +107,35 @@
 
 
 @cli.command(name="create")
-@click.option("--name", default=None)
+@click.option("--maintenance-db", default=None)
+@click.option("--drop/--no-drop", "drop_db", default=False)
 @click.pass_context
-def create(ctx, name):
+def create(ctx, maintenance_db, drop_db):
     """Create new provenance database."""
     from .postgresql.db_utils import connect
 
+    if ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"]["cls"] != "local":
+        raise ValueError(
+            "Unsupported provenance db cls: %s"
+            % (ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"]["cls"])
+        )
+
     # Connect to server without selecting a database
-    conninfo = ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"]["db"]
-    conn = connect(conninfo)
+    dsn = ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"]["db"]
+    if isinstance(dsn, str):
+        dsn = parse_dsn(dsn)
+    dbname = dsn.pop("dbname")
+    if maintenance_db:
+        dsn["dbname"] = maintenance_db
 
-    if ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"]["cls"] == "ps":
-        from .postgresql.provenance import create_database
+    conn = connect(dsn)
 
-        create_database(conn, conninfo, name)
-    elif ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"]["cls"] == "ps_np":
+    if ctx.obj["config"]["provenance"].get("with_path"):
+        from .postgresql.provenance import create_database
+    else:
         from .postgresql_nopath.provenance import create_database
 
-        create_database(conn, conninfo, name)
-    else:
-        raise NotImplementedError
+    create_database(conn, dbname, drop_db)
 
 
 @cli.command(name="iter-revisions")
diff --git a/swh/provenance/postgresql/provenance.py b/swh/provenance/postgresql/provenance.py
--- a/swh/provenance/postgresql/provenance.py
+++ b/swh/provenance/postgresql/provenance.py
@@ -19,7 +19,9 @@
     return path[2:] if path.startswith(bytes("." + os.path.sep, "utf-8")) else path
 
 
-def create_database(conn: psycopg2.extensions.connection, conninfo: dict, name: str):
+def create_database(
+    conn: psycopg2.extensions.connection, name: str, drop_db: bool = True
+):
     conn.set_isolation_level(psycopg2.extensions.ISOLATION_LEVEL_AUTOCOMMIT)
 
     # Normalize dbname to avoid issues when reconnecting below
@@ -27,11 +29,13 @@
 
     # Create new database dropping previous one if exists
     cursor = conn.cursor()
-    cursor.execute(f"""DROP DATABASE IF EXISTS {name}""")
+    if drop_db:
+        cursor.execute(f"""DROP DATABASE IF EXISTS {name}""")
     cursor.execute(f"""CREATE DATABASE {name}""")
     conn.close()
 
     # Reconnect to server selecting newly created database to add tables
+    conninfo = psycopg2.extensions.parse_dsn(conn.dsn)
     conninfo["dbname"] = name
     conn = connect(conninfo)
 
diff --git a/swh/provenance/postgresql_nopath/provenance.py b/swh/provenance/postgresql_nopath/provenance.py
--- a/swh/provenance/postgresql_nopath/provenance.py
+++ b/swh/provenance/postgresql_nopath/provenance.py
@@ -15,7 +15,9 @@
 from ..revision import RevisionEntry
 
 
-def create_database(conn: psycopg2.extensions.connection, conninfo: dict, name: str):
+def create_database(
+    conn: psycopg2.extensions.connection, name: str, drop_db: bool = True
+):
     conn.set_isolation_level(psycopg2.extensions.ISOLATION_LEVEL_AUTOCOMMIT)
 
     # Normalize dbname to avoid issues when reconnecting below
@@ -23,11 +25,13 @@
 
     # Create new database dropping previous one if exists
     cursor = conn.cursor()
-    cursor.execute(f"""DROP DATABASE IF EXISTS {name}""")
+    if drop_db:
+        cursor.execute(f"""DROP DATABASE IF EXISTS {name}""")
     cursor.execute(f"""CREATE DATABASE {name}""")
     conn.close()
 
     # Reconnect to server selecting newly created database to add tables
+    conninfo = psycopg2.extensions.parse_dsn(conn.dsn)
     conninfo["dbname"] = name
     conn = connect(conninfo)
 
diff --git a/swh/provenance/tests/test_cli.py b/swh/provenance/tests/test_cli.py
new file mode 100644
--- /dev/null
+++ b/swh/provenance/tests/test_cli.py
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+# Copyright (C) 2021  The Software Heritage developers
+# See the AUTHORS file at the top-level directory of this distribution
+# License: GNU General Public License version 3, or any later version
+# See top-level LICENSE file for more information
+
+import pytest
+import yaml
+from click.testing import CliRunner
+from psycopg2.extensions import parse_dsn
+
+import swh.provenance.cli  # noqa ; ensure cli is loaded
+from swh.core.cli import swh as swhmain
+from swh.core.db.pytest_plugin import postgresql_fact
+
+pytest_plugins = ["swh.storage.pytest_plugin"]
+
+provenance_db = postgresql_fact("postgresql_proc", db_name="provenance",)
+
+
+def test_cli_swh_db_help():
+    # swhmain.add_command(provenance_cli)
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(swhmain, ["provenance", "-h"])
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert "Commands:" in result.output
+    commands = result.output.split("Commands:")[1]
+    for command in (
+        "create",
+        "find-all",
+        "find-first",
+        "iter-origins",
+        "iter-revisions",
+    ):
+        assert f"  {command} " in commands
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("with_path", (True, False))
+def test_cli_create(provenance_db, tmp_path, with_path):
+    conffile = tmp_path / "config.yml"
+    dsn = parse_dsn(provenance_db.dsn)
+    dsn["dbname"] = "test_provenance"
+    conf = {
+        "provenance": {"cls": "local", "with_path": with_path, "db": dsn,},
+    }
+    yaml.dump(conf, conffile.open("w"))
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(
+        swhmain, ["provenance", "--config-file", str(conffile), "create", "--drop"]
+    )
+    assert result.exit_code == 0, result.output
+
+    # this will fail because the db already exists
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(
+        swhmain, ["provenance", "--config-file", str(conffile), "create"]
+    )
+    assert result.exit_code == 1, result.output