# Seeding data

When developing Fleet, it may be useful to create seed data that includes users and fleets.

## Setup

> In order to run scripts that make use of premium features, make sure you have started the server with the correct flags as described in [Testing](https://fleetdm.com/docs/contributing/testing-and-local-development#license-key).

### Create an environment variable file

First, create an `env` file with the following contents:

```sh
export SERVER_URL=https://localhost:8080 # your Fleet server URL and port
export CURL_FLAGS='-k -s' # set insecure flag
export TOKEN=eyJhbGciOi... # your api token
```

> Note: store the `env` file somewhere you won't commit your token, or apply these 3 environment variables directly in the command line.

### Apply your environment variable file

Set the `FLEET_ENV_PATH` to point to the `env` file.

```sh
export FLEET_ENV_PATH=./path/to/env/file/fleet_env
```

This will let the scripts in the `/tools/api/fleet/` folder source the `env` file.


## Seeding users

Check out this Loom demo video that walks through creating fleets (formerly "teams") seed data:
https://www.loom.com/share/1c41a1540e8f41328a7a6cfc56ad0a01

For a text-based walkthrough, follow these steps:

Run one of the bash scripts located in the [/tools/api](https://github.com/fleetdm/fleet/tree/main/tools/api) directory.

### Seed free users

The `fleet/create_free` script will generate an environment to roughly reflect an installation of Fleet Free. The script creates 3 users with different roles. From the fleet directory, run:

```sh
./tools/api/fleet/teams/create_free
```

<img width="1000" alt="Test users for a free account" src="https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/71795832/193676340-2b68aba2-802f-41a7-8817-5b704d5dedac.png">

### Seed premium users

The `fleet/create_premium` script will generate an environment to roughly reflect an installation of Fleet Premium. The script will create 2 fleets of 7 users with different roles. From the fleet directory, run:

```sh
./tools/api/fleet/teams/create_premium
```

<img width="1000" alt="Test users for a premium account" src="https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/71795832/193676358-2afc266a-aecf-472c-b854-51cefed4f7dc.png">

### Seed designing users

The `fleet/create_figma` script will generate an environment to reflect the mockups in the Fleet EE (current) Figma file. The script creates 3 fleets and 12 users with different roles. From the fleet directory, run:

```sh
./tools/api/fleet/teams/create_figma
```

<img width="1000" alt="Users for designing in Figma" src="https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/71795832/193676371-d775e5a4-528b-4067-a025-3ce571b0be1f.png">

Each user generated by the script has its password set to `password123#`.


## User-related actions

### Import queries and policies

After seeding users and fleets, check out [importing queries and policies](https://fleetdm.com/docs/using-fleet/standard-query-library#importing-the-queries-in-fleet) from Fleet's [library](https://fleetdm.com/queries).

### Create an API-only user

Like all regular users, seeded users' API tokens expire frequently. For an API token that does not expire, create an [API-only user](https://fleetdm.com/docs/using-fleet/fleetctl-cli#using-fleetctl-with-an-api-only-user).

### Create a single sign-on (SSO) user

> Set up [SMTP options](https://fleetdm.com/docs/contributing/testing-and-local-development#email) in your developer environment first to invite a SSO user.

Fleet supports [SSO users](https://fleetdm.com/docs/deploying/configuration#configuring-single-sign-on-sso). Create an [SSO test user](https://fleetdm.com/docs/contributing/testing-and-local-development#testing-sso) to test signing on with simple SAML.

## Seeding test hosts

There are three ways to create test hosts in your local development environment:

| Method | Best for | Platforms | Resource usage |
|---|---|---|---|
| [osquery-perf](#osquery-perf) | Simulating many hosts at scale | macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, iPadOS | Low |
| [Docker test hosts](#docker-test-hosts) | Testing with real osqueryd instances | CentOS, Ubuntu | High (RAM-intensive) |
| [fleetctl preview](#fleetctl-preview) | Quick demos and exploration | macOS (simulated) | Medium |

### osquery-perf

A lightweight Go tool that simulates thousands of hosts from a single machine.

- Supports **macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, and iPadOS** via `--os_templates`
- iOS/iPadOS devices enroll via MDM (requires local MDM setup and SCEP challenge)
- Control host count, enrollment rate, query intervals, and agent behavior
- First-time setup requires building a software database

See the full [osquery-perf README](https://github.com/fleetdm/fleet/tree/main/cmd/osquery-perf) for usage instructions and
available flags.

### Docker test hosts

Runs real containerized `osqueryd` instances. More realistic but limited to a handful
of hosts due to memory usage.

```sh
cd tools/osquery
ENROLL_SECRET=<YOUR_ENROLL_SECRET> docker-compose up
```

See the [Docker test hosts](https://github.com/fleetdm/fleet/tree/main/tools/osquery) for scaling options and
platform-specific instructions.

### fleetctl preview

Starts a complete Fleet environment with pre-configured simulated hosts in one command.
Not recommended for development testing.

```sh
fleetctl preview
```

See `fleetctl preview --help` for available options.



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