Create User

Create new user accounts in Bknd via seed functions, SDK, REST API, or admin panel.

Prerequisites

• Bknd project running (local or deployed)
• Auth module enabled (auth.enabled: true)
• Password strategy configured (enabled by default)
• For role assignment: roles defined in auth config

When to Use UI Mode

• Creating admin/test users during development
• Manual user management by non-technical admins
• One-off user creation

UI steps: Admin Panel > Auth > Users > Click "+" > Fill email/password > Select role > Save

When to Use Code Mode

• Seeding initial admin users on first deploy
• Programmatic user creation in server code
• User registration flows in your frontend
• Automated user provisioning

Code Approach

Method 1: Seed Function (Recommended for Initial Users)

Create users on first app startup via seed function:

import { serve } from "bknd/adapter/bun";
import { em, entity, text } from "bknd";

const schema = em({
  posts: entity("posts", { title: text().required() }),
});

serve({
  connection: { url: "file:data.db" },
  config: {
    data: schema.toJSON(),
    auth: {
      enabled: true,
      jwt: { secret: process.env.JWT_SECRET || "dev-secret" },
      roles: {
        admin: { implicit_allow: true },
        user: { implicit_allow: false },
      },
    },
  },
  options: {
    seed: async (ctx) => {
      // Create admin user on first run
      await ctx.app.module.auth.createUser({
        email: "[email protected]",
        password: "securepassword123",
        role: "admin",
      });
      console.log("Admin user created");
    },
  },
});

Seed function notes:

• Runs only on first startup when database is empty
• Has full access to ctx.app.module.auth
• Ideal for creating initial admin accounts

Method 2: Server-Side createUser()

Create users programmatically in server code (plugins, flows, custom endpoints):

import { getApi } from "bknd";

// In a plugin, flow, or custom endpoint handler
async function createAdminUser(app) {
  const user = await app.module.auth.createUser({
    email: "[email protected]",
    password: "securepassword123",
    role: "admin",
  });

  console.log("Created user:", user.id, user.email);
  return user;
}

// With additional fields (if users entity has custom fields)
async function createUserWithProfile(app) {
  const user = await app.module.auth.createUser({
    email: "[email protected]",
    password: "password123",
    role: "user",
    name: "John Doe",        // Custom field
    avatar: "https://...",   // Custom field
  });
  return user;
}

createUser() signature:

type CreateUserPayload = {
  email: string;      // Required: user email
  password: string;   // Required: plain text (will be hashed)
  role?: string;      // Optional: must exist in auth.roles
  [key: string]: any; // Additional fields for users entity
};

// Returns the created user record
async createUser(payload: CreateUserPayload): Promise<User>

Method 3: SDK Registration (Client-Side)

For user self-registration via your frontend:

import { Api } from "bknd";

const api = new Api({
  host: "http://localhost:7654",
  storage: localStorage,  // For token persistence
});

// Register new user
const { ok, data, error } = await api.auth.register("password", {
  email: "[email protected]",
  password: "securepassword123",
});

if (ok) {
  console.log("Registered:", data.user);
  console.log("Token:", data.token);
  // User is now logged in, token stored in localStorage
} else {
  console.error("Registration failed:", error);
}

Registration notes:

• Requires auth.allow_register: true (default)
• Assigns auth.defaultroleregister role automatically
• Returns JWT token (user is logged in after registration)
• Only accepts email/password; additional fields need separate update

Method 4: REST API Registration

# Register via REST API
curl -X POST http://localhost:7654/api/auth/password/register \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email": "[email protected]", "password": "securepassword123"}'

Response:

{
  "user": {
    "id": 1,
    "email": "[email protected]",
    "role": "user"
  },
  "token": "eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIs..."
}

Method 5: Data API (Admin Creating Users)

Admins can create users directly via data API (requires auth + admin role):

// As authenticated admin
const { ok, data } = await api.data.createOne("users", {
  email: "[email protected]",
  strategy: "password",
  strategy_value: "HASHED_PASSWORD",  // Must be pre-hashed!
  role: "user",
});

Warning: Data API requires pre-hashed password. Use createUser() or registration instead for proper password handling.

React Integration

Registration Form

import { useApp } from "bknd/react";
import { useState } from "react";

function RegisterForm() {
  const { api } = useApp();
  const [email, setEmail] = useState("");
  const [password, setPassword] = useState("");
  const [error, setError] = useState<string | null>(null);
  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(false);

  async function handleSubmit(e: React.FormEvent) {
    e.preventDefault();
    setLoading(true);
    setError(null);

    const { ok, data, error: apiError } = await api.auth.register("password", {
      email,
      password,
    });

    setLoading(false);

    if (ok) {
      console.log("Registered:", data.user);
      // Redirect to dashboard or show success
    } else {
      setError(apiError?.message || "Registration failed");
    }
  }

  return (
    <form onSubmit={handleSubmit}>
      <input
        type="email"
        value={email}
        onChange={(e) => setEmail(e.target.value)}
        placeholder="Email"
        required
      />
      <input
        type="password"
        value={password}
        onChange={(e) => setPassword(e.target.value)}
        placeholder="Password"
        minLength={8}
        required
      />
      <button type="submit" disabled={loading}>
        {loading ? "Creating account..." : "Register"}
      </button>
      {error && <p className="error">{error}</p>}
    </form>
  );
}

Using useAuth Hook

import { useAuth } from "@bknd/react";

function AuthStatus() {
  const { user, isLoading, register, logout } = useAuth();

  if (isLoading) return <div>Loading...</div>;

  if (!user) {
    return (
      <button onClick={() => register("password", {
        email: "[email protected]",
        password: "password123"
      })}>
        Create Account
      </button>
    );
  }

  return (
    <div>
      <p>Welcome, {user.email}</p>
      <button onClick={logout}>Logout</button>
    </div>
  );
}

Configuration Options

Enable/Disable Registration

{
  auth: {
    enabled: true,
    allow_register: true,  // Set to false to disable self-registration
    default_role_register: "user",  // Role assigned on registration
  },
}

Password Requirements

{
  auth: {
    strategies: {
      password: {
        type: "password",
        enabled: true,
        config: {
          hashing: "bcrypt",   // "plain" | "sha256" | "bcrypt"
          rounds: 4,           // bcrypt rounds (1-10)
          minLength: 8,        // Minimum password length
        },
      },
    },
  },
}

Define Roles for Assignment

{
  auth: {
    roles: {
      admin: {
        implicit_allow: true,  // Can do everything
      },
      editor: {
        implicit_allow: false,
        permissions: [
          { permission: "data.posts.read", effect: "allow" },
          { permission: "data.posts.create", effect: "allow" },
          { permission: "data.posts.update", effect: "allow" },
        ],
      },
      user: {
        implicit_allow: false,
        permissions: [
          { permission: "data.posts.read", effect: "allow" },
        ],
      },
    },
    default_role_register: "user",  // New registrations get this role
  },
}

Extending Users Entity

Add custom fields to users:

import { em, entity, text, date } from "bknd";

const schema = em({
  users: entity("users", {
    email: text().required().unique(),
    name: text(),
    avatar: text(),
    bio: text(),
    created_at: date({ default_value: "now" }),
  }),
});

// In config
{
  config: {
    data: schema.toJSON(),
    auth: { enabled: true, /* ... */ },
  },
}

Note: strategy and strategy_value fields are managed by auth system - don't modify directly.

Common Pitfalls

Registration Disabled

Problem: Registration not allowed error

Fix: Enable registration:

{ auth: { allow_register: true } }

Role Not Found

Problem: Role "admin" not found error

Fix: Define role in config before assigning:

{
  auth: {
    roles: {
      admin: { implicit_allow: true },
    },
  },
}

User Already Exists

Problem: User already exists or UNIQUE constraint failed

Fix: Check before creating or handle error:

// SDK registration handles this automatically
const { ok, error } = await api.auth.register("password", { email, password });
if (!ok && error?.message?.includes("exists")) {
  console.log("Email already registered");
}

// Server-side: check first
const { data: exists } = await api.data.exists("users", {
  email: { $eq: email },
});
if (!exists.exists) {
  await app.module.auth.createUser({ email, password });
}

Weak JWT Secret

Problem: Cannot sign JWT without secret or security warnings

Fix: Set strong JWT secret:

{
  auth: {
    jwt: {
      secret: process.env.JWT_SECRET,  // Use env var, 256-bit minimum
    },
  },
}

Password Not Hashed (Data API)

Problem: User can't login after creating via data API

Cause: Data API doesn't hash passwords automatically

Fix: Use createUser() or registration instead:

// Wrong - password not hashed
await api.data.createOne("users", { email, password: "plain" });

// Correct - use auth module
await app.module.auth.createUser({ email, password: "plain" });

Additional Fields Not Saved

Problem: Custom fields not included after registration

Cause: Registration only accepts email/password

Fix: Update user after registration:

const { data } = await api.auth.register("password", { email, password });

// Update with additional fields
await api.data.updateOne("users", data.user.id, {
  name: "John Doe",
  avatar: "https://...",
});

Verification

After creating a user, verify:

// SDK - check current user after registration
const { data } = await api.auth.me();
console.log("Current user:", data?.user);

// Server-side - read back
const { data: user } = await api.data.readOneBy("users", {
  where: { email: { $eq: "[email protected]" } },
});
console.log("Created user:", user);

Or via admin panel: Admin Panel > Auth > Users > Find new user in list.

DOs and DON'Ts

DO:

• Use createUser() or registration for proper password hashing
• Use seed function for initial admin users
• Set strong JWT secrets in production
• Define roles before assigning them
• Use bcrypt hashing in production

DON'T:

• Create users via data API (passwords won't be hashed correctly)
• Store plain text passwords
• Use weak JWT secrets in production
• Assign roles that don't exist
• Modify strategy or strategy_value fields directly

Related Skills

• bknd-setup-auth - Initialize authentication system
• bknd-login-flow - Implement login/logout functionality
• bknd-registration - Set up user registration flows
• bknd-create-role - Define roles for user assignment
• bknd-assign-permissions - Configure role permissions