Built-in User Management

FlagFlow includes a built-in user management system designed for organizations that need straightforward authentication without the complexity of external identity providers. This system is ideal for small to medium-sized teams that want to get started quickly with secure feature flag management.

Enable and configure the built-in user management system:

# Enable built-in user management
SESSION_USERS_ENABLED=true

# Default user created at startup
SESSION_DEFAULT_USERNAME=admin
SESSION_DEFAULT_PASSWORD=your-secure-password

# Session timeout (in seconds)
SESSION_TIMEOUT_SEC=1800  # 30 minutes

# Optional: Environment identifier
ENVIRONMENT=production

When FlagFlow starts with built-in user management enabled, it automatically creates a default administrator user if no users exist in the system.

Initial Setup Process

1. Set the SESSION_DEFAULT_USERNAME and SESSION_DEFAULT_PASSWORD environment variables
2. Start FlagFlow with SESSION_USERS_ENABLED=true
3. The default user is created automatically with full administrator permissions
4. Log in using the configured credentials
5. Immediately change the password after first login

Creating Users

Users with the users permission can create new user accounts through the web interface:

1. Navigate to the Users section in the admin interface
2. Click Add User
3. Provide username and initial password
4. Assign appropriate permissions
5. Save the new user

Managing Permissions

Each user can be assigned specific permissions based on their role:

Session Behavior

• Timeout: Sessions automatically expire after the configured timeout period (default: 30 minutes)
• Activity Extension: Active sessions are automatically extended
• Concurrent Sessions: Users can have multiple active sessions
• Logout: Manual logout immediately invalidates the session

Session Security

• Session tokens are securely generated and stored
• Sessions are tied to IP addresses for additional security
• Expired sessions are automatically cleaned up
• All session activities are logged for audit purposes

As your organization grows, you may want to migrate from built-in user management to an enterprise identity provider like Keycloak.

Migration Process

1. Set up your Keycloak instance and configure FlagFlow client
2. Import existing users and their permissions to Keycloak
3. Test authentication with a subset of users
4. Update environment variables to enable Keycloak
5. Disable built-in user management: SESSION_USERS_ENABLED=false

See the Keycloak Integration documentation for detailed setup instructions.

Common Issues