Setting Up Initial Data

Use this page when your website already has real content and you do not want Dyrected to open with blank collections, blank globals, and nothing useful to render.

To avoid a blank CMS, you can set up initialData.

By the end, you should understand what initialData does, when it runs, and how to use it to make a new Next.js environment feel ready instead of empty.

In the quick-start flow, this is the bridge between modeling content and proving the frontend can render it. Once the seed data is in place, the next page turns that content into a real Next.js route.

What `initialData` is for

initialData is Dyrected's first-run seed mechanism. It gives a collection or global a starting value the first time Dyrected fetches it and finds it empty.

That makes it a good fit for:

demo content
starter pages
navigation defaults
site settings a frontend depends on immediately

It is not a sync system. It is a starting point.

The most important rule

Seeding only happens while the target is still empty.

Once a collection has any documents, or a global has any saved value, initialData no longer applies. Editors own the content from that point forward.

That is why the right mental model is:

use initialData to avoid a blank first load
use normal editing after the first load

Collections use an array

Collections can hold many documents, so their initialData is an array:

export const Pages = defineCollection({
  slug: "pages",
  labels: { singular: "Page", plural: "Pages" },
  initialData: [
    {
      title: "Home",
      slug: "home",
      content: "<p>Welcome to the site.</p>",
    },
    {
      title: "About",
      slug: "about",
      content: "<p>Tell your story here.</p>",
    },
  ],
  fields: [
    // ...
  ],
});

This is the right place for pages, starter posts, default FAQs, or any other first-run records a new site should already have.

Globals use one object

Globals only hold one document, so their initialData is a single object:

export const Settings = defineGlobal({
  slug: "settings",
  label: "Site Settings",
  initialData: {
    siteName: "My Site",
    footerText: "Built with Dyrected",
  },
  fields: [
    // ...
  ],
});

This is the simplest way to keep a fresh frontend from rendering empty site chrome on day one.

What to seed first in a Next.js site

The recommended first seed set is small:

one home page
one shared settings global
one navigation global

That is enough to prove all three major paths:

the admin can edit content
the frontend can fetch content
a fresh environment still renders something useful before any manual data entry

What not to do

Avoid using initialData for anything that should behave like a migration or a permanent content sync.

Do not rely on it for:

patching changed production content
keeping two environments identical forever
backfilling records after editors have already started using the system

If the content needs to keep changing after first run, it belongs in normal editorial workflows, not in initialData.

Recommended path

Start with seed data that helps the frontend boot cleanly:

a page that proves routing works
navigation that proves shared data works
settings that prove the site chrome works

If a value is purely cosmetic or editorial and the page still works without it, you can seed it later. Prioritize anything whose absence would make the first render confusing or visibly broken.

Where to go deeper

Use this page for the quick-start mental model. For the full config references, continue to:

Success check

You are ready for the next step when:

a fresh environment can render at least one real page from Dyrected data
shared site chrome has safe defaults
you are no longer depending on manual admin entry just to prove the site works

Once that is true, continue to Displaying Content in Next.js.