sow Documentation

Safe test databases from production Postgres.

sow connects to your production Postgres, samples representative data with edge cases, replaces all PII with realistic fakes, and gives you isolated database branches that start in seconds. 100% local, zero API calls, zero cost.

Install & First Use

npm install -g @sowdb/cli
sow connect postgresql://user:pass@host:5432/mydb
sow branch create my-feature
# -> postgresql://sow:sow@localhost:54320/sow

Why sow?

PII Safe

All personal data is detected and replaced with realistic fakes.

Agent-First

MCP server, --json mode, SKILL.md for agent context.

Fast

First snapshot in 30-60s. Branches in ~5s. Resets in ~1s.

Checkpoints

Save and restore branch state instantly.

Diff

See exactly what changed: rows added, deleted, modified, schema changes.

Deterministic

Same seed produces identical output every time.

Read-Only

sow never writes to your source database.

Auto-Detect

Scans .env files, Prisma, Drizzle, Knex, TypeORM, Sequelize, Docker Compose.