Mass Deployment

Provision hundreds of nodes with a single command

Overview

The Deploy Token lets you provision Flowtriq nodes programmatically without logging into the dashboard. Generate a workspace deploy token, then use it in your automation (Ansible, Terraform, cloud-init, bash scripts) to register nodes and receive API keys in one step.

Each node created via the deploy token is billed instantly on your workspace's current billing term. If you're on a trial, nodes are free until the trial ends. Any active promo codes or discounts on your subscription apply automatically to new nodes.

Step 1: Generate a Deploy Token

Go to Settings → Workspace and find the Mass Deployment Token card. Click Generate Deploy Token.

Your token is a 64-character hex string. Treat it like a password. Anyone with the token can create nodes in your workspace and increase your bill.

Security: Store your deploy token in environment variables or a secrets manager. Never commit it to version control. Revoke it immediately from Settings if compromised.

Step 2: Deploy Nodes via API

Send a POST request to /api/deploy with your token in the Authorization header:

curl -s https://flowtriq.com/api/deploy \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_DEPLOY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "web-prod-3",
    "ip": "203.0.113.10",
    "location": "US-East",
    "os": "Ubuntu 24.04",
    "interface": "eth0"
  }'

Request fields

Field	Required	Description
name	Yes	Unique node name within your workspace
ip	Yes	IPv4 or IPv6 address of the server
location	No	Data center or region label
os	No	Operating system
interface	No	Network interface to monitor (default: eth0)

Response

{
  "ok": true,
  "node_uuid": "a1b2c3d4-...",
  "api_key": "64-char-hex-api-key-for-this-node",
  "name": "web-prod-3",
  "ip": "203.0.113.10"
}

The api_key in the response is the node's unique API key for sending data to Flowtriq. Use it to configure the agent on that server.

Step 3: One-Liner Auto-Deploy

Run this single command as root on any Linux server. It registers the node, installs ftagent, writes the config file, enables the systemd service, and starts monitoring — all in one shot:

# Full deploy: register + install + configure + enable + start
bash -c 'R=$(curl -sf https://flowtriq.com/api/deploy \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $FLOWTRIQ_DEPLOY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"name\":\"$(hostname)\",\"ip\":\"$(curl -s ifconfig.me)\"}") \
  && eval $(echo "$R" | python3 -c "import sys,json;d=json.load(sys.stdin);print(\"API_KEY=\"+d[\"api_key\"]+\" NODE_UUID=\"+d[\"node_uuid\"])") \
  && pip install ftagent --break-system-packages -q \
  && mkdir -p /etc/ftagent /var/lib/ftagent/pcaps \
  && echo "{\"api_key\":\"$API_KEY\",\"api_base\":\"https://flowtriq.com/api/v1\",\"node_uuid\":\"$NODE_UUID\",\"interface\":\"eth0\",\"pcap_path\":\"/var/lib/ftagent/pcaps\"}" > /etc/ftagent/config.json \
  && chmod 600 /etc/ftagent/config.json \
  && ftagent --install-service \
  && systemctl enable ftagent \
  && systemctl start ftagent \
  && echo "Done — node registered and ftagent running"'

What this does, step by step:

Calls the deploy API with the server's hostname and public IP to register the node
Extracts the api_key and node_uuid from the API response
Installs ftagent from pip
Creates /etc/ftagent/config.json with the API key, node UUID, and default settings
Installs the systemd service unit via ftagent --install-service
Enables the service (starts on boot) and starts it immediately

Python 3.11+ note: On newer distros (Ubuntu 23.04+, Debian 12+, Fedora 38+), pip requires the --break-system-packages flag to install globally (already included above). Alternatively, use a virtualenv: python3 -m venv /opt/ftagent && /opt/ftagent/bin/pip install ftagent

Custom interface? If your server's primary interface isn't eth0, edit /etc/ftagent/config.json after deployment and restart: systemctl restart ftagent

Ansible Playbook

Deploy across your entire fleet with Ansible:

# deploy-flowtriq.yml
- hosts: all
  vars:
    flowtriq_token: "{{ lookup('env', 'FLOWTRIQ_DEPLOY_TOKEN') }}"
  tasks:
    - name: Register node with Flowtriq
      uri:
        url: https://flowtriq.com/api/deploy
        method: POST
        headers:
          Authorization: "Bearer {{ flowtriq_token }}"
          Content-Type: application/json
        body_format: json
        body:
          name: "{{ inventory_hostname }}"
          ip: "{{ ansible_default_ipv4.address }}"
          os: "{{ ansible_distribution }} {{ ansible_distribution_version }}"
          location: "{{ datacenter | default('') }}"
        status_code: 200
      register: flowtriq_result

    - name: Install ftagent
      pip:
        name: ftagent
        extra_args: --break-system-packages

    - name: Create config directory
      file:
        path: "{{ item }}"
        state: directory
        mode: '0755'
      loop:
        - /etc/ftagent
        - /var/lib/ftagent/pcaps

    - name: Write ftagent config
      copy:
        content: |
          {"api_key":"{{ flowtriq_result.json.api_key }}","api_base":"https://flowtriq.com/api/v1","node_uuid":"{{ flowtriq_result.json.node_uuid }}","interface":"eth0","pcap_path":"/var/lib/ftagent/pcaps"}
        dest: /etc/ftagent/config.json
        mode: '0600'

    - name: Install systemd service
      command: ftagent --install-service

    - name: Enable and start ftagent
      systemd:
        name: ftagent
        enabled: true
        state: started
        daemon_reload: true

Cloud-Init / User Data

Add this to your cloud-init or EC2/GCP user data to auto-register on boot:

#!/bin/bash
# cloud-init / user-data script
DEPLOY_TOKEN="your-deploy-token-here"

# Register with Flowtriq and capture API key
RESULT=$(curl -sf https://flowtriq.com/api/deploy \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $DEPLOY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"name\":\"$(hostname)\",\"ip\":\"$(curl -s ifconfig.me)\",\"os\":\"$(lsb_release -ds 2>/dev/null || cat /etc/os-release | grep PRETTY_NAME | cut -d= -f2 | tr -d '\"')\"}")

API_KEY=$(echo "$RESULT" | python3 -c "import sys,json;print(json.load(sys.stdin)['api_key'])")
NODE_UUID=$(echo "$RESULT" | python3 -c "import sys,json;print(json.load(sys.stdin)['node_uuid'])")

# Install agent and write config
pip install ftagent --break-system-packages -q
mkdir -p /etc/ftagent /var/lib/ftagent/pcaps
echo "{\"api_key\":\"$API_KEY\",\"api_base\":\"https://flowtriq.com/api/v1\",\"node_uuid\":\"$NODE_UUID\",\"interface\":\"eth0\",\"pcap_path\":\"/var/lib/ftagent/pcaps\"}" > /etc/ftagent/config.json
chmod 600 /etc/ftagent/config.json

# Install service, enable on boot, and start
ftagent --install-service
systemctl enable ftagent
systemctl start ftagent

Bash Loop (Bulk Register)

#!/bin/bash
# servers.txt: name,ip
# web-prod-1,203.0.113.10
# web-prod-2,203.0.113.11

while IFS=, read -r name ip; do
  echo "Registering $name ($ip)..."
  curl -s https://flowtriq.com/api/deploy \
    -H "Authorization: Bearer $FLOWTRIQ_DEPLOY_TOKEN" \
    -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    -d "{\"name\":\"$name\",\"ip\":\"$ip\"}" | jq '{name:.name, api_key:.api_key}'
done < servers.txt

Error Codes

HTTP	Error	Meaning
401	Invalid deploy token	Token is wrong, revoked, or missing
400	Node name / IP required	Missing required fields
402	Payment failed	No active subscription or payment issue
409	Duplicate name	A node with that name already exists

Billing

During trial: Nodes created via deploy token are free. Billing starts when your trial ends and you subscribe.
Active subscription: Each new node is prorated and added to your current billing cycle immediately. If you're on monthly billing at $9.99/node, that's what each new node costs. If you're on annual at $7.99/node/month, the annual rate applies.
Promo codes: Any active discount on your Stripe subscription applies automatically to new nodes.
Removing nodes: Delete nodes from the dashboard to reduce your next invoice. Removals are prorated.

Revoking the Token

Go to Settings → Workspace and click Revoke. The token stops working immediately. You can generate a new one at any time. Revoking a token does not affect nodes that were already created with it.