old kiln
How can I use the deployment of another team member? I want to test an error they're seeing with specific data in their db. I am a member of the team.
When I try to set the env to the deployment id i want, it gets reset when I run convex dev. Please help.
crimson wedgeBOT
Hi @old kiln. I'm kapa.ai, your friendly support bot. I will try to answer your question by searching through the knowledge base. :wave:
Convex does not support directly using or switching to another team member’s personal development deployment. Each developer’s dev deployment is isolated and tied to their own account/environment. When you run npx convex dev, it configures your environment to use your own personal dev deployment, and will reset the deployment ID in your .env.local or equivalent file if you try to set it to another team member’s deployment. This is by design and cannot be bypassed by simply changing the environment variable.
If you want to test with the same data as another team member, the recommended approach is to have them export their data and share it with you. You can then import this data into your own dev deployment using the Convex CLI’s import/export commands:
npx convex export --path <filePath>.zip # Run by your teammate
npx convex import <filePath>.zip # Run by you
This way, you can replicate their database state in your own environment and debug the issue. There is no built-in way to “impersonate” or directly access another team member’s dev deployment for testing purposes. Collaboration on backend code is done via your version control system (e.g., GitHub), and data must be shared explicitly via export/import if you need to reproduce another developer’s environment Working with Team & Deploying (Discord), CLI Reference.
If you need to test against production data, you can export/import between production and development deployments as well, but always be careful with production data.