# Editing settings.js before starting node-RED first time
**URL:** https://discourse.nodered.org/t/editing-settings-js-before-starting-node-red-first-time/13623
**Category:** General
**Created:** [23 July 2019 21:39 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/editing-settings-js-before-starting-node-red-first-time/13623 "2019-07-23T21:39:36Z")
**Posts on this page:** 4
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@kolban](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/kolban)
#### Post date: [23 July 2019 21:39 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/editing-settings-js-before-starting-node-red-first-time/13623/1 "2019-07-23T21:39:36Z")
I'm writing up a recipe for colleagues to follow. One of the things that our environment needs is for the users to create their own passwords ... we can't allow non-password protected environments. To achieve this, we need to edit settings.js. However, we appear to have a bootstrap puzzle. When a user installs node-RED using npm install node-red, the settings.js file isn't created before first run and we want to avoid even a first run just to create a settings.js file. Is there a recipe to create a settings.js (or otherwise set a password) before initially starting node-RED?
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### Author:  [@dceejay](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dceejay)
#### Post date: [23 July 2019 21:47 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/editing-settings-js-before-starting-node-red-first-time/13623/2 "2019-07-23T21:47:41Z")
On first run the default one from the project gets copied into the users directory (typically ~/.node-red ) .
You can always do this manually first or send them one preset to use, as we check before copying and leave it if it already exists.
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### Author:  [@Bobo](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Bobo)
#### Post date: [24 July 2019 03:48 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/editing-settings-js-before-starting-node-red-first-time/13623/3 "2019-07-24T03:48:47Z")
Just like to say Welcome, and I'm sure many of us (including myself) have enjoyed your books. Thanks.
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### Author:  [@kolban](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/kolban)
#### Post date: [24 July 2019 04:26 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/editing-settings-js-before-starting-node-red-first-time/13623/4 "2019-07-24T04:26:06Z")
Thank you sir. Very kind ... you made my evening. I wear a new hat now but never lost my admiration for Node-RED. I'm trying to push it and provide some custom nodes with my new employer.