TEC Data Generator

A standalone QA tool that generates bulk test data — Events, Venues, Organizers, and legacy V1 RSVP tickets with attendees — so migrations like rsvp-to-tc in Event Tickets can be stress-tested at scale (thousands of records at once) before shipping broadly.

This is not part of Event Tickets. It's a separate, throwaway plugin meant to be shared with QA, run once (or a few times) against a disposable test site, and removed.

TL;DR

# Drop this folder into wp-content/plugins/, activate it, then:
wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=usual     # realistic day-to-day QA data, some orphaned
wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=edge      # the edge case: much larger, some orphaned
wp tec-data-generator migrate                   # migrate it to Tickets Commerce (runs in the background)
wp tec-data-generator revert                    # ...or put it back to V1 to migrate again
wp tec-data-generator cleanup                   # remove everything this tool created

No setup beyond having Event Tickets + The Events Calendar active — no Composer, no build step, no manual config. See "Recommended first run" below before scaling up to thousands of tickets. Every command below is documented in full under Commands.

Requirements

WordPress with Event Tickets and The Events Calendar active (both are read directly — no version checks beyond class/function existence).
Nothing else. No Composer install, no build step — just drop the folder into wp-content/plugins/ and activate it like any other plugin. Background scenario runs use Action Scheduler, which Event Tickets already bundles — there's nothing extra to install for that either.

What it generates

For each unit:

One post — an Event (tribe_events, created via The Events Calendar's own repository so it has valid dates), a Page, or a Post — round-robined so the total splits evenly across all three types.
One or more legacy RSVP tickets (tribe_rsvp_tickets) on that post (generate always creates exactly 1; scenario creates a random number per unit within its preset range), each created through the same production code path (Tribe__Tickets__RSVP::ticket_add()) a real user going through the classic editor metabox would hit — not a raw wp_insert_post(). Capacity is randomized (20–200).
A random number of attendees (tribe_rsvp_attendees) per ticket within the configured min/max range, capped at the ticket's capacity, spread across a random number of _tribe_rsvp_order groups — so a single ticket can produce several distinct "orders" once migrated, not just one. ~90% are marked "going".

Everything created is tagged with _tec_data_generator_generated = 1 (plus a run ID). Nothing untagged is ever touched — cleanup only ever deletes what this tool created.

Orphaned RSVPs (the edge case)

scenario also force-deletes a random percentage of the generated container posts (Events/Pages/Posts) after generation, while leaving their RSVP ticket(s) and attendees in place — this is the "event was deleted but its RSVP data wasn't" edge case, the main reason this tool exists. The orphaned tickets/attendees stay tagged, so cleanup still finds and removes them afterward even though their parent post is gone.

It also filters tribe_tickets_post_types at runtime so RSVP tickets can attach to Events, Pages, and Posts (the Event Tickets default only enables Events + Pages). This filter goes away the moment the plugin is deactivated — it doesn't rewrite the site's stored option. Note: the runtime filter only covers generated data and backend checks — the block editor reads the stored ticket-enabled post types directly, so to add tickets manually to a Post (or a Page, if disabled) in the editor, enable that post type under Event Tickets > Settings > Ticket-enabled post types first.

Realistic Events, Venues, and Organizers (optional)

Pass --with-venues/--with-organizers to generate or scenario (or check the matching boxes on the admin page) to attach a randomly-picked, freshly generated Venue/Organizer to each Event unit, and to use varied, realistic-looking titles/descriptions instead of "Loadgen Event {n}". Ported from tribe-ext-test-data-generator, rewritten against this plugin's own built-in name/content pools instead of that repo's Faker dependency.

Event date range (optional)

Every command that creates Event containers (generate, generate-events, generate-tickets for new containers, generate-series, scenario) picks each event's start date/time at random from a configurable range via --start-date/--end-date (any strtotime()-parsable value, e.g. 2026-10-01 or 2026-10-01 09:00:00). Leave either unset and it defaults to now through two weeks out — the same as before this option existed. The admin page exposes the same range as a "From"/"To" date pair on each matching section.

wp tec-data-generator generate --count=50 --start-date=2026-11-01 --end-date=2026-12-01

Commands

WP-CLI is recommended for anything beyond a few hundred tickets — it has no request-timeout ceiling, unlike the chunked admin page (see Usage: Admin page below).

`generate`

Creates containers (Events/Pages/Posts, round-robined across all three) with tickets and attendees attached, in one pass — the original all-in-one command.

wp tec-data-generator generate --count=5000                              # the default count
wp tec-data-generator generate --count=200 --min-attendees=5 --max-attendees=50

Flags: --count (default 5000), --min-attendees (default 1), --max-attendees (default 20), --batch-size (default 100 — how many units are generated per internal progress tick; does not change the total, just how often it logs), --start-date/--end-date (see Event date range above; default now through +2 weeks).

Event types and ticket types

generate accepts two extra opt-in flags (defaults preserve the old behavior exactly):

# Only single events with RSVP tickets (the default — same as omitting both flags)
wp tec-data-generator generate --count=100 --event-types=single --ticket-type=rsvp

# Mixed single + recurring events, no tickets at all
wp tec-data-generator generate --count=100 --event-types=single,recurring --ticket-type=none

# Virtual events with paid tickets (via the event's configured provider)
wp tec-data-generator generate --count=50 --event-types=virtual --ticket-type=paid

--event-types: comma-separated list of single, recurring, virtual (default single). Applies to Event units only — Page/Post units are unaffected. Event units cycle deterministically through the listed types, so chunked runs keep a stable distribution. Every Event is tagged with _tec_data_generator_event_type (single/recurring/virtual) alongside the usual generated marker.
--ticket-type: rsvp (default), paid, or none. paid reuses the add-tickets path (whatever provider the event uses); none skips ticket creation entirely (and min/max-attendees are then ignored).

Plugin requirements (validated before anything is created — a bad combination errors out with no partial data left behind):

Option	Requires
`--event-types=recurring`	Events Pro or ECP
`--event-types=virtual`	ECP (Events Calendar Pro)
`--ticket-type=rsvp` / `--ticket-type=paid`	Event Tickets

The admin page's Generate form exposes the same two options (checkboxes + radio buttons); unavailable options are disabled with a note naming the missing plugin.

`scenario`

Pre-defined QA scenarios — the tool's main purpose. Both include a percentage of orphaned RSVPs (see Orphaned RSVPs above), and both resolve a concrete unit count/orphan rate via wp_rand() within the preset range, printed before generation starts — every run of the same --type produces a different concrete size, by design.

wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=usual
wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=edge

Flags: --type (required, usual or edge), plus the same --min-attendees/--max-attendees (defaults 1/20), --batch-size (default 100), and --start-date/--end-date (default now through +2 weeks) as generate. Presets (includes/class-data.php):

type	units	RSVP tickets/unit	orphan rate
`usual`	25–250	1–3	5%–20%
`edge`	7,000–11,000	1–9	5%–20%

`generate-events`

Creates Event containers only, with no tickets attached. Use this when generate's coupling of containers + tickets isn't what you want.

wp tec-data-generator generate-events --count=50 --editor=block  # block-editor markup
wp tec-data-generator generate-events --count=20                 # classic editor (default)

Flags: --count (default 100), --editor (see Container editor below), --event-types (see above), --batch-size (default 100), --with-venues/--with-organizers, --start-date/--end-date (default now through +2 weeks). Always creates containers with ticket_type=none.

`generate-tickets`

Creates tickets only — either on fresh containers, or attached to an event/page that already exists.

# Fresh containers: 10 events, 1-3 RSVP tickets each
wp tec-data-generator generate-tickets --count=10 --container=event --min-tickets=1 --max-tickets=3

# Attach to an existing event/page instead of creating containers
wp tec-data-generator generate-tickets --event-id=123 --quantity=5 --ticket-type=rsvp

Flags: without --event-id, creates --count fresh containers (default 10, --container/--editor/ --event-types as above) with --min-tickets/--max-tickets per container (defaults 1/1), --min-attendees/--max-attendees per ticket (defaults 1/20), and --start-date/--end-date (default now through +2 weeks, ignored with --event-id); with --event-id, attaches --quantity tickets (default 5) to that existing post instead. --ticket-type is rsvp (default) or paid.

`generate-series`

Creates event series: groups of related events (with different venues, organizers, details) linked together. Each event in the series can have tickets and attendees. This is useful for testing series functionality or creating complex multi-venue event scenarios.

wp tec-data-generator generate-series --count=5 --events-per-series=5
wp tec-data-generator generate-series --count=10 --events-per-series=3 --with-venues --with-organizers
wp tec-data-generator generate-series --count=3 --events-per-series=2 --ticket-type=paid

Flags: --count (default 5 — how many series to create), --events-per-series (default 5 — events per series), --with-venues (attach a different random venue to each event), --with-organizers (attach a different random organizer to each event), --ticket-type (rsvp (default), paid, or none), --min-attendees (default 1), --max-attendees (default 20), --batch-size (default 5), --start-date/--end-date (default now through +2 weeks).

Each event in a series is created as a regular Event and linked to the series via the tec_series_relationships table. All events are tagged with the usual generated marker and run ID, so cleanup removes the entire series (including all events and their tickets/attendees) in one pass.

Container editor (`classic` / `block`)

generate-events, generate-tickets (new containers only), and the matching admin sections all expose an editor radio. classic (default) writes plain post_content exactly as before; block wraps the same words in real Gutenberg paragraph/heading markup so the container opens in the block editor. Every container is tagged with _tec_data_generator_editor (classic/block) alongside the usual generated marker, and cleanup finds both. Ticket creation is unaffected — tickets always go through the production ticket_add() path regardless of editor.

`add-rsvp`, `add-tickets`, `add-attendees`

Ported from tec-ext-et-data-generator. Unlike generate/scenario/generate-tickets, these target an event/ticket that already exists on the site — generated by this tool or not:

wp tec-data-generator add-rsvp <event_id> --quantity=5
wp tec-data-generator add-tickets <event_id> --quantity=5      # paid tickets, via whatever provider the event uses
wp tec-data-generator add-attendees <ticket_id> --quantity=10

add-tickets creates paid tickets (Tickets Commerce/PayPal/etc.), not RSVP — this is the one place in this plugin that isn't V1-RSVP-shaped, by design. It returns "0 tickets added" if the event's provider is RSVP (paid tickets don't apply there).

`cleanup`

Deletes everything this tool has ever generated (or just one run), leaf-to-root (attendees → tickets → container posts), force-deleted rather than trashed.

wp tec-data-generator cleanup                                        # everything, every run
wp tec-data-generator cleanup --run=run_20260715_153000_ab12cd       # just one run

Flags: --run (optional, scopes cleanup to one run — see the run_... ID logged at the start of generate/scenario), --batch-size (default 200).

`migrate` / `revert`

wp tec-data-generator migrate     # V1 RSVP -> Tickets Commerce
wp tec-data-generator revert      # ...and back to V1, so the same data can be migrated again

Both just schedule the migration's full run — the actual batch processing happens in the background via Shepherd/Action Scheduler, the same as clicking "Run"/"Rollback" on the core (hidden) Migrations admin page. The command returns as soon as scheduling succeeds; it doesn't wait for the migration to finish:

wp tec migrations executions rsvp-to-tc    # poll status instead

If either command errors, it's almost always because the migration isn't in a state that allows that operation yet — see "Migration controls" below.

Usage: Admin page (no CLI/SSH access)

Go to Tools → TEC Data Generator. The page has these sections:

Scenario (recommended) — pick Usual or Edge case from the dropdown, optionally set a date range (From/To, defaults to today through two weeks out) and venue/organizer attachments, and click Generate scenario. Both run entirely in the background via Action Scheduler (the same mechanism the migration controls below already use): the button schedules the job and returns immediately, resolving a concrete unit count and orphan rate via wp_rand() just like the CLI's scenario command. You can close the tab or navigate away as soon as it starts — generation continues server-side, and reopening the page resumes the progress bar automatically. When it finishes, a notice reports exactly what was created (units, RSVP tickets, attendees, orphaned count) or, if something went wrong, what failed.
Add to existing content — attach RSVP tickets, paid tickets, or attendees to an event/ticket that already exists (generated by this tool or not), via the add-rsvp / add-tickets / add-attendees AJAX actions.
Generate Events (containers only, no tickets) — total count, editor radio (Classic/Block), venues/organizers, event types, a date range (From/To, defaults to today through two weeks out), and a Generate events button, chunked via AJAX with a progress bar.
Generate Tickets (with attendees) — total containers (or an existing event/page ID + quantity to skip creating containers), container/ticket-type/editor radios, tickets-per-container and attendees-per-ticket ranges, event types, a date range for new containers (From/To, defaults to today through two weeks out), and a Generate tickets button, chunked via AJAX with a progress bar.
Generate Series — total series and events per series, per-event venue/organizer toggles, ticket type, attendees range, a date range (From/To, defaults to today through two weeks out), and a Generate series button, chunked via AJAX with a progress bar. Creates linked event groups where each event can have different venues/organizers.
Cleanup — the red Cleanup all generated data button lives here, at the end, right before Migration controls. Deletes everything this tool ever generated across all runs (events, pages, posts, venues, organizers, RSVP and paid tickets including Tickets Commerce ones, attendees, classic and block) — only tagged posts are touched.
Migration controls — shows the rsvp-to-tc migration's current status, and Run migration / Revert to V1 buttons. Both are disabled when the migration isn't in a state that allows that operation (e.g. "Run" is disabled while a migration is already running; "Revert to V1" only enables once a migration has actually completed). Clicking either schedules the full run/rollback in the background and polls status every few seconds until it settles.

Generate/Scenario/Cleanup all lock each other while one is running, so you can't accidentally kick off two overlapping runs from the same tab. Only one scenario can run at a time site-wide — starting a second one while another is still in progress is rejected with a message naming the run already in flight.

Packaging a distributable ZIP

Since this plugin isn't shipped through the WordPress.org repo, use package.sh to build a clean ZIP for sharing with QA — it excludes dev-only files (dotfiles/dotfolders, docs/, openspec/, *.md, package.sh itself) so none of this repo's tooling leaks into the file QA installs:

./package.sh

This creates tec-data-generator-<version>.zip (version read from the TEC_DATA_GENERATOR_VERSION constant in tec-data-generator.php) one directory above the plugin folder, ready to drop into wp-content/plugins/ on a QA site and activate as-is — no Composer install or build step needed on the receiving end.

Recommended first run

Before generating 5000+ on a shared QA site, verify the tool and the migration agree on a small batch first:

wp tec-data-generator generate --count=30
# spot-check a couple of generated tickets/attendees in wp-admin (Attendees report, single ticket page)
wp tec-data-generator migrate
# wait for it to finish (watch status on the admin page, or `wp tec migrations executions rsvp-to-tc`),
# confirm the 30 tickets migrated cleanly, then:
wp tec-data-generator cleanup

Once that's clean, scale up to the real load-test size, and use wp tec-data-generator revert between test runs to put the same data back into V1 shape without regenerating it.

Example commands (copy-paste)

Common QA needs, end to end:

# "I just want to sanity-check the migration works at all."
wp tec-data-generator generate --count=30
wp tec-data-generator migrate
wp tec-data-generator cleanup

# "I want realistic day-to-day data, migrate it, then reset and try again."
wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=usual
wp tec-data-generator migrate
# ...inspect results, then either:
wp tec-data-generator revert          # put it back to V1 and migrate again, or
wp tec-data-generator cleanup         # tear it all down and start fresh

# "I need to stress-test the migration at the scale that broke it in the field."
wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=edge --batch-size=250
wp tec-data-generator migrate
# this can take a while both to generate and to migrate — check status with:
wp tec migrations executions rsvp-to-tc

# "I want a scenario, but with heavier attendee counts than the preset default."
wp tec-data-generator scenario --type=usual --min-attendees=10 --max-attendees=100

# "I have several runs on this site and only want to remove one of them."
wp tec-data-generator cleanup --run=run_20260715_153000_ab12cd

# "I need to test event series with multiple venues and organizers."
wp tec-data-generator generate-series --count=5 --events-per-series=3 --with-venues --with-organizers
wp tec-data-generator migrate

# "Something's wrong and I want a completely clean slate before trying again."
wp tec-data-generator cleanup

Safety notes

This tool wraps generation in WordPress's own bulk-import guards (wp_defer_term_counting, wp_suspend_cache_invalidation, etc.) to keep large runs performant, flushing the object cache at the end of each internal chunk.
Cleanup deletes leaf-to-root (attendees → tickets → container posts) and force-deletes (wp_delete_post( $id, true )) rather than trashing, so re-running cleanup fully resets the site.
Do not install this on a production site. It has no safeguards against being pointed at real content beyond the fact that it only ever touches posts it tagged itself.
The Run/Revert controls schedule the entire migration (every batch), not just this tool's generated data — on a site with other legacy RSVP data lying around, running the migration will migrate that too. This tool doesn't scope the migration operation itself, only the test data it generates.
scenario --type=edge can create a lot of posts (up to 11,000 units × up to 9 RSVP tickets each × up to 20 attendees per ticket). Expect a long-running command and a sizable database — make sure you're on disposable QA infrastructure, not a shared or resource-constrained box, before running it.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
assets		assets
docs/specs		docs/specs
includes		includes
openspec		openspec
skills		skills
views		views
.gitignore		.gitignore
AGENTS.md		AGENTS.md
CLAUDE.md		CLAUDE.md
README.md		README.md
package.sh		package.sh
tec-data-generator.php		tec-data-generator.php

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TEC Data Generator

TL;DR

Requirements

What it generates

Orphaned RSVPs (the edge case)

Realistic Events, Venues, and Organizers (optional)

Event date range (optional)

Commands

`generate`

Event types and ticket types

`scenario`

`generate-events`

`generate-tickets`

`generate-series`

Container editor (`classic` / `block`)

`add-rsvp`, `add-tickets`, `add-attendees`

`cleanup`

`migrate` / `revert`

Usage: Admin page (no CLI/SSH access)

Packaging a distributable ZIP

Recommended first run

Example commands (copy-paste)

Safety notes

About

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Latest commit

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Repository files navigation

TEC Data Generator

TL;DR

Requirements

What it generates

Orphaned RSVPs (the edge case)

Realistic Events, Venues, and Organizers (optional)

Event date range (optional)

Commands

generate

Event types and ticket types

scenario

generate-events

generate-tickets

generate-series

Container editor (classic / block)

add-rsvp, add-tickets, add-attendees

cleanup

migrate / revert

Usage: Admin page (no CLI/SSH access)

Packaging a distributable ZIP

Recommended first run

Example commands (copy-paste)

Safety notes

About

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`generate`

`scenario`

`generate-events`

`generate-tickets`

`generate-series`

Container editor (`classic` / `block`)

`add-rsvp`, `add-tickets`, `add-attendees`

`cleanup`

`migrate` / `revert`