Workspace modes

With Syntho, you can initialize a workspace by automatically applying suggested generators to all columns based on your workspace mode, speeding up your configuration process.

When creating a workspace, select one of the following modes to control how data is generated.

Initialization modes overview

Mode	When to use	What happens
Synthesize all	To preserve maximum statistical validity with high privacy.	All tables are set to "Synthesize." PII columns are configured with suggested mockers, and non-PII columns use AI-powered generation.
Mock all	Theoretically the most secure, since all data is generated independently of the original data. This is also the best choice if there is no or limited input data available	All tables are set to "De-identify." All PII and non-PII columns are replaced with a suggested mocker.
Mock or mask all	Like “Mock all”, except masking generators may be applied in certain scenarios to generate more realistic data.	All PII columns are replaced with a suggested mocker. All non-PII columns are replaced with a masking generator.
De-identify	When only replacement of PII is required, while non-PII columns should remain in-tact, making it suitable for internal test cases.	All PII columns are replaced with a suggested mocker.
From scratch	For custom configurations or when only a few tables need to be configured.	All tables are initially excluded.

PII scan

For all workspace modes (except From Scratch), a PII scan is automatically run during workspace creation. This scan detects and configures sensitive columns for de-identification, ensuring privacy compliance from the start.

This step is essential for modes that involve synthetization or de-identification to maintain data privacy and security. For more information, please refer to Automatic PII discovery with PII scanner.

Key generator

Select a default key generator to handle primary key (PK) and foreign key (FK) generation, ensuring data integrity and privacy.

1. Duplicate: Keeps original key values intact, maintaining relationships between tables.

2. Generate: Produces entirely new synthetic keys, ensuring privacy without retaining original key relationships.

3. Hash: Converts original keys into hashed values, preserving table relationships while obfuscating data for enhanced privacy.

You can adjust this setting later in your workspace configuration. For more information, please refer to Key generators.

Locale settings

Set a default locale for mockers and PII processors (e.g., Dutch, English, Japanese, etc.), with fallback to English (US) if your locale isn’t supported. You can adjust this later in workspace settings.

User roles

• Before workspace creation: Any user can make full use of this feature.

• After workspace creation: Only users with Editor rights or higher can make full use of this feature.