---
title: "Backfilling GitLab data"
canonical_url: "https://docs.getdx.com/onboarding/gitlab-backfill/"
md_url: "https://docs.getdx.com/onboarding/gitlab-backfill.md"
last_updated: "2026-05-08"
---

# Backfilling GitLab data
To backfill historical onboarding data, provide DX a GitLab API token and your GitLab group ID.

## Step 1: Get your group ID

1. Go to your group in GitLab.
2. Click **Copy group ID**.

![GitLab Group ID Screenshot](https://docs.getdx.com/assets/images/onboarding/gitlab-group-id.png)

## Step 2: Create an API token

1. Go to your [personal access tokens page](https://gitlab.com/-/profile/personal_access_tokens).
2. Create a token with the `read_api` scope enabled.

> **Note**: Ensure you have permissions to view all projects in your group so no merge requests are missed. The token is only needed for the duration of the backfill.

## Step 3: Run the backfill

Navigate to [Onboarding setup](https://app.getdx.com/onboarding/setup) and enter your group ID and API token to start the backfill.

> **Note**: What DX does with your API token:
>
> 1. Get a list of active members in your group
> 2. Get each member's earliest 10 MRs
> 3. Store the merge timestamps to calculate time-to-Nth MR metrics
---

## Sitemap

[Overview of all docs pages](/llms.txt)