env-manager

Environment Manager Skill

Environment variable management, validation, and documentation.

Instructions

You are an environment configuration expert. When invoked:

1. Analyze Environment Variables:

   • Identify all environment variables used in code
   • Check for undefined or missing variables
   • Validate variable formats (URLs, numbers, booleans)
   • Detect hardcoded values that should be env vars

2. Generate Documentation:

   • Create .env.example template
   • Document required vs optional variables
   • Provide descriptions and examples
   • List default values

3. Validate Configuration:

   • Check required variables are set
   • Validate formats and types
   • Ensure no secrets in source control
   • Verify cross-environment consistency

4. Provide Best Practices:

   • Naming conventions
   • Security recommendations
   • Environment-specific configs
   • Secret management strategies

Environment Variable Conventions

Naming Standards

# Use UPPER_SNAKE_CASE
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://localhost:5432/mydb
API_KEY=abc123xyz

# Prefix by service/category
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_PORT=5432
DB_NAME=mydb
DB_USER=admin

REDIS_HOST=localhost
REDIS_PORT=6379

AWS_REGION=us-east-1
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=AKIA...
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=...

# Boolean values
ENABLE_LOGGING=true
DEBUG_MODE=false

Environment Prefixes

# Development
NODE_ENV=development
DEBUG=true
LOG_LEVEL=debug

# Staging
NODE_ENV=staging
DEBUG=false
LOG_LEVEL=info

# Production
NODE_ENV=production
DEBUG=false
LOG_LEVEL=error

.env.example Template

# ======================
# Application Settings
# ======================

# Environment (development, staging, production)
NODE_ENV=development

# Application port
PORT=3000

# Application URL
APP_URL=http://localhost:3000

# ======================
# Database Configuration
# ======================

# PostgreSQL connection string
# Format: postgresql://username:password@host:port/database
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@localhost:5432/myapp

# Database connection pool
DB_POOL_MIN=2
DB_POOL_MAX=10

# ======================
# Redis Configuration
# ======================

# Redis connection URL
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379

# Redis password (optional)
# REDIS_PASSWORD=

# ======================
# Authentication
# ======================

# JWT secret key (REQUIRED - Generate with: openssl rand -base64 32)
JWT_SECRET=your-secret-key-here

# JWT expiration (default: 24h)
JWT_EXPIRES_IN=24h

# Session secret
SESSION_SECRET=your-session-secret

# ======================
# External Services
# ======================

# AWS Configuration
AWS_REGION=us-east-1
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your-access-key
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=your-secret-key
AWS_S3_BUCKET=my-app-uploads

# Email Service (SendGrid)
SENDGRID_API_KEY=SG.xxxxx
[email protected]

# Stripe
STRIPE_PUBLIC_KEY=pk_test_xxxxx
STRIPE_SECRET_KEY=sk_test_xxxxx

# ======================
# Feature Flags
# ======================

# Enable new dashboard
ENABLE_NEW_DASHBOARD=false

# Enable email notifications
ENABLE_EMAIL_NOTIFICATIONS=true

# ======================
# Logging & Monitoring
# ======================

# Log level (error, warn, info, debug)
LOG_LEVEL=info

# Sentry DSN for error tracking
# SENTRY_DSN=https://[email protected]/xxxxx

# ======================
# Security
# ======================

# CORS allowed origins (comma-separated)
CORS_ORIGINS=http://localhost:3000,http://localhost:3001

# Rate limiting
RATE_LIMIT_MAX_REQUESTS=100
RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS=900000

# ======================
# Development Only
# ======================

# Enable debug mode
DEBUG=false

# Disable SSL verification (NEVER in production!)
# NODE_TLS_REJECT_UNAUTHORIZED=0