Configuration Guides

Core Configuration Options

This section covers the essential configuration parameters for your application. Understanding these settings is crucial for optimal performance and security.

Database Connection

To connect to your database, you need to specify the following parameters in your configuration file (e.g., config.yaml or .env):

  • DB_HOST: The hostname or IP address of your database server.
  • DB_PORT: The port number your database is listening on.
  • DB_USER: The username for accessing the database.
  • DB_PASSWORD: The password for the database user.
  • DB_NAME: The name of the database.

Example snippet:

DB_HOST=localhost
DB_PORT=5432
DB_USER=app_user
DB_PASSWORD=your_secure_password
DB_NAME=app_database

Server Settings

Configure your application's server behavior:

  • APP_ENV: Set the application environment (e.g., local, staging, production).
  • APP_DEBUG: Enable or disable debug mode (true or false). Set to false in production.
  • APP_PORT: The port your application will run on.

API Keys

For services that require API access, securely store your keys:

  • EXTERNAL_API_KEY: Your key for the external service.
  • STRIPE_SECRET_KEY: For payment processing.

Important: Never commit API keys directly into your version control system. Use environment variables or secure configuration management tools.

Advanced Configuration

Explore more advanced settings to fine-tune your application.

Caching Strategies

Optimize performance by configuring caching:

  • CACHE_DRIVER: Select your cache driver (e.g., file, redis, memcached).
  • CACHE_PREFIX: A prefix for cache keys to prevent conflicts.

For Redis configuration:

REDIS_HOST=127.0.0.1
REDIS_PORT=6379
REDIS_PASSWORD=null
REDIS_DB=0

Logging Levels

Control the verbosity of your application logs:

Set LOG_LEVEL to one of: debug, info, notice, warning, error, critical, alert, emergency.

Example:

LOG_LEVEL=warning

Email Configuration

Configure outgoing email settings:

  • MAIL_DRIVER: e.g., smtp, sendmail.
  • MAIL_HOST, MAIL_PORT, MAIL_USERNAME, MAIL_PASSWORD, MAIL_ENCRYPTION for SMTP.

Refer to the Email Setup Guide for detailed SMTP configuration.

Configuration File Management

Learn best practices for managing your configuration files.

Environment Variables

We strongly recommend using environment variables to manage your configuration. This allows you to easily switch between different environments (development, staging, production) without modifying code.

Create a .env file in the root of your project and populate it with your settings. For example:

APP_NAME="My Awesome App"
APP_ENV=local
APP_PORT=8000
DB_HOST=localhost
# ... other configurations

Ensure that your .env file is added to your .gitignore file to prevent it from being committed.

Configuration Loading Order

The application typically loads configuration in the following order:

  1. Default configuration files (built into the application).
  2. Environment variables (overriding defaults).
  3. .env file (if present, overrides defaults and is often used to set environment variables).

For detailed information on how configuration is loaded in your specific framework, please consult the Framework-Specific Configuration Guide.