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Overview

The Siigo Corprecam Scraper uses environment variables for configuration. All configuration is loaded from a .env file in the project root using the dotenv package.
Never commit your .env file to version control. Add it to .gitignore to prevent accidentally exposing sensitive credentials.

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Configuration File Location

The application loads configuration from: 
project-root/
├── .env          # Your environment variables (create this file)
├── config.ts     # Configuration loader (DO NOT EDIT)
└── server.ts     # Application entry point

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Environment Variables Reference

All environment variables are defined in config.ts (config.ts:5-15). Below is a complete reference:

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Server Configuration

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PORT

  • Description: The port number on which the Express server will listen
  • Type: Number
  • Default: 3000
  • Required: No
  • Example: PORT=3000
PORT: process.env.PORT || 3000
If not specified, the server will default to port 3000. Ensure this port is available and not blocked by your firewall.

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Ngrok Configuration

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NGROK_AUTHTOKEN

  • Description: Authentication token for ngrok to create secure tunnels
  • Type: String
  • Default: None
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: NGROK_AUTHTOKEN=2abcDEF123456_xyz789ABC
NGROK_AUTHTOKEN: process.env.NGROK_AUTHTOKEN
Get your ngrok authtoken from ngrok.com/dashboard after creating a free account.
The application uses ngrok to:
  • Expose the local Express server to the internet
  • Provide a public URL for webhook callbacks from the Corprecam system
  • Automatically register the tunnel URL via the setNgrok() API call (server.ts:51)

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Siigo Corprecam Credentials

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USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM

  • Description: Username for authenticating with the Siigo Corprecam system
  • Type: String
  • Default: Empty string
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: [email protected]
USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM: process.env.USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM || ""
This credential is used by Playwright to automate browser login. Ensure it has the necessary permissions in the Siigo system.

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PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM

  • Description: Password for authenticating with the Siigo Corprecam system
  • Type: String
  • Default: Empty string
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM=your_secure_password
PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM: process.env.PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM || ""
Use a strong password and never share these credentials. They provide full access to the Siigo Corprecam automation.

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Database Configuration

The application uses MySQL2 for database connectivity (package.json:25). Configure the following variables to connect to your MySQL database:

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DB_HOST

  • Description: MySQL server hostname or IP address
  • Type: String
  • Default: None
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: DB_HOST=localhost or DB_HOST=192.168.1.100
DB_HOST: process.env.DB_HOST

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DB_USER

  • Description: MySQL database username
  • Type: String
  • Default: None
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: DB_USER=corprecam_user
DB_USER: process.env.DB_USER

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DB_PASSWORD

  • Description: MySQL database password
  • Type: String
  • Default: None
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: DB_PASSWORD=secure_db_password
DB_PASSWORD: process.env.DB_PASSWORD

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DB_DATABASE

  • Description: MySQL database name to connect to
  • Type: String
  • Default: None
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: DB_DATABASE=corprecam_db
DB_DATABASE: process.env.DB_DATABASE

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DB_PORT

  • Description: MySQL server port number
  • Type: Number
  • Default: None (typically 3306)
  • Required: Yes
  • Example: DB_PORT=3306
DB_PORT: Number(process.env.DB_PORT)
The standard MySQL port is 3306. Only change this if your MySQL server is configured to use a different port.

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Complete .env Example

Here’s a complete example .env file with all required variables: 
# Server Configuration
PORT=3000

# Ngrok Configuration
# Get your token from: https://dashboard.ngrok.com/get-started/your-authtoken
NGROK_AUTHTOKEN=2abcDEF123456_xyz789ABCdefGHI456jkl

# Siigo Corprecam Credentials
USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM=[email protected]
PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM=YourSecurePassword123!

# MySQL Database Configuration
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_USER=corprecam_user
DB_PASSWORD=db_secure_password_456
DB_DATABASE=corprecam_db
DB_PORT=3306

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Configuration Loading

The configuration is loaded in config.ts using the following pattern: 
import dotenv from "dotenv";

dotenv.config();

export const config = {
  PORT: process.env.PORT || 3000,
  NGROK_AUTHTOKEN: process.env.NGROK_AUTHTOKEN,
  USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM: process.env.USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM || "",
  PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM: process.env.PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM || "",
  DB_HOST: process.env.DB_HOST,
  DB_USER: process.env.DB_USER,
  DB_PASSWORD: process.env.DB_PASSWORD,
  DB_DATABASE: process.env.DB_DATABASE,
  DB_PORT: Number(process.env.DB_PORT),
};
The config object is imported throughout the application (server.ts:4, main.ts:3) to access environment variables.

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Environment-Specific Configuration

For different environments (development, staging, production), you can create separate environment files: 
.env.development
.env.staging
.env.production
Then load the appropriate file based on your environment: 
# Development
cp .env.development .env
node --watch server.ts

# Production
cp .env.production .env
node server.ts
Consider using a process manager like PM2 that supports environment-specific configuration files.

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Security Best Practices

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1. Use Strong Credentials

  • Use complex passwords with a mix of uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and special characters
  • Never use default or easily guessable passwords
  • Rotate credentials regularly

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2. Restrict File Permissions

On Unix-based systems, restrict access to your .env file: 
chmod 600 .env
This ensures only the file owner can read and write the file.

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3. Add .env to .gitignore

Ensure your .gitignore includes: 
.env
.env.*
!.env.example

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4. Use Environment Variable Validation

Consider adding validation to ensure all required variables are set before starting the application: 
const requiredVars = [
  'NGROK_AUTHTOKEN',
  'USER_SIIGO_CORPRECAM',
  'PASSWORD_SIIGO_CORPRECAM',
  'DB_HOST',
  'DB_USER',
  'DB_PASSWORD',
  'DB_DATABASE',
  'DB_PORT'
];

for (const varName of requiredVars) {
  if (!process.env[varName]) {
    throw new Error(`Missing required environment variable: ${varName}`);
  }
}

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Troubleshooting

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Configuration Not Loading

If your environment variables aren’t being loaded:
  1. Ensure the .env file is in the project root directory
  2. Check for syntax errors (no spaces around =)
  3. Verify the file is named exactly .env (not .env.txt)
  4. Restart the application after making changes

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Database Connection Failures

If you can’t connect to MySQL:
  1. Verify MySQL is running: sudo systemctl status mysql
  2. Test credentials: mysql -h $DB_HOST -u $DB_USER -p$DB_PASSWORD
  3. Check if the database exists: SHOW DATABASES;
  4. Verify user permissions: SHOW GRANTS FOR 'corprecam_user'@'localhost';

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Ngrok Authentication Errors

If ngrok fails to connect:
  1. Verify your authtoken is correct
  2. Check your ngrok account is active at ngrok.com
  3. Ensure you haven’t exceeded your tunnel limit (2 concurrent on free tier)

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Next Steps

Once configuration is complete:
  1. Run the Application - Start the application and test your configuration
  2. Review the API endpoints in the source code to understand the scraping workflow

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