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Overview

PDF AI requires several environment variables to connect to external services and APIs. All environment variables should be stored in a .env file in the root of your project.
Never commit your .env file to version control. Make sure .env is included in your .gitignore file.

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Required Variables

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Database

DATABASE_URL="postgresql://username:password@host/database?sslmode=require"
Purpose: Connection string for your Neon PostgreSQL database. Where it’s used:
  • src/lib/db/index.ts:5-7 - Database client initialization
  • drizzle.config.ts:12 - Drizzle ORM configuration
How to get it:
  1. Sign up at Neon
  2. Create a new project
  3. Copy the connection string from your project dashboard
The application will throw an error if DATABASE_URL is not found, as it’s critical for all database operations.

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OpenAI

OPEN_AI_KEY="sk-..."
Purpose: API key for OpenAI GPT and embeddings. Where it’s used:
  • src/lib/embeddings.ts:4 - Creating PDF embeddings
  • src/app/api/chat/route.ts:13 - Chat completions API
How to get it:
  1. Sign up at OpenAI
  2. Navigate to API keys section
  3. Create a new secret key

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Pinecone Vector Database

PINECONE_API_KEY="your-pinecone-api-key"
PINECONE_ENVIRONMENT="your-environment"
Purpose: Connect to Pinecone vector database for semantic search and context retrieval. Where it’s used:
  • src/lib/pinecone.ts:17-18 - Pinecone client initialization
  • src/lib/context.ts:24-25 - Context retrieval for chat
How to get it:
  1. Sign up at Pinecone
  2. Create a new index
  3. Copy your API key and environment from the console
Your Pinecone environment is typically something like us-west1-gcp or us-east-1-aws.

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AWS S3 Storage

NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID="your-access-key-id"
NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="your-secret-access-key"
NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_BUCKET_NAME="your-bucket-name"
Purpose: Store and retrieve uploaded PDF files. Where it’s used:
  • src/lib/s3.ts:7-8,12,20,51 - Client-side S3 operations
  • src/lib/s3-server.ts:6-7,11,16 - Server-side S3 operations
How to get it:
  1. Sign up for AWS
  2. Create an S3 bucket in the ap-south-1 region (or modify the region in the code)
  3. Create an IAM user with S3 access
  4. Generate access keys for the IAM user
These variables are prefixed with NEXT_PUBLIC_ which means they are exposed to the browser. Ensure your S3 bucket has proper CORS and access policies configured.

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Clerk Authentication

NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY="pk_test_..."
CLERK_SECRET_KEY="sk_test_..."
Purpose: User authentication and session management. Where it’s used:
  • src/app/layout.tsx:4,20 - ClerkProvider wrapper
  • src/middleware.ts:1,6 - Authentication middleware
How to get it:
  1. Sign up at Clerk
  2. Create a new application
  3. Copy the publishable key and secret key from the API Keys section

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Stripe Payments

STRIPE_API_KEY="sk_test_..."
STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET="whsec_..."
Purpose: Process payments and handle subscription billing. Where it’s used:
  • src/lib/stripe.ts:3 - Stripe client initialization
  • src/app/api/webhook/route.ts:20 - Webhook signature verification
How to get it:
  1. Sign up at Stripe
  2. Get your API key from the Developers section
  3. Set up a webhook endpoint and copy the webhook secret
Use test mode keys (sk_test_...) during development. Switch to live keys (sk_live_...) only in production.

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Application URL

NEXT_BASE_URL="http://localhost:3000"
Purpose: Base URL for redirects and webhooks. Where it’s used:
  • src/app/api/stripe/route.ts:9 - Stripe checkout redirects
Values:
  • Development: http://localhost:3000
  • Production: https://your-domain.com

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Environment Variable Checklist

Before running the application, ensure you have set:
  • DATABASE_URL - Neon PostgreSQL connection
  • OPEN_AI_KEY - OpenAI API key
  • PINECONE_API_KEY - Pinecone API key
  • PINECONE_ENVIRONMENT - Pinecone environment
  • NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID - AWS access key
  • NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY - AWS secret key
  • NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_BUCKET_NAME - S3 bucket name
  • NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY - Clerk publishable key
  • CLERK_SECRET_KEY - Clerk secret key
  • STRIPE_API_KEY - Stripe API key
  • STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET - Stripe webhook secret
  • NEXT_BASE_URL - Application base URL

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Example .env File

# Database
DATABASE_URL="postgresql://user:[email protected]/dbname?sslmode=require"

# OpenAI
OPEN_AI_KEY="sk-..."

# Pinecone
PINECONE_API_KEY="your-pinecone-key"
PINECONE_ENVIRONMENT="us-west1-gcp"

# AWS S3
NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID="AKIA..."
NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="your-secret-key"
NEXT_PUBLIC_S3_BUCKET_NAME="pdf-ai-uploads"

# Clerk Authentication
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY="pk_test_..."
CLERK_SECRET_KEY="sk_test_..."

# Stripe
STRIPE_API_KEY="sk_test_..."
STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET="whsec_..."

# Application
NEXT_BASE_URL="http://localhost:3000"

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Security Best Practices

1

Never commit secrets

Add .env to your .gitignore file:
.env
.env.local
.env*.local
2

Use environment-specific files

  • .env.local - Local development (git-ignored)
  • .env.production - Production settings
  • Never mix development and production credentials
3

Rotate keys regularly

Periodically rotate API keys and secrets, especially after:
  • Team member departures
  • Suspected security incidents
  • Every 90 days as a best practice
4

Use secret management in production

For production deployments, use Vercel’s environment variables feature or a dedicated secret management service like:
  • AWS Secrets Manager
  • HashiCorp Vault
  • Doppler

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