Overview Health Manager uses environment variables stored in the .env file for configuration. This guide covers all available configuration options organized by category.
Never commit your .env file to version control. It contains sensitive credentials and should be kept secure.
Application Settings Configure basic application settings:
Application Name APP_NAME="Health Manager"
The application name appears in:
Email notifications
Browser page titles
Application header
Environment Mode APP_ENV=production APP_DEBUG=false
Production
Development
Staging
APP_ENV=production APP_DEBUG=false
Never enable APP_DEBUG=true in production! Debug mode exposes sensitive information about your application and server configuration.
Application Key APP_KEY=base64:your-generated-key-here
The application key is automatically generated when you run php artisan key:generate. This key is used for encrypting sessions and other sensitive data.
Application URL APP_URL=https://yourdomain.com
Set this to your actual domain URL. This is used for:
Generating links in emails
Asset URL generation
CSRF token validation
Localization APP_LOCALE=en APP_FALLBACK_LOCALE=en APP_FAKER_LOCALE=en_US
Available locales:
en - Englishes - Spanish (default in source)Other locales can be added via Laravel’s localization system
Security Password hashing rounds. Higher values = more secure but slower:
10: Fast, minimum recommended12: Balanced (default)14+: More secure, slower performance
Database Configuration Health Manager supports multiple database systems.
SQLite (Default) SQLite is ideal for small deployments and doesn’t require a separate database server.
For SQLite, ensure the database/database.sqlite file exists:
touch database/database.sqlite
MySQL / MariaDB MySQL/MariaDB
Remote MySQL
DB_CONNECTION=mysql DB_HOST=127.0.0.1 DB_PORT=3306 DB_DATABASE=health_manager DB_USERNAME=your_username DB_PASSWORD=your_password
PostgreSQL DB_CONNECTION=pgsql DB_HOST=127.0.0.1 DB_PORT=5432 DB_DATABASE=health_manager DB_USERNAME=your_username DB_PASSWORD=your_password
The database must already exist. Health Manager will create the tables automatically on first access.
Mail Configuration Mail configuration is required for:
Password reset emails
Notification emails
User invitation emails
SMTP Configuration Generic SMTP
Gmail SMTP
SendGrid
Mailgun
MAIL_MAILER=smtp MAIL_HOST=smtp.example.com MAIL_PORT=587 [email protected] MAIL_PASSWORD=your_password MAIL_ENCRYPTION=tls MAIL_FROM_ADDRESS="[email protected] " MAIL_FROM_NAME="${APP_NAME}"
Mail Encryption Options
TLS (Port 587): Recommended for most providersSSL (Port 465): Alternative for some providersNone (Port 25): Not recommended, unencrypted
MAIL_ENCRYPTION=tls # or 'ssl' or null
Development Mail Settings For local development, you can use log to write emails to the log file instead of sending them:
Session Configuration SESSION_DRIVER=database SESSION_LIFETIME=120 SESSION_ENCRYPT=false SESSION_PATH=/ SESSION_DOMAIN=null
Session Driver Options
database: Store sessions in database (recommended for production)file: Store sessions in filescookie: Store sessions in encrypted cookiesredis: Store sessions in Redis (requires Redis configuration)
Session Lifetime SESSION_LIFETIME=120 # minutes
Set how long users stay logged in:
120: 2 hours (default)1440: 24 hours10080: 1 week
Cache Configuration Available cache drivers:
database: Store cache in databasefile: Store cache in filesredis: Use Redis (requires Redis setup)memcached: Use Memcached (requires Memcached setup)
Queue Configuration QUEUE_CONNECTION=database
Queues handle background jobs like sending emails. The database driver stores jobs in the database.
To process queued jobs, run:
For production, set up a supervisor to keep the queue worker running:
[program:health-manager-worker] process_name =%(program_name)s_%(process_num)02d command =php /path/to/health-manager/artisan queue:work -- sleep =3 -- tries =3 autostart =true autorestart =true user =www-data numprocs =1 redirect_stderr =true stdout_logfile =/path/to/health-manager/storage/logs/worker.log
Storage Configuration Storage options:
local: Store files in storage/app directorypublic: Store files in storage/app/public with public accesss3: Use Amazon S3 (requires AWS configuration)
AWS S3 Configuration (Optional) If you want to store medical documents in S3:
FILESYSTEM_DISK=s3 AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your_access_key AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=your_secret_key AWS_DEFAULT_REGION=us-east-1 AWS_BUCKET=your_bucket_name AWS_USE_PATH_STYLE_ENDPOINT=false
Logging Configuration LOG_CHANNEL=stack LOG_STACK=single LOG_DEPRECATIONS_CHANNEL=null LOG_LEVEL=debug
Log Levels Production
Staging
Development
LOG_LEVEL=error # Only log errors
Available log levels (least to most verbose):
emergencyalertcriticalerrorwarningnoticeinfodebug
Maintenance Mode APP_MAINTENANCE_DRIVER=file
To enable maintenance mode:
To disable:
Redis Configuration (Optional) If using Redis for caching or queues:
REDIS_CLIENT=phpredis REDIS_HOST=127.0.0.1 REDIS_PASSWORD=null REDIS_PORT=6379
Complete Example Configuration
View Complete Production .env Example
# Application APP_NAME="Health Manager" APP_ENV=production APP_KEY=base64:your-generated-key-here APP_DEBUG=false APP_URL=https://health.example.com # Localization APP_LOCALE=en APP_FALLBACK_LOCALE=en APP_FAKER_LOCALE=en_US # Security BCRYPT_ROUNDS=12 # Logging LOG_CHANNEL=stack LOG_STACK=single LOG_DEPRECATIONS_CHANNEL=null LOG_LEVEL=error # Database DB_CONNECTION=mysql DB_HOST=localhost DB_PORT=3306 DB_DATABASE=health_manager DB_USERNAME=db_user DB_PASSWORD=secure_password_here # Session SESSION_DRIVER=database SESSION_LIFETIME=120 SESSION_ENCRYPT=false SESSION_PATH=/ SESSION_DOMAIN=null # Cache & Queue CACHE_STORE=database QUEUE_CONNECTION=database # Storage FILESYSTEM_DISK=local # Mail MAIL_MAILER=smtp MAIL_HOST=smtp.example.com MAIL_PORT=587 [email protected] MAIL_PASSWORD=mail_password_here MAIL_ENCRYPTION=tls MAIL_FROM_ADDRESS="[email protected] " MAIL_FROM_NAME="${APP_NAME}" # Broadcasting BROADCAST_CONNECTION=log
Environment-Specific Configurations Production
Staging
Development
APP_ENV=production APP_DEBUG=false APP_URL=https://yourdomain.com LOG_LEVEL=error MAIL_MAILER=smtp
Always ensure APP_DEBUG=false in production to prevent exposing sensitive information.
APP_ENV=staging APP_DEBUG=false APP_URL=https://staging.yourdomain.com LOG_LEVEL=warning MAIL_MAILER=log
Staging should mirror production settings but can use log mail driver to avoid sending real emails.
APP_ENV=local APP_DEBUG=true APP_URL=http://localhost LOG_LEVEL=debug MAIL_MAILER=log DB_CONNECTION=sqlite
Development can use SQLite for simplicity and log mailer to avoid email configuration.
Applying Configuration Changes After modifying the .env file:
Save the .env File
Ensure all changes are saved.
Clear Configuration Cache
If you’ve cached your configuration, clear it:
Restart Services
Restart your web server and queue workers: # Restart queue workers php artisan queue:restart # Restart web server (example for nginx) sudo systemctl restart nginx
Verify Changes
Test your application to ensure the new configuration is working correctly.
Security Best Practices Follow these security guidelines for production environments:
Never commit .env to version control - Add it to .gitignoreUse strong passwords - For database and mail credentialsEnable HTTPS - Set APP_URL to use https://Disable debug mode - Set APP_DEBUG=falseRestrict file permissions - Ensure .env is not publicly readable:
Use environment-specific keys - Generate new APP_KEY for each environmentRotate credentials regularly - Update passwords periodicallyUse app-specific passwords - For email services like Gmail
Troubleshooting
Configuration Not Taking Effect
Clear the configuration cache: php artisan config:clear php artisan cache:clear
Verify SMTP credentials are correct
Check firewall allows outbound connections on mail port
Test with a simpler configuration first
Check logs in storage/logs/laravel.log
Try using MAIL_MAILER=log to verify email generation works
Database Connection Failed
Verify database credentials
Ensure database exists
Check database user has proper permissions
Verify database server is running and accessible
Test connection using database client
Generate a new application key: Next Steps
User Management Learn how to manage users and roles
Features Guide Explore Health Manager’s features
