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Memos can be configured using command-line flags or environment variables. Environment variables are prefixed with MEMOS_ and use underscores instead of hyphens.

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How Environment Variables Work

Memos uses Viper for configuration management with automatic environment variable binding:
  • All flags are automatically bound to environment variables
  • Prefix: MEMOS_
  • Replace hyphens with underscores (e.g., --data becomes MEMOS_DATA)
  • Environment variables take precedence over default values but not over explicit flags
viper.SetEnvPrefix("memos")
viper.SetEnvKeyReplacer(strings.NewReplacer("-", "_"))
viper.AutomaticEnv()
Source: cmd/memos/main.go:134-136

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Core Server Variables

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MEMOS_PORT
integer
default:"8081"
HTTP port for the server to listen on.
export MEMOS_PORT=5230
./memos
The server will be accessible at http://localhost:5230
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MEMOS_ADDR
string
default:""
Bind address for the server. Empty means all interfaces (0.0.0.0).
# Listen only on localhost
export MEMOS_ADDR=127.0.0.1

# Listen on all interfaces (default)
export MEMOS_ADDR=""
Use 127.0.0.1 for local development to prevent external access.
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MEMOS_UNIX_SOCK
string
default:""
Path to Unix socket file. When set, this overrides MEMOS_ADDR and MEMOS_PORT.
export MEMOS_UNIX_SOCK=/var/run/memos.sock
./memos
Useful for reverse proxy setups with nginx or Apache.

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Data Storage Variables

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MEMOS_DATA
string
default:"auto"
Data directory for SQLite database and local file storage.Default behavior:
  • Windows: %ProgramData%\memos
  • Linux/macOS (Docker): /var/opt/memos if writable
  • Linux/macOS (Local): . (current directory)
# Custom data directory
export MEMOS_DATA=/opt/memos/data
./memos
Source: internal/profile/profile.go:58-80
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MEMOS_DRIVER
string
default:"sqlite"
Database driver to use.Supported values:
  • sqlite - SQLite (recommended for single server)
  • mysql - MySQL/MariaDB
  • postgres - PostgreSQL
export MEMOS_DRIVER=postgres
export MEMOS_DSN="postgres://user:pass@localhost:5432/memos"
./memos
Source: store/db/db.go:18-27
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MEMOS_DSN
string
default:"auto"
Database connection string (DSN - Data Source Name).Default behavior:
  • If MEMOS_DRIVER=sqlite and DSN is empty, defaults to {MEMOS_DATA}/memos_prod.db
  • For MySQL/PostgreSQL, DSN is required
See Database Configuration for connection string formats.

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Instance Configuration

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MEMOS_INSTANCE_URL
string
default:""
The public URL of your Memos instance. Used for:
  • OAuth2 redirect URIs
  • Email links
  • RSS feed URLs
  • API webhook callbacks
export MEMOS_INSTANCE_URL=https://memos.example.com
./memos
Always include the protocol (https://) and omit the trailing slash.
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MEMOS_DEMO
boolean
default:"false"
Enable demo mode for testing and development.Demo mode features:
  • Uses memos_demo.db instead of memos_prod.db
  • Seeds database with sample data on first run
  • Shows database DSN in startup logs
  • Not for production use
export MEMOS_DEMO=true
./memos
Source: cmd/memos/main.go:29, internal/profile/profile.go:98-103

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Command-Line Flags

All environment variables have corresponding command-line flags: 
./memos --help
Available flags:
FlagEnv VariableDefaultDescription
--demoMEMOS_DEMOfalseEnable demo mode
--addrMEMOS_ADDR""Bind address
--portMEMOS_PORT8081HTTP port
--unix-sockMEMOS_UNIX_SOCK""Unix socket path
--dataMEMOS_DATAautoData directory
--driverMEMOS_DRIVERsqliteDatabase driver
--dsnMEMOS_DSNautoDatabase connection string
--instance-urlMEMOS_INSTANCE_URL""Instance URL
Source: cmd/memos/main.go:100-107

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Examples

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Development Setup

export MEMOS_DEMO=true
export MEMOS_PORT=8081
export MEMOS_DATA=./dev-data
./memos

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Production with PostgreSQL

export MEMOS_DRIVER=postgres
export MEMOS_DSN="postgres://memos:secret@localhost:5432/memos?sslmode=require"
export MEMOS_INSTANCE_URL=https://memos.example.com
export MEMOS_DATA=/var/lib/memos
./memos

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Docker Environment Variables

docker run -d \
  --name memos \
  -p 5230:5230 \
  -e MEMOS_PORT=5230 \
  -e MEMOS_DRIVER=postgres \
  -e MEMOS_DSN="postgres://user:pass@db:5432/memos" \
  -e MEMOS_INSTANCE_URL=https://memos.example.com \
  -v ~/.memos:/var/opt/memos \
  neosmemo/memos:stable

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Using Unix Socket with Nginx

export MEMOS_UNIX_SOCK=/var/run/memos.sock
export MEMOS_DATA=/var/lib/memos
export MEMOS_INSTANCE_URL=https://memos.example.com
./memos
Nginx configuration: 
upstream memos {
    server unix:/var/run/memos.sock;
}

server {
    listen 443 ssl;
    server_name memos.example.com;
    
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://memos;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
    }
}

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Priority Order

When the same configuration is specified in multiple ways:
  1. Command-line flags (highest priority)
  2. Environment variables
  3. Default values (lowest priority)
Example: 
export MEMOS_PORT=8081
./memos --port 5230  # Server will use port 5230 (flag takes precedence)

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Validation

Memos validates configuration on startup:
  • Data directory must exist and be writable
  • DSN is required for MySQL/PostgreSQL drivers
  • Port must be between 1-65535
  • Unix socket path must be valid
Source: internal/profile/profile.go:57-107

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