Environment Configuration

Overview

GB App uses Laravel’s environment configuration system via the .env file. All configuration options are defined in .env.example and should be copied to .env for your environment.

Creating Your Environment File

cp .env.example .env

After modifying .env, always clear the configuration cache:

docker compose exec app php artisan optimize

Application Settings

Basic Configuration

.env.example

APP_NAME="Sla Bi"
APP_ENV=local
APP_KEY=base64:6732uguG7hCxcoKZY8BPoYV19mzt6mEFR66PB77k29c=
APP_DEBUG=true
APP_URL=http://localhost

APP_NAME: Application display name (shown in UI and emails)
APP_ENV: Environment (local, staging, production)
APP_KEY: Encryption key (generate with php artisan key:generate)
APP_DEBUG: Enable/disable debug mode (set to false in production)
APP_URL: Base URL of your application

Never set APP_DEBUG=true in production as it exposes sensitive information.

Logging

.env.example

LOG_CHANNEL=stack
LOG_DEPRECATIONS_CHANNEL=null
LOG_LEVEL=debug

LOG_CHANNEL: Logging channel (stack, single, daily, stderr)
LOG_DEPRECATIONS_CHANNEL: Channel for deprecation warnings
LOG_LEVEL: Minimum log level (debug, info, notice, warning, error, critical, alert, emergency)

Production Logging

For production, use:

LOG_CHANNEL=daily
LOG_LEVEL=warning

Database Configuration

Primary Database (MySQL)

.env.example

DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=db
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=GBapp
DB_USERNAME=root
DB_PASSWORD=passwordr

DB_CONNECTION: Database driver (mysql, sqlsrv)
DB_HOST: Database server hostname (use db for Docker container)
DB_PORT: Database port (3306 for MySQL, 1433 for SQL Server)
DB_DATABASE: Database name
DB_USERNAME: Database user
DB_PASSWORD: Database password

When using the Docker setup, DB_HOST=db references the database container defined in docker-compose.yml.

Secondary Database (SQL Server - Optional)

GB App supports additional SQL Server connections:

.env.example

#SSF_CONNECTION=ssf
#SSF_HOST=10.10.10.251
#SSF_PORT=1433
#SSF_DATABASE=ssf_genericos
#SSF_USERNAME=pcadmin
#SSF_PASSWORD=password

Uncomment and configure if you need to connect to external SQL Server databases.

Broadcasting, Cache, and Queue

.env.example

BROADCAST_DRIVER=log
CACHE_DRIVER=file
FILESYSTEM_DISK=local
QUEUE_CONNECTION=sync
SESSION_DRIVER=database
SESSION_LIFETIME=120

Session Configuration

SESSION_DRIVER: Where to store sessions (file, database, redis)
SESSION_LIFETIME: Session lifetime in minutes (120 = 2 hours)

GB App uses database for session storage to enable better session management and tracking.

Cache Configuration

CACHE_DRIVER: Cache backend (file, redis, memcached, array)

For production with multiple servers, use Redis:

CACHE_DRIVER=redis

Queue Configuration

QUEUE_CONNECTION: Queue backend (sync, database, redis, sqs)

For production with asynchronous jobs:

QUEUE_CONNECTION=database

Mail Configuration

.env.example

MAIL_MAILER=smtp
MAIL_HOST=mailpit
MAIL_PORT=1025
MAIL_USERNAME=null
MAIL_PASSWORD=null
MAIL_ENCRYPTION=null
MAIL_FROM_ADDRESS="[email protected]"
MAIL_FROM_NAME="${APP_NAME}"

Development Mail (Mailpit)

The default configuration uses Mailpit for development (catches all emails).

Production Mail (SMTP)

For production, configure your SMTP server:

MAIL_MAILER=smtp
MAIL_HOST=smtp.gmail.com
MAIL_PORT=587
MAIL_USERNAME=[email protected]
MAIL_PASSWORD=your-app-password
MAIL_ENCRYPTION=tls
MAIL_FROM_ADDRESS="[email protected]"
MAIL_FROM_NAME="GB App"

For Gmail, use an App Password instead of your regular password. Enable 2FA and generate an app-specific password.

Redis Configuration

.env.example

REDIS_HOST=127.0.0.1
REDIS_PASSWORD=null
REDIS_PORT=6379

Redis is optional but recommended for:

Caching in production
Session storage with multiple servers
Queue backend
Broadcasting

Memcached

.env.example

MEMCACHED_HOST=127.0.0.1

Alternative to Redis for caching.

AWS Configuration

If using AWS services (S3, SES, etc.):

.env.example

AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=
AWS_DEFAULT_REGION=us-east-1
AWS_BUCKET=
AWS_USE_PATH_STYLE_ENDPOINT=false

Pusher (Real-time Broadcasting)

.env.example

PUSHER_APP_ID=
PUSHER_APP_KEY=
PUSHER_APP_SECRET=
PUSHER_HOST=
PUSHER_PORT=443
PUSHER_SCHEME=https
PUSHER_APP_CLUSTER=mt1

VITE_PUSHER_APP_KEY="${PUSHER_APP_KEY}"
VITE_PUSHER_HOST="${PUSHER_HOST}"
VITE_PUSHER_PORT="${PUSHER_PORT}"
VITE_PUSHER_SCHEME="${PUSHER_SCHEME}"
VITE_PUSHER_APP_CLUSTER="${PUSHER_APP_CLUSTER}"

Configure if you need real-time features using Pusher.

Power BI Configuration

.env.example

#POWERBI_USER_ID=eca1a0c1-cacb-4469-b9d8-d1d00279c50d
#POWERBI_GRANT_TYPE=password
#POWERBI_CLIENT_SECRET=ehq8Q~_LdNUMks20ug9q1IH~3z2Rg0ga41baObah
#POWERBI_CLIENT_ID=41571832-145a-432c-85d3-0438e4eb1e26
#POWERBI_RESOURCE=https://analysis.windows.net/powerbi/api
#[email protected]
#POWERBI_PASSWORD=U2rXmqBapSG0nSP

See Power BI API Configuration for detailed setup.

LDAP Configuration

.env.example

LDAP_LOGGING=true
LDAP_CONNECTION=default
LDAP_HOST=
LDAP_USERNAME=
LDAP_PASSWORD=
LDAP_PORT=389
LDAP_BASE_DN=
LDAP_TIMEOUT=5
LDAP_SSL=false
LDAP_TLS=false

# User search base (adjust for your AD structure)
LDAP_USER_SEARCH_BASE=

See LDAP Configuration for detailed setup.

Environment-Specific Configuration

Local Development

APP_ENV=local
APP_DEBUG=true
LOG_LEVEL=debug
DB_HOST=db
MAIL_HOST=mailpit

Staging

APP_ENV=staging
APP_DEBUG=true
LOG_LEVEL=info
LOG_CHANNEL=daily
DB_HOST=staging-db-server
MAIL_HOST=smtp.yourdomain.com

Production

APP_ENV=production
APP_DEBUG=false
LOG_LEVEL=warning
LOG_CHANNEL=daily
CACHE_DRIVER=redis
SESSION_DRIVER=redis
QUEUE_CONNECTION=redis
DB_HOST=production-db-server
MAIL_HOST=smtp.yourdomain.com

Configuration Files

Environment variables map to configuration files in config/:

config/app.php - Application settings
config/database.php - Database connections
config/mail.php - Mail configuration
config/cache.php - Cache settings
config/session.php - Session configuration
config/power-bi.php - Power BI API settings
config/ldap.php - LDAP configuration

Clearing Configuration Cache

After modifying .env, always clear the cache:

docker compose exec app php artisan optimize

This runs:

config:clear - Clear configuration cache
route:clear - Clear route cache
view:clear - Clear view cache
config:cache - Cache configuration
route:cache - Cache routes

Security Best Practices

Never Commit .env

The .env file should never be committed to version control:

echo ".env" >> .gitignore

Generate Unique APP_KEY

docker compose exec app php artisan key:generate

Use Strong Passwords

Use strong, unique passwords for:

Database users
LDAP bind accounts
Power BI service accounts
Email accounts

Restrict File Permissions

chmod 600 .env

Disable Debug in Production

APP_DEBUG=false

Get Started

Core Features

Configuration

Deployment

Overview

Creating Your Environment File

Application Settings

Basic Configuration

Logging

Production Logging

Database Configuration

Primary Database (MySQL)

Secondary Database (SQL Server - Optional)

Broadcasting, Cache, and Queue

Session Configuration

Cache Configuration

Queue Configuration

Mail Configuration

Development Mail (Mailpit)

Production Mail (SMTP)

Redis Configuration

Memcached

AWS Configuration

Pusher (Real-time Broadcasting)

Power BI Configuration

LDAP Configuration

Environment-Specific Configuration

Local Development

Staging

Production

Configuration Files

Clearing Configuration Cache

Security Best Practices

Next Steps

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get Started

Core Features

Configuration

Deployment

​Overview

​Creating Your Environment File

​Application Settings

​Basic Configuration

​Logging

​Production Logging

​Database Configuration

​Primary Database (MySQL)

​Secondary Database (SQL Server - Optional)

​Broadcasting, Cache, and Queue

​Session Configuration

​Cache Configuration

​Queue Configuration

​Mail Configuration

​Development Mail (Mailpit)

​Production Mail (SMTP)

​Redis Configuration

​Memcached

​AWS Configuration

​Pusher (Real-time Broadcasting)

​Power BI Configuration

​LDAP Configuration

​Environment-Specific Configuration

​Local Development

​Staging

​Production

​Configuration Files

​Clearing Configuration Cache

​Security Best Practices

​Next Steps

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

Creating Your Environment File

Application Settings

Basic Configuration

Logging

Production Logging

Database Configuration

Primary Database (MySQL)

Secondary Database (SQL Server - Optional)

Broadcasting, Cache, and Queue

Session Configuration

Cache Configuration

Queue Configuration

Mail Configuration

Development Mail (Mailpit)

Production Mail (SMTP)

Redis Configuration

Memcached

AWS Configuration

Pusher (Real-time Broadcasting)

Power BI Configuration

LDAP Configuration

Environment-Specific Configuration

Local Development

Staging

Production

Configuration Files

Clearing Configuration Cache

Security Best Practices

Next Steps