Env Config Manager

Environment Config Manager

Manage, validate, and synchronize environment configuration files across your project and deployment targets.

Workflow

1. Discover all environment files Search the project for every env-related file:

   find . -maxdepth 3 -name ".env*" -not -path "*/node_modules/*" -not -path "*/.git/*"
   

   Common files: .env, .env.local, .env.development, .env.staging, .env.production, .env.example

2. Parse and catalog all variables For each env file, extract every variable name and note:

   • Which file defines it
   • Whether it has a non-empty value
   • Whether the key looks like a secret (contains KEY, SECRET, TOKEN, PASSWORD, CREDENTIAL, PRIVATE)
   • Whether it has a comment/description

3. Validate required variables Check that the active .env contains every variable from the template:

   Missing in .env (defined in .env.example):
     - DATABASE_URL
     - STRIPE_SECRET_KEY
   Extra in .env (not in .env.example):
     - DEBUG_MODE
   

4. Detect variables referenced in code but missing from env files

   grep -rn "process\.env\." --include="*.ts" --include="*.tsx" --include="*.js" src/ app/ | grep -oP 'process\.env\.\K[A-Z_][A-Z0-9_]*' | sort -u
   

   Compare against env files and report unreferenced variables.

5. Generate or update .env.example Create a sanitized template from the current .env:

   • Strip secret values, replace with descriptive placeholders
   • Preserve non-secret defaults (PORT=3000, NODE_ENV=development)
   • Group variables by prefix with section comments

6. Compare environments Produce a comparison matrix:

   Variable               .env    .env.staging  .env.production
   DATABASE_URL            ✓           ✓              ✓
   STRIPE_SECRET_KEY       ✓           ✓              ✗ ← MISSING
   DEBUG_MODE              ✓           ✗              ✗
   

7. Audit git safety

   grep -n "\.env" .gitignore 2>/dev/null
   git ls-files --cached | grep -i "\.env"
   

   Flag tracked .env files with secrets as critical.

8. Report findings organized by severity:

   • Critical: Secrets at risk of git exposure, production env missing required vars
   • Warning: Variables referenced in code but not in env files
   • Info: Extra variables not referenced in code

Rules

• NEVER print actual values of secret environment variables
• Always treat variables containing KEY, SECRET, TOKEN, PASSWORD, PRIVATE, CREDENTIAL as sensitive
• When generating .env.example, replace secrets with placeholder hints
• Do not modify .env files without explicit user confirmation
• If .env is not in .gitignore, warn immediately
• Preserve comments and grouping when updating .env.example