# Manage Backend Configuration

> Manage backend configuration safely with typed, validated settings and clear separation between defaults and secrets.

- Skill: `willyu1007/manage-backend-configuration` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 3 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds add willyu1007/manage-backend-configuration`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/willyu1007/manage-backend-configuration/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: willyu1007 (https://skillmd.com/u/willyu1007)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/willyu1007/manage-backend-configuration

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# Manage Backend Configuration

## Purpose
Make backend services reliable across environments by centralizing configuration, validating it at startup, and preventing secret leakage.

## When to use
Use this skill when you are:
- Adding a new config parameter
- Debugging environment-specific bugs
- Introducing new integrations (databases, queues, third-party APIs)
- Refactoring scattered `process.env` usage into a typed config module

## Inputs
- Required config values and their intended defaults
- Which values are secrets (tokens, passwords, private keys)
- Environment matrix (dev/test/staging/prod) and overrides

## Outputs
- A typed config module
- Startup validation and fail-fast behavior
- A documented config contract (required, optional, defaults)

## Rules
- Configuration MUST be centralized and typed.
- Configuration SHOULD be validated at startup.
- Secrets MUST NOT be logged and MUST NOT be checked into version control.
- Defaults SHOULD be explicit and environment-specific overrides SHOULD be documented.

## Steps
1. Enumerate required settings (include type, required/optional, default).
2. Implement schema validation and parsing.
3. Expose a stable `config` object to the rest of the codebase.
4. Ensure failure is immediate when required config is missing/invalid.
5. Add a small verification:
   - “fails fast” when missing
   - “loads” with a valid example

## Verification

- [ ] Config module loads successfully with valid environment variables
- [ ] Application fails fast (at startup) when a required config is missing
- [ ] Application fails fast when a config value has an invalid type/format
- [ ] Secrets are not printed in logs or error messages
- [ ] Config contract documentation is up to date with the code

## Boundaries

- MUST NOT log or print secrets (tokens, passwords, private keys)
- MUST NOT commit secrets to version control (use `.env.example` with placeholders)
- MUST NOT access `process.env` directly outside the config module
- SHOULD NOT add optional config without explicit defaults
- SHOULD NOT change config schema without updating the config contract documentation

## Included assets
- Templates: `./templates/` includes a typed config module and schema validation.
- Examples: `./examples/` includes a sample config contract and redaction guidance.