> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/zrclouddev-oss/saas-starter-vue/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Environment Variables

> Configure your SaaS Starter Vue application with environment variables

The SaaS Starter Vue application uses Laravel's environment configuration system. All configuration values are stored in the `.env` file in your project root.

## Initial Setup

Copy the example environment file to create your configuration:

```bash theme={null}
cp .env.example .env
```

After creating your `.env` file, generate an application key:

```bash theme={null}
php artisan key:generate
```

## Application Settings

<ParamField path="APP_NAME" type="string" default="Laravel">
  The name of your application. This is used throughout the app and in email notifications.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="APP_ENV" type="string" default="local">
  The application environment. Use `local` for development, `staging` for staging, and `production` for production.

  <Note>This affects debug output and error reporting behavior.</Note>
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="APP_KEY" type="string" required>
  The application encryption key. Auto-generated when you run `php artisan key:generate`.

  <Warning>Never commit this value to version control. Each environment should have a unique key.</Warning>
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="APP_DEBUG" type="boolean" default="true">
  Enable or disable debug mode. Set to `false` in production to hide detailed error messages.

  <Warning>Always set to `false` in production to avoid exposing sensitive information.</Warning>
</ParamField>

## URL Configuration

<ParamField path="APP_URL_BASE" type="string" default="saas-starter-vue.test">
  The base domain for your application. This is used for tenant subdomain generation.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="APP_URL" type="string" default="http://${APP_URL_BASE}">
  The full URL of your application including protocol. Supports variable substitution from `APP_URL_BASE`.
</ParamField>

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash Development theme={null}
  APP_URL_BASE=saas-starter-vue.test
  APP_URL=http://${APP_URL_BASE}
  ```

  ```bash Production theme={null}
  APP_URL_BASE=yoursaas.com
  APP_URL=https://${APP_URL_BASE}
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Localization

<ParamField path="APP_LOCALE" type="string" default="en">
  The default locale for your application.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="APP_FALLBACK_LOCALE" type="string" default="en">
  The fallback locale when a translation is not available in the current locale.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="APP_FAKER_LOCALE" type="string" default="en_US">
  The locale used by Faker for generating test data.
</ParamField>

## Security

<ParamField path="BCRYPT_ROUNDS" type="integer" default="12">
  The number of rounds for bcrypt password hashing. Higher values increase security but require more CPU.

  <Note>The default of 12 rounds provides good security for most applications.</Note>
</ParamField>

## Logging

<ParamField path="LOG_CHANNEL" type="string" default="stack">
  The default log channel. Options: `stack`, `single`, `daily`, `slack`, `syslog`, `errorlog`
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="LOG_STACK" type="string" default="daily">
  When using the stack channel, this determines the channels to use.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="LOG_DEPRECATIONS_CHANNEL" type="string" default="null">
  Channel for logging PHP and Laravel deprecation warnings.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="LOG_LEVEL" type="string" default="debug">
  Minimum log level to record. Options: `debug`, `info`, `notice`, `warning`, `error`, `critical`, `alert`, `emergency`
</ParamField>

## Session & Cache

<ParamField path="SESSION_DRIVER" type="string" default="database">
  Where to store session data. Options: `file`, `cookie`, `database`, `memcached`, `redis`, `array`
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="SESSION_LIFETIME" type="integer" default="120">
  Session lifetime in minutes.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="CACHE_STORE" type="string" default="database">
  The default cache store. Options: `file`, `database`, `redis`, `memcached`, `array`
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="QUEUE_CONNECTION" type="string" default="database">
  Queue driver for background jobs. Options: `sync`, `database`, `redis`, `sqs`, `beanstalkd`
</ParamField>

## Storage & Broadcasting

<ParamField path="FILESYSTEM_DISK" type="string" default="local">
  Default filesystem disk for file storage. Options: `local`, `public`, `s3`
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="BROADCAST_CONNECTION" type="string" default="log">
  Default broadcast driver for real-time events. Options: `pusher`, `redis`, `log`, `null`
</ParamField>

## AWS Configuration

Required if using S3 for file storage:

<ParamField path="AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID" type="string">
  Your AWS access key ID.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY" type="string">
  Your AWS secret access key.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="AWS_DEFAULT_REGION" type="string" default="us-east-1">
  The AWS region for your S3 bucket.
</ParamField>

<ParamField path="AWS_BUCKET" type="string">
  The name of your S3 bucket.
</ParamField>

## Vite Build Configuration

<ParamField path="VITE_APP_NAME" type="string" default="${APP_NAME}">
  Application name passed to Vite for frontend builds.
</ParamField>

## Example Configuration

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash Local Development theme={null}
  APP_NAME="My SaaS App"
  APP_ENV=local
  APP_KEY=base64:your-generated-key-here
  APP_DEBUG=true

  APP_URL_BASE=myapp.test
  APP_URL=http://${APP_URL_BASE}

  APP_LOCALE=en
  APP_FALLBACK_LOCALE=en

  LOG_CHANNEL=stack
  LOG_LEVEL=debug

  DB_CONNECTION=pgsql
  DB_HOST=127.0.0.1
  DB_PORT=5432
  DB_DATABASE=myapp
  DB_USERNAME=postgres
  DB_PASSWORD=secret

  SESSION_DRIVER=database
  CACHE_STORE=database
  QUEUE_CONNECTION=database
  ```

  ```bash Production theme={null}
  APP_NAME="My SaaS App"
  APP_ENV=production
  APP_KEY=base64:your-generated-key-here
  APP_DEBUG=false

  APP_URL_BASE=myapp.com
  APP_URL=https://${APP_URL_BASE}

  APP_LOCALE=en
  APP_FALLBACK_LOCALE=en

  LOG_CHANNEL=daily
  LOG_LEVEL=error

  DB_CONNECTION=pgsql
  DB_HOST=your-db-host.com
  DB_PORT=5432
  DB_DATABASE=myapp_prod
  DB_USERNAME=myapp_user
  DB_PASSWORD=secure-password-here

  SESSION_DRIVER=database
  CACHE_STORE=redis
  QUEUE_CONNECTION=redis

  REDIS_HOST=your-redis-host.com
  REDIS_PASSWORD=your-redis-password
  REDIS_PORT=6379
  ```
</CodeGroup>

## Security Best Practices

<Warning>
  **Never commit your `.env` file to version control!** The `.env` file is already included in `.gitignore`.
</Warning>

<Note>
  * Use different `APP_KEY` values for each environment
  * Set `APP_DEBUG=false` in production
  * Use strong, unique passwords for database and cache connections
  * Store sensitive credentials in your hosting provider's secret management system
  * Regularly rotate API keys and credentials
</Note>

## Next Steps

After configuring your environment variables:

1. [Set up your database](/configuration/database) connection and run migrations
2. [Configure email](/configuration/email) for sending transactional emails
3. Start the development server with `php artisan serve`