> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.launchtoday.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Environment Variables

> Configure your backend environment

## Prerequisites

* Know which features you plan to enable
* Access to your deployment environment for setting secrets

## Steps

1. Copy `apps/api/example.env` to `apps/api/.env`
2. Add required base vars (`DATABASE_URL`, `BETTER_AUTH_SECRET`)
3. Add provider vars only for enabled features
4. Restart the API server to load changes

## Required Variables (Base API)

| Variable             | Description                                    | Example                               |
| -------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| `DATABASE_URL`       | PostgreSQL connection string                   | `postgresql://user:pass@host:5432/db` |
| `DATABASE_ORM`       | ORM adapter (`prisma` or `drizzle`)            | `prisma`                              |
| `BETTER_AUTH_SECRET` | Secret for session encryption (32+ chars)      | `long-random-string`                  |
| `BETTER_AUTH_URL`    | API base URL for OAuth callbacks (recommended) | `http://localhost:3001`               |
| `MOBILE_APP_URL`     | App URL scheme for mobile auth origins         | `launch://`                           |

## Server & Logging

| Variable    | Description                                   | Default       |
| ----------- | --------------------------------------------- | ------------- |
| `PORT`      | API server port                               | `3001`        |
| `HOST`      | API server host                               | `localhost`   |
| `NODE_ENV`  | Environment (`development`/`production`)      | `development` |
| `LOG_LEVEL` | Logging level (`debug`/`info`/`warn`/`error`) | `info`        |

## Authentication Providers

### Apple Sign In

| Variable                   | Description                               |
| -------------------------- | ----------------------------------------- |
| `APPLE_CLIENT_ID`          | Apple Services ID (matches iOS bundle ID) |
| `APPLE_TEAM_ID`            | Apple Developer Team ID                   |
| `APPLE_KEY_ID`             | Apple Key ID                              |
| `APPLE_PRIVATE_KEY`        | Private key contents (PEM)                |
| `APPLE_PRIVATE_KEY_BASE64` | Base64-encoded private key (alternative)  |

> Use **either** `APPLE_PRIVATE_KEY` or `APPLE_PRIVATE_KEY_BASE64`.

### Google Sign In

| Variable               | Description         |
| ---------------------- | ------------------- |
| `GOOGLE_WEB_CLIENT_ID` | OAuth web client ID |
| `GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET` | OAuth client secret |

## Email & SMS

| Variable                       | Description                                                          |
| ------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `RESEND_API_KEY`               | Resend API key (email OTP)                                           |
| `TWILIO_ACCOUNT_SID`           | Twilio account SID (SMS OTP)                                         |
| `TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN`            | Twilio auth token                                                    |
| `TWILIO_SERVICE_SID`           | Twilio Verify service SID                                            |
| `SKIP_TWILIO_OTP_VERIFICATION` | Skip SMS verification in dev (`true`/`false`, ignored in production) |

## Payments (Stripe)

| Variable                 | Description                   |
| ------------------------ | ----------------------------- |
| `STRIPE_SECRET_KEY`      | Stripe API secret key         |
| `STRIPE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY` | Stripe publishable key        |
| `STRIPE_WEBHOOK_SECRET`  | Stripe webhook signing secret |

## AI Providers

| Variable              | Description                       |
| --------------------- | --------------------------------- |
| `OPENAI_API_KEY`      | OpenAI API key                    |
| `OPENAI_ORGANIZATION` | OpenAI organization ID (optional) |
| `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`   | Anthropic API key (optional)      |

## File Uploads (S3)

| Variable               | Description           | Default     |
| ---------------------- | --------------------- | ----------- |
| `S3_BUCKET`            | S3 bucket name        | (none)      |
| `S3_REGION`            | AWS region            | `us-east-1` |
| `S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID`     | AWS access key ID     | (none)      |
| `S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY` | AWS secret access key | (none)      |

## Push Notifications

### APNS (iOS)

| Variable          | Description                           |
| ----------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| `APNS_TEAM_ID`    | Apple Team ID                         |
| `APNS_KEY_ID`     | APNS key ID                           |
| `APNS_BUNDLE_ID`  | iOS bundle identifier                 |
| `APNS_PRODUCTION` | `true` for production APNS            |
| `APNS_KEY`        | APNS private key contents (PEM)       |
| `APNS_KEY_BASE64` | Base64-encoded APNS key (alternative) |

### FCM (Android)

| Variable                     | Description                         |
| ---------------------------- | ----------------------------------- |
| `FCM_PROJECT_ID`             | Firebase project ID                 |
| `FCM_SERVICE_ACCOUNT_BASE64` | Base64-encoded service account JSON |

### Push Campaign API

| Variable                  | Description                     |
| ------------------------- | ------------------------------- |
| `PUSH_TOKEN_ADMIN_SECRET` | Bearer token for push campaigns |

## Notes

* The API reads env vars directly at startup. Missing required values will
  cause runtime errors, so prefer setting envs before boot.
* If you don’t need a feature, you can leave its env vars unset and disable the
  corresponding mobile feature flag.
* `DATABASE_ORM=drizzle` expects a Postgres-compatible database (Neon works well).

## Troubleshooting

* **Server fails on boot**: confirm required vars exist
* **OAuth callbacks fail**: verify `BETTER_AUTH_URL`
* **File uploads fail**: check S3 vars and bucket permissions

## Next Steps

* [Backend Overview](/backend/index)
* [Authentication Setup](/authentication/backend-setup)