How to set env var at runtime or deployment to select the right config

Question

1. Summarize the problem

We are using a configuration module (node) that allows us to set various configuration options, for example database settings or other api endpoint settings with our firebase hosted app.

if the APP_ENV variable is set to 'dev', then it points to the dev api's instances and database settings, same with 'test', and 'prod'.

When running in a container, we simply have a shell script that sets APP_ENV and then runs the server, and the right configuration settings are chosen.

How do we do this with Firebase hosting?

Using: https://github.com/lorenwest/node-config

2. Provide background including what you've already tried

Looked over documentation, found nothing.

3. Show some code

https://github.com/lorenwest/node-config

4. Describe expected and actual results including any error messages

Expected: Deploy to Firebase and have the web app access the correct resources (api end points, database settings), based on environment (dev, test, prod).

Hygienic

I'm not sure I understand your question. Firebase Hosting doesn't run any of your node code. It just serves static content, or proxies to Cloud Functions or Cloud Run. – Ankylose

Hard to find information... Did you try to set label in your hosting config. with the key= APP_ENV and the value = your env. I only found this in the REST api. But labels are generally used for billing report. You don't find any location where to set an env var? – Fanchan

When the code runs, I want it to select out of a config file the right section for it's runtime config. The different sections of the config file are 'dev', 'test', 'prod'. Please Read: github.com/lorenwest/node-config to understand what I am trying to do. This is very typical of enterprise projects to have different runtime environments: 'dev', 'test', 'prod' of the same code, but different settings, for example each runtime instance also has a separate: 'dev', 'test', and 'prod' API endpoint with 'dev', 'test', and 'prod' access keys, all different. Comprende? – Hygienic

Answer 1

I was facing a similar problem.
I used NODE_CONFIG_ENV to override NODE_CONFIG

//for production
process.env.NODE_CONFIG_ENV = "default";

//for development
process.env.NODE_CONFIG_ENV = "production";

References:
[1]https://github.com/lorenwest/node-config/wiki/Environment-Variables

Berthold