Environment Variables

Last updated: 2026-08-05

Overview

Manage environment variables per project. They’re automatically injected when you double-click to run.

No more copying .env files or exporting variables manually.

How It Works

Set Variables Per Project

  1. Select a project
  2. Go to the Environment Variables tab
  3. Click “Add Variable”
  4. Enter key and value
  5. Save

Auto-Injection on Run

When you double-click to run a project:

  1. Dev WorkDir reads the project’s environment variables
  2. It exports them in the Terminal session
  3. Your app runs with the correct environment

It just works.

Use Cases

API Keys

  • OpenAI API key for your side project
  • Stripe test key
  • Supabase URL and anon key

Store them in Dev WorkDir, never commit them to code.

Database URLs

  • Local development database URL
  • Test database URL
  • Staging database (if you use it locally)

Feature Flags

  • ENABLE_EXPERIMENTAL_FEATURE=true
  • DEBUG_MODE=1
  • LOG_LEVEL=debug

Toggle features without changing code.

Multiple Environments

You can have different env vars for different projects:

  • Project A uses one API key
  • Project B uses another
  • They never get mixed up

Security

Local Only

All environment variables are stored locally on your Mac in: ~/Library/Application Support/WorkDir/environmentVariables.json

They never leave your computer.

Not in Git

Since env vars are stored in Dev WorkDir (not in your project folder), there’s zero risk of accidentally committing them to Git.

Note: While we store them locally, they are stored as plain JSON. For extremely sensitive data (production keys, etc.), consider using a dedicated secrets manager.

Tips

1. Common Variables

If you use the same variable across many projects (e.g., OPENAI_API_KEY), you could:

  • Set it in your shell profile (global)
  • Or set it per project in Dev WorkDir (explicit)

We recommend per-project for clarity — you know exactly what each project has access to.

2. Pair with Double-Click

Environment variables + double-click to run = magic:

  1. Set up env vars once
  2. Double-click to run
  3. Everything works, every time

No more “oh right I need to set that env var first.”

3. Debugging

If your app isn’t working as expected:

  1. Check the env vars in Dev WorkDir
  2. Make sure keys and values are correct
  3. Double-check spelling (it’s always the spelling)

Environment variables, managed properly.