How to set environment variables from within package.json?

📝 How to Set Environment Variables from within package.json? 🌍

Are you struggling to set environment variables from within your package.json file? Do you want to be able to use those variables with npm start commands? Look no further! In this blog post, we'll explore some common issues people face in this situation and provide easy solutions to help you set those environment variables successfully. Let's get started! 💪

🔍 Understanding the Problem:

Here's a snippet of what a typical package.json file looks like:

{
  ...
  "scripts": {
    "help": "tagove help",
    "start": "tagove start"
  }
  ...
}

The problem is how to set environment variables, such as NODE_ENV, within the start script while preserving the ability to start the app with just one command, npm start. Luckily, there are a couple of ways you can achieve this.

🔧 Solution 1: Using cross-env package

The easiest and most popular solution is to use the cross-env package, which allows you to set environment variables across different platforms.

1. Install the cross-env package as a development dependency:

npm install --save-dev cross-env

1. Modify your start script in package.json like this:

{
  ...
  "scripts": {
    "start": "cross-env NODE_ENV=development tagove start"
  }
  ...
}

With this setup, you can now use npm start to start your app, and the NODE_ENV environment variable will be set to development during the execution of the start script.

🔧 Solution 2: Using dotenv package

Another approach is to use the dotenv package, which allows you to load environment variables from a .env file.

1. Install the dotenv package as a development dependency:

npm install --save-dev dotenv

1. Create a .env file in your project root directory and define your environment variables there:

NODE_ENV=development

1. Modify your start script in package.json like this:

{
  ...
  "scripts": {
    "start": "dotenv -e .env tagove start"
  }
  ...
}

With this setup, the dotenv package will load the environment variables defined in the .env file, and you can still start your app with npm start.

✨ Easier Environment Variable Management!

By implementing one of these solutions, you can now easily set environment variables from within your package.json file. 🎉

Remember to choose the solution that best fits your needs and the structure of your project.

Do you have any other questions or faced different issues with environment variables? Share your experiences and solutions in the comments below! Let's help each other out. 👇

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Now it's your turn! Have you ever struggled with setting environment variables? What techniques did you use? Let us know in the comments below! 💬

Happy coding! ✍️✨