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Skillara AI uses environment variables to configure AI API keys, database connections, Firebase credentials, and CORS origins. The backend reads from a backend/.env file loaded by dotenv at startup, and the frontend reads VITE_-prefixed variables from frontend/.env.local at Vite build time. Neither file should ever be committed to version control.

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Backend environment variables

Create a file at backend/.env with the following variables.
VariableRequiredDescription
DATABASE_URLOptionalPostgreSQL connection string. Required only if you want server-side CV storage. Example: postgresql://user:password@host:5432/skillara
PORTNoPort the Express server listens on. Defaults to 3001 if not set.
FRONTEND_URLYes (prod)Allowed CORS origin for your deployed frontend. Added to the list of permitted origins alongside localhost:5173 and localhost:3000.
OPENROUTER_API_KEY_1Yes (at least one)First OpenRouter API key. The backend cycles through all non-empty keys when generating CVs.
OPENROUTER_API_KEY_2NoSecond OpenRouter API key.
OPENROUTER_API_KEY_3NoThird OpenRouter API key.
OPENROUTER_API_KEY_4NoFourth OpenRouter API key.
OPENROUTER_API_KEY_5NoFifth OpenRouter API key.
DEV1_NAMENoDisplay name associated with OPENROUTER_API_KEY_1. Appears in server logs to identify which key was used.
DEV2_NAMENoDisplay name for OPENROUTER_API_KEY_2.
DEV3_NAMENoDisplay name for OPENROUTER_API_KEY_3.
DEV4_NAMENoDisplay name for OPENROUTER_API_KEY_4.
DEV5_NAMENoDisplay name for OPENROUTER_API_KEY_5.
AI_MODELSNoComma-separated list of OpenRouter model IDs to use for CV generation. Defaults to meta-llama/llama-3.1-8b-instruct:free,deepseek/deepseek-r1-0528:free,google/gemini-2.0-flash-exp:free.

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Example backend/.env

DATABASE_URL="postgresql://postgres:password@localhost:5432/skillara"
PORT=3001
FRONTEND_URL="https://your-frontend.vercel.app"

OPENROUTER_API_KEY_1="sk-or-v1-..."
DEV1_NAME="Alice"

OPENROUTER_API_KEY_2="sk-or-v1-..."
DEV2_NAME="Bob"

AI_MODELS="meta-llama/llama-3.1-8b-instruct:free,deepseek/deepseek-r1-0528:free"

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Frontend environment variables

Create a file at frontend/.env.local with the following variables. All frontend variables must be prefixed with VITE_ to be exposed to the Vite build.
VariableRequiredDescription
VITE_API_URLYesBase URL of the Express backend. Use http://localhost:3001 for local development.
VITE_FIREBASE_API_KEYYesFirebase project API key. Found in the Firebase console under Project Settings → General → Your apps.
VITE_FIREBASE_AUTH_DOMAINYesFirebase Authentication domain. Format: your-project.firebaseapp.com.
VITE_FIREBASE_PROJECT_IDYesFirebase project ID.
VITE_FIREBASE_STORAGE_BUCKETYesFirebase Storage bucket. Format: your-project.appspot.com.
VITE_FIREBASE_MESSAGING_SENDER_IDYesFirebase Cloud Messaging sender ID.
VITE_FIREBASE_APP_IDYesFirebase app ID.

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Example frontend/.env.local

VITE_API_URL="https://your-backend.render.com"

VITE_FIREBASE_API_KEY="AIza..."
VITE_FIREBASE_AUTH_DOMAIN="your-project.firebaseapp.com"
VITE_FIREBASE_PROJECT_ID="your-project"
VITE_FIREBASE_STORAGE_BUCKET="your-project.appspot.com"
VITE_FIREBASE_MESSAGING_SENDER_ID="123456789"
VITE_FIREBASE_APP_ID="1:123456789:web:abc123"
Never commit .env or .env.local files to version control. Add both paths to your .gitignore to prevent accidentally exposing API keys, database credentials, or Firebase configuration.

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