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Overview

SmartEat AI uses environment variables for configuration. Copy .env.example to .env in the project root and customize the values for your environment. 
cp .env.example .env
Never commit the .env file to version control. It contains sensitive credentials and should be kept secret.

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Database Configuration

PostgreSQL database connection settings.
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POSTGRES_USER
string
required
PostgreSQL username for database authentication.Default: smarteataiExample: smarteatai
POSTGRES_USER=smarteatai
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POSTGRES_PASSWORD
string
required
PostgreSQL password for database authentication.Default: smarteataiExample: my_secure_password_123
Use a strong password in production environments.
POSTGRES_PASSWORD=smarteatai
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POSTGRES_DB
string
required
Name of the PostgreSQL database.Default: smarteataiExample: smarteatai
POSTGRES_DB=smarteatai
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DATABASE_URL
string
required
Full PostgreSQL connection URL used by the backend.Format: postgresql://[user]:[password]@[host]:[port]/[database]Default: postgresql://smarteatai:smarteatai@db:5432/smarteatai
In Docker, use db as the host (service name). For local development, use localhost.
# Docker
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://smarteatai:smarteatai@db:5432/smarteatai

# Local
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://smarteatai:smarteatai@localhost:5432/smarteatai

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ChromaDB Configuration

Vector database settings for recipe embeddings.
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CHROMA_DB
string
required
Path to ChromaDB persistence directory for storing recipe embeddings.Default: backend/app/data/chroma_db_recipesExample: backend/app/data/chroma_db_recipes
ChromaDB integration is currently not active in production. Queries use PostgreSQL directly instead.
CHROMA_DB=backend/app/data/chroma_db_recipes
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CHROMA_EMBEDDING_MODEL
string
required
Ollama model used for generating embeddings.Default: llama3Example: llama3, llama3.1, mistral
CHROMA_EMBEDDING_MODEL=llama3

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JWT Authentication

JSON Web Token configuration for user authentication.
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SECRET_KEY
string
required
Secret key used to sign JWT tokens. Must be at least 32 characters.Default: your-super-secret-key-change-this-in-production-min-32-charsSecurity: Generate a strong random key for production:
# Generate a secure key
python -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(32))"
CRITICAL: Change this value in production! Using the default key is a severe security risk.
SECRET_KEY=your-super-secret-key-change-this-in-production-min-32-chars
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ALGORITHM
string
required
Algorithm used for JWT token signing.Default: HS256Options: HS256, HS384, HS512, RS256
ALGORITHM=HS256
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ACCESS_TOKEN_EXPIRE_MINUTES
integer
required
Number of minutes before access tokens expire.Default: 30Example: 30 (30 minutes), 1440 (24 hours)
ACCESS_TOKEN_EXPIRE_MINUTES=30

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Backend Configuration

Backend service URLs.
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BACKEND_URL
string
required
Base URL where the backend API is accessible.Default: http://localhost:8000Example: http://localhost:8000, https://api.smarteatai.com
# Development
BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000

# Production
BACKEND_URL=https://api.smarteatai.com
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FRONTEND_URL
string
required
Base URL where the frontend application is accessible.Default: http://localhost:3000Example: http://localhost:3000, https://smarteatai.comUsed for CORS configuration and redirects.
# Development
FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000

# Production
FRONTEND_URL=https://smarteatai.com

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Ollama Configuration

Large Language Model (LLM) server settings.
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OLLAMA_MODEL
string
required
Name of the Ollama model to use for chat and recommendations.Default: llama3.1Options: llama3, llama3.1, mistral, mixtral, phi3Note: Model must be downloaded first:
ollama pull llama3.1

OLLAMA_MODEL=llama3.1
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OLLAMA_BASE_URL
string
required
Base URL for the Ollama API server.Default: http://ollama:11434Example: http://ollama:11434 (Docker), http://localhost:11434 (Local)
In Docker, use the service name ollama. For local development, use localhost.
# Docker
OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://ollama:11434

# Local
OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://localhost:11434

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Complete Example

Here’s a complete .env file example for development: 
# Database Configuration
POSTGRES_USER=smarteatai
POSTGRES_PASSWORD=smarteatai
POSTGRES_DB=smarteatai
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://smarteatai:smarteatai@db:5432/smarteatai

# ChromaDB Configuration
CHROMA_DB=backend/app/data/chroma_db_recipes
CHROMA_EMBEDDING_MODEL=llama3

# JWT Configuration
SECRET_KEY=your-super-secret-key-change-this-in-production-min-32-chars
ALGORITHM=HS256
ACCESS_TOKEN_EXPIRE_MINUTES=30

# Backend Configuration
BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000
FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000

# Ollama Configuration
OLLAMA_MODEL=llama3.1
OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://ollama:11434

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Environment-Specific Configuration

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Development

# Use Docker service names
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://smarteatai:smarteatai@db:5432/smarteatai
OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://ollama:11434

# Shorter token expiry for testing
ACCESS_TOKEN_EXPIRE_MINUTES=30

# Local URLs
BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000
FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000

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Local (No Docker)

# Use localhost
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://smarteatai:smarteatai@localhost:5432/smarteatai
OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://localhost:11434

# Same URLs
BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000
FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000

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Production

# Strong credentials
POSTGRES_USER=smarteatai_prod
POSTGRES_PASSWORD=<STRONG_RANDOM_PASSWORD>
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://smarteatai_prod:<PASSWORD>@db:5432/smarteatai

# Strong secret key (generate with: python -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(32))")
SECRET_KEY=<GENERATED_SECURE_KEY>

# Longer token expiry
ACCESS_TOKEN_EXPIRE_MINUTES=1440

# Production URLs
BACKEND_URL=https://api.smarteatai.com
FRONTEND_URL=https://smarteatai.com

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Security Best Practices

Follow these security guidelines for production deployments:
  1. Change Default Credentials
    • Never use default database passwords
    • Generate strong random passwords
  2. Secure Secret Keys
    • Generate a cryptographically secure SECRET_KEY
    • Minimum 32 characters, use random bytes
    python -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_urlsafe(32))"
  3. Environment Isolation
    • Use different .env files for dev/staging/production
    • Never commit .env files to version control
    • Add .env to .gitignore
  4. Token Expiration
    • Use shorter expiration times for sensitive operations
    • Balance security with user experience
  5. HTTPS in Production
    • Always use HTTPS URLs in production
    • Enable SSL/TLS for database connections

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Troubleshooting

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Database Connection Failed

# Check DATABASE_URL format
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://[user]:[password]@[host]:[port]/[database]

# Verify PostgreSQL is running
docker compose ps db

# Check database logs
docker compose logs db

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JWT Token Errors

# Ensure SECRET_KEY is at least 32 characters
SECRET_KEY=your-super-secret-key-change-this-in-production-min-32-chars

# Verify ALGORITHM matches backend configuration
ALGORITHM=HS256

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Ollama Connection Issues

# Check Ollama service is running
docker compose ps ollama

# Verify model is downloaded
docker exec smarteatai_ollama ollama list

# Pull model if missing
docker exec smarteatai_ollama ollama pull llama3.1

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CORS Errors

# Ensure frontend/backend URLs match
BACKEND_URL=http://localhost:8000
FRONTEND_URL=http://localhost:3000

# Check browser console for CORS details

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Next Steps

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