Nevercode extends build configuration options by using a variety of variables and uploading relevant environment files and/or custom build scripts. Nevercode exports several read-only environment variables (which you can reference below) but also enables you to define your own custom variables.

This guide covers:

• Overview of environment variables and files
• Defining environment variables
• Adding custom environment files
• Example use case for custom environment files
• Nevercode read-only environment variables

Overview of environment variables and files

Environment variables enable you to configure relevant variables for your builds. On Nevercode, these variables are categorized as follows:

• Environment variables: exported as read-only by Nevercode during the build and are not visible in the UI. Environment variables are used in build scripts and contain information about the build machine, the current build, etc. See the list of environment variables here.
• Custom environment variables: defined by you; custom variables will always override Nevercode defaults. Custom environment variables are useful for storing information that you do not want to store in the repo, such as your credentials or workflow-specific data.
• Magic variables: defined by you to fine-tune various aspects of your project(s). These are a set of Nevercode-specific variables that you can use to customize build behavior and some default settings. Read more about magic variables here.

Environment files are relevant files and scripts you can upload that should be used or be accessible in your project during the build.

• Environment files: upload files that are not in your repository but should be available to your build scripts.
• Custom build scripts: upload custom build scripts for specific build steps that you want to be run during the build process. Read more about custom build scripts and steps here.

Defining environment variables

To define environment variables:

1. Navigate to the Environment page in your project settings.
2. Type the variable name and the corresponding value to the fields.

3. Select Hidden if you wish to hide the value of the variable in Nevercode UI.
4. Click Add variable to save the variable.

Alternatively, you can add several environment variables at once by uploading a text file. For that, click upload variables from the text file. Each variable must begin on a new row and have a name and a value, delimited by an equals sign. For example:

MY_VARIABLE_1=VARIABLE1
MY_VARIABLE_2=VARIABLE2

To edit the variable name or value:

1. Click the field of the value and enter a new one.
2. Press Enter to save or click the Save icon on the right.

To delete a variable, click the Delete icon on the right.

Adding custom environment files

Custom environment files are files that are not present in your source repository for your projects but that should be accessible from your build script.

To upload an environment file:

1. Navigate to the Environment page in your project settings.
2. In the Environment Files section, drag and drop your file to the upload area or click on it to browse and select from your file directory.
3. Type the name of your file. Note that the entered name will be treated as environment variable and its value is the path to the uploaded file during the build.
4. Click Save.

Example use case for custom environment files

For example, your build relies on a configuration file configs/config.json, but you'd like to have a different configuration for CI builds. Let's assume you've uploaded the desired configuration file ci_config.json as environment file and named it CI_CONFIG_JSON. Now, you could swap the original file for Nevercode builds in your repository with a simple post-clone script (read more about custom build steps here) as follows:

#!/bin/sh

mv $CI_CONFIG_JSON $NEVERCODE_BUILD_DIR/configs/config.json

where $NEVERCODE_BUILD_DIR points to the cloned repository path in Nevercode virtual machines.

Nevercode read-only environment variables

By default, Nevercode exports the following environment variables during all builds: