Multiple Environments

Envist adapts to multi-stage workflows—development, staging, production—without complex boilerplate.

Load Specific Files

from envist import Envist

env = Envist(path="config/production.env")

Keep environment-specific files under config/ and commit .env.example templates for visibility.

Layer Configurations

Merge shared settings with overrides:

base = Envist(path="config/base.env")
local = Envist(path="config/local.env")

config = {**base.get_all(), **local.get_all()}

Prioritize the right order (local last) to emulate cascading configuration.

Feature Flags & Toggles

Mix static values and dynamic flags:

FEATURE_FLAGS <dict<str, bool>> = auth:true, caching:false

Retrieve them as part of your runtime configuration dictionary.

Working With CI/CD

• Store production secrets as environment variables in your deployment platform.
• Define fallbacks in .env for local development.
• Envist resolves ${VAR} using both the file and os.environ, making the same code path work locally and in CI.

Handling Optional Values

Set accept_empty=True for staging environments where certain keys are intentionally blank:

staging_env = Envist(path="config/staging.env", accept_empty=True)

None values can signal disabled subsystems without extra conditionals.

Saving Changes

Use .save() when you need to persist runtime edits, such as CLI tools that manage environment files:

auto_env = Envist(path="config/generated.env")
auto_env.set("LAST_UPDATED", "2025-10-12")
auto_env.save(pretty=True, sort_keys=True)

Enable example_file=True to generate .env.example files that mirror your live environment without leaking secrets.

Recommended Directory Layout

config/
  base.env
  development.env
  staging.env
  production.env

Pair this structure with Git-ignored .env secrets and version-controlled .env.example templates for consistency across teams.