Nuxt•2mo ago

How to access environment variables in JS files?

Hi, I'm wanting to create a service layer which fetches data from an API endpoint. Inside this file I want to get my API key and base url from my .env to use in the fetch request. However, I can't seem to access it? What's best practice for getting my env variables outside of the Nuxt context since I can't hook into the runtimeConfig? Thank you!!

2 Replies

kapa.ai•2mo ago

Hi @Louie. I'm kapa.ai, your friendly support bot. I will try to answer your question by searching through the knowledge base. :wave: ---------------------- To access environment variables in JavaScript files outside of the Nuxt context, you have a few options, but there are some challenges to be aware of. Here's a summary of the best practices and potential solutions: 1. Use a composable function: Create a composable function that uses useRuntimeConfig() to access your environment variables. Then, call this composable from within your service layer.

   // composables/useApiConfig.js
   export default function useApiConfig() {
     const config = useRuntimeConfig();
     return {
       apiKey: config.apiKey,
       baseUrl: config.public.apiBase
     };
   }

   // services/api.js
   import useApiConfig from '~/composables/useApiConfig';

   export function fetchData() {
     const { apiKey, baseUrl } = useApiConfig();
     // Use apiKey and baseUrl in your fetch request
   }

   // composables/useApiConfig.js
   export default function useApiConfig() {
     const config = useRuntimeConfig();
     return {
       apiKey: config.apiKey,
       baseUrl: config.public.apiBase
     };
   }

   // services/api.js
   import useApiConfig from '~/composables/useApiConfig';

   export function fetchData() {
     const { apiKey, baseUrl } = useApiConfig();
     // Use apiKey and baseUrl in your fetch request
   }

This approach ensures that you're accessing the runtime config within the Nuxt context Stack Overflow (https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77500768). 2. Wrap your API calls in a function: Instead of trying to access environment variables directly in your service layer, wrap your API calls in a function that can be called from within a Nuxt component or plugin where you have access to useRuntimeConfig(). 3. Use a plugin: Create a Nuxt plugin to inject your API configuration into the Nuxt context, which you can then use throughout your application Nuxt Docs (https://nuxt.com/docs/guide/going-further/runtime-config#plugins).

   // plugins/api-config.js
   export default defineNuxtPlugin((nuxtApp) => {
     const config = useRuntimeConfig();
     nuxtApp.provide('apiConfig', {
       apiKey: config.apiKey,
       baseUrl: config.public.apiBase
     });
   });

   // plugins/api-config.js
   export default defineNuxtPlugin((nuxtApp) => {
     const config = useRuntimeConfig();
     nuxtApp.provide('apiConfig', {
       apiKey: config.apiKey,
       baseUrl: config.public.apiBase
     });
   });

Then use it in your service layer:

   // services/api.js
   export default function useApi() {
     const { $apiConfig } = useNuxtApp();
     // Use $apiConfig.apiKey and $apiConfig.baseUrl
   }

   // services/api.js
   export default function useApi() {
     const { $apiConfig } = useNuxtApp();
     // Use $apiConfig.apiKey and $apiConfig.baseUrl
   }

It's important to note that Nuxt 3 doesn't allow direct access to process.env or useRuntimeConfig() outside of the Nuxt context for security reasons Github Issue (https://github.com/nuxt/nuxt/issues/18973). The runtime config is designed to be used within Nuxt components, plugins, and server-side code. Remember to properly configure your nuxt.config.ts file to expose the necessary environment variables:

export default defineNuxtConfig({
  runtimeConfig: {
    apiKey: '', // NUXT_API_KEY
    public: {
      apiBase: '' // NUXT_PUBLIC_API_BASE
    }
  }
})

export default defineNuxtConfig({
  runtimeConfig: {
    apiKey: '', // NUXT_API_KEY
    public: {
      apiBase: '' // NUXT_PUBLIC_API_BASE
    }
  }
})

And set your environment variables in your .env file:

NUXT_API_KEY=your_api_key
NUXT_PUBLIC_API_BASE=<https://api.example.com>

NUXT_API_KEY=your_api_key
NUXT_PUBLIC_API_BASE=<https://api.example.com>

By following these practices, you can safely access your environment variables in your service layer while maintaining the security and flexibility of Nuxt's runtime config system Nuxt Docs (https://nuxt.com/docs/guide/going-further/runtime-config#environment-variables). ---------------------- Note: you can ask me a follow up question by @ mentioning me again :speech_balloon: ----------------------

kapa.ai•2mo ago

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How to access environment variables in JS files?