---
title: "Configuration"
showtoc: true
---

# Configuration

Every aspect of the Vendure server is configured via a single, central `VendureConfig` object. This object is passed into the [`bootstrap`]({{< relref "bootstrap" >}}) and [`bootstrapWorker`]({{< relref "bootstrap-worker" >}}) functions to start up the Vendure server and worker respectively.

The `VendureConfig` object is organised into sections, grouping related settings together. For example, [`VendureConfig.apiOptions`]({{< relref "api-options" >}}) contains all the config for the GraphQL APIs, whereas [`VendureConfig.authOptions`]({{< relref "auth-options" >}}) deals with authentication.

## Working with the VendureConfig object

Since the VendureConfig is just a JavaScript object, it can be managed and manipulated according to your needs. For example:

### Using environment variables

Environment variables can be used when you don't want to hard-code certain values which may change, e.g. depending on whether running locally, in staging or in production:

```TypeScript
export const config: VendureConfig = {
  apiOptions: {
    hostname: process.env.HOSTNAME,
    port: process.env.PORT,
  }
  // ...
};
```

They are also useful so that sensitive credentials do not need to be hard-coded and committed to source control:

```TypeScript
export const config: VendureConfig = {
  dbConnectionOptions: {
    type: 'postgres',
    username: process.env.DB_USERNAME,
    password: process.env.DB_PASSWORD,
    database: 'vendure',
  },
  // ...
}
```

### Splitting config across files

If the config object grows too large, you can split it across several files. For example, the `plugins` array in a real-world project can easily grow quite big:

```TypeScript
// vendure-config-plugins.ts

export const plugins: VendureConfig['plugins'] = [
  CustomPlugin,
  AssetServerPlugin.init({
      route: 'assets',
      assetUploadDir: path.join(__dirname, 'assets'),
      port: 5002,
  }),
  DefaultJobQueuePlugin,
  ElasticsearchPlugin.init({
      host: 'localhost',
      port: 9200,
  }),
  EmailPlugin.init({
    // ...lots of lines of config
  }),
];
```

```TypeScript
// vendure-config.ts

import { plugins } from 'vendure-config-plugins';

export const config: VendureConfig = {
  plugins,
  // ...
}
```

## Important Configuration Settings

In this guide we will take a look at those configuration options needed for getting the server up-and-running.

{{< alert "primary" >}}
A description of every available configuration option can be found in the [VendureConfig API documentation]({{< relref "vendure-config" >}}).
{{< /alert >}}

### Specifying API hostname & port etc

The [`VendureConfig.apiOptions`]({{< relref "api-options" >}}) object is used to set the hostname, port, as well as other API-related concerns. Express middleware and Apollo Server plugins may also be specified here.

Example:

```TypeScript
export const config: VendureConfig = {
  apiOptions: {
    hostname: 'localhost',
    port: 3000,
    adminApiPath: '/admin',
    shopApiPath: '/shop',
    middleware: [{
      // add some Express middleware to the Shop API route
      handler: timeout('5s'),
      route: 'shop',
    }]
  },
  // ...
}
```

### Connecting to the database

The database connection is configured with the `VendureConfig.dbConnectionOptions` object. This object is actually the [TypeORM configuration object](https://typeorm.io/#/connection-options) and is passed directly to TypeORM.

Example:

```TypeScript
export const config: VendureConfig = {
  dbConnectionOptions: {
    type: 'postgres',
    host: process.env.DB_HOST,
    port: process.env.DB_PORT,
    synchronize: false,
    username: process.env.DB_USERNAME,
    password: process.env.DB_PASSWORD,
    database: 'vendure',
    migrations: [path.join(__dirname, 'migrations/*.ts')],
  },
  // ...
}
```

### Configuring authentication

Authentication settings are configured with [`VendureConfig.authOptions`]({{< relref "auth-options" >}}). The most important setting here is whether the storefront client will use cookies or bearer tokens to manage user sessions. For more detail on this topic, see [the Managing Sessions guide]({{< relref "managing-sessions" >}}).

The username and default password of the superadmin user can also be specified here. In production, it is advisable to use environment variables for these settings.

Example:

```TypeScript
export const config: VendureConfig = {
  authOptions: {
    tokenMethod: 'cookie',
    sessionSecret: process.env.COOKIE_SESSION_SECRET,
    requireVerification: true,
    superadminCredentials: {
      identifier: process.env.SUPERADMIN_USERNAME,
      password: process.env.SUPERADMIN_PASSWORD,
    },
  },
  // ...
}
```