Does application.yml support environment variables?

Question

I tried using env variables in my application.yml configration like:

spring:
  main:
    show_banner: false

---

spring:
  profiles: production
server:
  address: $OPENSHIFT_DIY_IP
  port: $OPENSHIFT_DIY_PORT

but the env variables are not resolved. Do I have to provide a different notation?

In Rails you can e.g. use <%= ENV['FOOVAR'] %>

The only alternative is to run the app like:

java -jar my.jar --server.address=$OPENSHIFT_DIY_IP --server.port=$OPENSHIFT_DIY_PORT

score 213 · Accepted Answer · edited Feb 28 '22 at 16:19

213

Try ${OPENSHIFT_DIY_PORT} (the usual Spring placeholder notation). See here for docs.

edited Feb 28 '22 at 16:19

Andy Wilkinson

answered Apr 12 '14 at 07:44

Dave Syer

1

This was exactly what I needed: `app.name=MyApp app.description=${app.name} is a Spring Boot application` – jurassix Apr 24 '18 at 16:49
7

Just to point out - if you're using kotlin, you need to put your reference in quotes & escape the `$` eg `root: "\${LOGGING_LEVEL_ROOT:info}"` – Edward Feb 11 '19 at 12:57
Guys, how can we go about passing the OPENSHIFT_DIY_PORT through unix cli when starting the application? I know we can use -D to pass override parameters, but does that also work for env variables? Ex.: nohup java -Xmx1024m -jar -Dspring.profiles.active="whatever". Is there a way to do that with env vars? – Igor Donin Feb 15 '19 at 12:06
2

@IgorDonin, would concatenation of variable assignments and program call an option for you? E. g.: `$MY_ENV=value && java -jar ...` – PAX May 12 '20 at 12:31

score 127 · Answer 2 · answered Nov 28 '17 at 09:00

127

You even can add default value, if environment variable not provided:

logging:
  level:
    root: ${LOGGING_LEVEL_ROOT:info}

answered Nov 28 '17 at 09:00

Oleksandr Yefymov

7

I found this syntax in an app I inherited and have been unable to find the Spring docs that show this. It is fairly obvious what is happening, but to be able to find the docs for it would be nice. Thank you for sharing - I am more confident with my conclusion now. – reverend Nov 28 '18 at 00:15
Is using *default values* in configuration UB or is it explicitly stated possible? – Snackoverflow Feb 09 '19 at 15:09
1

does this syntax chain? can one do `${MY_EXPECTED_VALUE:${${MY_ENV}_my_expected_prefix:default_value}}` would be nice to read the docs on this – Dave Ankin Dec 02 '20 at 17:26
can i have semicolons in my default value? – Dave Ankin Dec 02 '20 at 17:28
is this documented anywhere? – wlnirvana Apr 13 '21 at 22:04
1

I've found that this (and the accepted answer) works for Micronaut's application.yml as well. – ritratt Jul 30 '21 at 18:47
Can we make env variable mandatory ? Thanks! – ch271828n Nov 08 '21 at 02:29
1

@DaveAnkin syntax can be chained. i just tried out: `spring.datasource.url: ${POSTGRES_URL:jdbc:postgresql://database:5432/${spring.application.name}}` – Christian Dräger Apr 13 '22 at 12:41

Jorge Tovar · Answer 3 · 2022-04-19T23:51:59.027

In summary YES. You can use the @Value to load the environment variables from the application.yml or application.properties

Additionally, you can load variables and cast them automatically if you need different data types to perform your validations and business logic.

server:
  address: ${OPENSHIFT_DIY_IP}
  port: ${OPENSHIFT_DIY_PORT}

Load information

@Value("${server.address}")
private String serverAddress;

@Value("${server.port}")
private Integer serverPort;

3 Answers3