Environment Variables and Secrets: Build Time vs Run Time

[julia-kafarska]

Full tutorial with screenshots: https://blog.light-cloud.com/tutorials/environment-variables-and-secrets

How environment variables work on Light Cloud: static sites read VITE_ variables at build time and bake them into public JavaScript, containers read variables at run time. Where secrets are safe, verified on a live site.

Level: Beginner · Time: about 15 minutes · Plan: Free · Stack: Vite, Environment variables, Secrets

Steps

• Step 1: Create a Vite site that shows its settings
• Step 2: Set the values for your laptop
• Step 3: Push and deploy
• Step 4: Add the variables in the console
• Step 5: Change a value
• Step 6: Prove what is public

Source code: https://github.com/light-cloud-com/tutorial-env-vars
Live demo: https://main-tutorial-env-vars-examples.light-cloud.io

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Questions, problems with a step, or a screen that no longer matches the console? Reply here. Every tutorial is re-run on the live platform before it is published, and this thread is where fixes get discussed.