Decisions Environment Variables

28 Oct 2024
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Decisions Environment Variables

Updated on 28 Oct 2024
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Overview

Environment variables provide a way to configure and customize the behavior of applications inside containers. These variables align with the settings outlined in the Settings.xml file, encompassing tasks such as setting up a container's database connection or configuring HTTPS.

Decisions, when deployed in Containers, follow a pre-configured settings.xml file to deploy it successfully. Although users cannot directly modify the values in the settings.xml, they can override the properties by using environment variables.

Example YAML File

Refer to the following YAML file that includes all the required environment variables to host a container successfully.

version: "3.2"
services:
  decisions-1:
    container_name: Decisions_Test
    image: "decisionscore/platform:latest" 					#navigate to https://hub.docker.com/r/decisionscore/platform/tags to find your prefered build
    ports:
      - "9092:80"
    environment:
      - DECISIONS_DATABASETYPE=MSSQL
      - DECISIONS_DATABASECONNECTSTRING=Data Source=[systemIP];Initial Catalog=11_07;Integrated Security=false;User ID=[user];Password=[password];     
      - DECISIONS_PORTALBASEURL=http://localhost:9092 		#your application host URL. This could also be a FQDN.
      - DECISIONS_ENVIRONMENTNAME=Decisions_Test			#give a unique environment name if container is in cluster
	  - DECISIONS_ADMINISTRATOR_EMAIL=roy@decisions.com		#admin account to login
      - DECISIONS_ADMINISTRATOR_PASSWORD= Roy@123			#password for your admin account		  
      - LANG=en_US.UTF-8
      - LANGUAGE=en_US:en
      - LC_ALL=en_US.UTF-8
      - DECISIONS_LICENSECOMPANYID=119eb5-17a8-11e6-xxx-xxx	#connect with support@decisions.com for your company ID
      - DECISIONS_LICENSECOMPANYNAME=Decisions 				#connect with support@decisions.com for your Company Name
      - DECISIONS_LICENSECONTACTEMAIL=john@email.com 		#email address to receive the License Request Details
      - DECISIONS_LICENSETYPE=EnterpriseNonProduction 		#License type can be either EnterpriseNonProduction or EnterpriseProduction
    volumes:
        #Volume Mount creation on a local install, Cloud deployed container will be different. Format is [host computer file path]:[file path from inside the container you want to map on the host]
      - [PhysicalFilePath]:/opt/decisions/data

Required Environment Variables

To successfully host a container instance, the following environment variables are necessary.

Note: To configure the Container as required, refer to the later sections in the article.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_DATABASETYPE	Configures what type of database the Container uses. For more information, refer to Database Server and Configuration.	MSSQL / POSTGRES / AZURE
DECISIONS_DATABASECONNECTSTRING	Configures the Container's connection to its database.	`Data Source=[systemIP];Initial Catalog=11_07;Integrated Security=false;User ID=[user];Password=[password];`
DECISIONS_ADMINISTRATOR_EMAIL	Allows the creation of an administrator account that will be used to log in to the Portal after completing the hosting process. Note: This email address will be set as the default email address for sending notification emails. This default email address can be modified in the Portal settings.	roy@decisions.com
DECISIONS_ADMINISTRATOR_PASSWORD	Provide the password to the admin email.	--
DECISIONS_PORTALBASEURL	This sets up the URL of the Container, which may include the Fully Qualified Domain Address (FQDA).	https://decisions.com/

Additional Environment Variables

The following section demonstrates the additional and optional environment variables users might need to configure based on their application's use case.

Securing Decisions Container Environment

To enhance the security of a Decisions Environment within containers, users have the option to incorporate various environment variables, including HTTPS, ForceBaseURI, and many more. For more information, refer to Securing Decisions Container Environment.

Changing the default file storage location

The default file storage location of the Decisions Container is at /opt/decisions/data. Users can use the following variable to change the default location.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_FILESTORAGELOCATION	Configures location to allow containers to preserve data. Since containers are Linux-based, paths for the file storage will be case-sensitive. Users must volume map the new storage location with the physical file path to ensure it is persistent.	[PhysicalFilePath]:[FileStorageLocation] Refer to the above example YAML file for volume mapping.

Licensing

The following variables are used to License the Decisions environment. Without a License, users cannot log into the containerized environment. For more information, refer to Decisions License.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_LICENSECOMPANYID	Enter the license ID for the Container's instance.	xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx
DECISIONS_LICENSECOMPANYNAME	Enter the company name attached to the license's ID.	Decisions
DECISIONS_LICENSECONTACTEMAIL	Enter a contact email for the provided license.	example@email.com
DECISIONS_ENVIRONMENTNAME	Enter the name of the Container to license. This can be specified during container creation or afterward.	TestingEnvironment
DECISIONS_LICENSETYPE	Enter the license type of the Container. This will likely be either 'Enterprise Production' or 'EnterpriseNonProduction'.	EnterpriseProduction

Clustering

The following optional environment variables are required to set up a clustered environment.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_CLUSTERING_TURNONCLUSTERING	Toggles whether the containers support clustering.	true
DECISIONS_CLUSTERING_REDISBASEURL	Prompts for the Redis URL of the Redis server.	localhost:6379
DECISIONS_CAN_BE_JOB_SERVER	Toggles whether the server can be a job server. Ensure to mark it True when running the servers in clustering. For more information, refer to Setting the Primary Job Server for a Cluster.	true

Integration

The following optional variables allow users to configure Integration settings within the Portal.

For more information, refer to Integration Settings and How to Set Up and Use JWT.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_INTEGRATION_ USEASYMMETRICKEY	Enables the Container to use the Public Key for JSON Web Token (JWT).	true
DECISIONS_INTEGRATION_JWTSECRETKEY	Enter the Secret Key for the JSON Web Token (JWT)	--
DECISIONS_INTEGRATION_JWTPUBLICKEY	Enter the Public Key for the JSON Web Token (JWT)	--

Azure Logging

The following environment variables can be used to configure the Azure Log Analytics.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_LOG_AZURE_WORKSPACE_ID	Required for log analytics. Enter the Workspace ID of the Log Analytics workspace.	--
DECISIONS_LOG_AZURE_AUTHENTICATION_ID	Required for log analytics. Enter the Authentication ID of the Log Analytics workspace.	--

AWS Logging and IAM credentials

The following optional environment variables are recommended for Setting up AWS Cloudwatch Logging.

Environment Variable	Description	Example Value
DECISIONS_LOG_AWS_REGION	Enter the address of the Cloudwatch region.	--
DECISIONS_LOG_AWS_LOG_GROUP_PATH	Enter the log path.	--
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID	Enter the Access Key ID for the IAM Role.	--
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY	Enter the Secret Access Key for the IAM Role.	--

Settings.xml and their corresponding Environment Variable

In Settings.xml, we modify the values between the tags to adjust the server settings. However, to configure the same settings in containers, we need to follow a naming convention: DECISIONS_<SettingName>=<Value of the setting>.

Setting from Settings.xml	Environment Variable	Description	Default Value
HideSystemValidationWarning	DECISIONS_HIDESYSTEMVALIDATIONWARNING	Controls whether warnings from system validation are hidden.	false
DynamicLocalModuleLoading	DECISIONS_DYNAMICLOCALMODULELOADING	Toggles loading local module libraries and their functions into memory.	true
MaxWritableSizeInBytes	DECISIONS_MAXWRITABLESIZEINBYTES	Specifies the maximum size, in bytes, for writable operations. 'MaxWritableSizeInBytes' is set to -1, which suggests that there is no maximum size imposed on writable operations	-1
NoLockReads	DECISIONS_NOLOCKREAD	Toggles No Lock allows SQL to read data without regard to locks and other blockers.	false
OptimizeDataMemberAccess	DECISIONS_OPTIMIZEMEMBERACCESS	Controls optimization of data member access.	false
NumberOfExclusiveApiThreads	DECISIONS_NUMBEROFEXCLUSIVEAPITHREADS	Number of exclusive API threads.	1
HideCreatedByOnImport	DECISIONS_HIDECREATEDBYONIMPORT	Determines whether to hide the 'created by' information on import.	true
MaintenanceMode	DECISIONS_MAINTENANCEMODE	Toggles setting the server into Maintenance Mode. Any jobs will pause, and only Administrators can log in until this is turned off. For more information refer to Maintenance Mode.	false
DefaultExpireDays	DECISIONS_DEFAULTEXPIREDAYS		7
ShareAccountSessions	DECISIONS_SHAREACCOUNTSESSIONS		false
ShowUnhandledExceptionDialog	DECISIONS_SHOWUNHANDLEDEXCEPTIONDIALOG	Toggles display an error window when catching an unhandled exception.	false
ClientStorageQuota	DECISIONS_CLIENTSTORAGEQUOTA	Specifies the client storage quota, limiting the amount of data stored on the client side.	1
UserIdCaseSensitive	DECISIONS_USERIDCASESENSITIVE	Toggles case sensitivity for username during login.	false
LogFileMaxSize	DECISIONS_LOGFILEMAXSIZE	Prompts for the maximum size of a log file. A log that exceeds this size then rolls over into a new file.	10485760
LogMaxBackups	DECISIONS_LOGMAXBACKUPS	Prompts for the maximum number of log files to keep.	10
UseTimeZoneTranslation	DECISIONS_USETIMEZONETRANSLATION	Toggles time zone translation	false
EnvironmentName	DECISIONS_ENVIRONMENTNAME	Prompts for the environment name of the installed instance. This will often match the license.	Production
LogSqlStatements TakingMoreThanSeconds	DECISIONS_LOGSQLSTATEMENTSTAKINGMORETHANSECONDS	Configures the system to log SQL statements that take more than a specified execution time.	5
OutputSQLProfileLog	DECISIONS_OUTPUTSQLPROFILELOG	This variable activates the output of SQL profile logs. SQL profiling provides detailed insights into the execution of SQL queries	false
LogAPICallsTaking MoreThanSeconds	DECISIONS_LOGAPICALLSTAKINGMORETHANSECONDS	Logs API calls that take more than a specified time to complete	5
LogFlowStepsTaking MoreThanMilliseconds	DECISIONS_LOGFLOWSTEPSTAKINGMORETHANMILLISECONDS	Logs Flow steps that take more than a specified time (in milliseconds) to execute	1000
IgnoreAllCertificateErrors	DECISIONS_IGNOREALLCERTIFICATEERRORS	Toggles respecting certificate errors such as trust errors from self-signed licenses.	false
LaunchDebugger OnUnitTestFail	DECISIONS_LAUNCHDEBUGGERONUNITTESTFAIL	Toggles initializing the Debugger upon unit test failure	false
DatabaseConnectString	DECISIONS_DATABASECONNECTSTRING	Configures the Container's connection to its database. A few example connection string has been listed at the end of the table.
InstanceDatabase ConnectionStringTemplate	DECISIONS_INSTANCEDATABASECONNECTIONSTRINGTEMPLATE	Provides a template for instance-specific database connection strings. This allows for dynamic configuration of database connections based on specific instances or deployments of the Decisions platform.	--
DefaultDatabaseQueryTimeout	DECISIONS_DEFAULTDATABASEQUERYTIMEOUT	Prompts for a time duration for database queries that, if exceeded, will automatically fail.	60
Secondary DatabaseConnectString	DECISIONS_SECONDARYDATABASECONNECTSTRING	Specifies the connection string for the secondary database. In environments with multiple databases, this variable enables the configuration of a secondary database for specific purposes, such as redundancy or failover.
DataBaseType	DECISIONS_DATABASETYPE	Configures what type of database the Container uses. For more information, refer to Database Server and Configuration.	MSSQL/ POSTGRES/ AZURE
WatcherSocketPort	DECISIONS_WATCHERSOCKETPORT	Sets the port for the watcher socket. The watcher socket facilitates communication and coordination between different components of the Decisions system, and configuring the port allows for proper network communication.	20999
PortalBaseUrl	DECISIONS_PORTALBASEURL	Configures the URL of the Container consisting of the domain name and its port.	--
ClusterAddressableIP	DECISIONS_CLUSTERADDRESSABLEIP	Prompts for IP addresses to allow cluster server connections. If blank, then the server is not clustered.	--
ClusterPortalBaseUrl	DECISIONS_CLUSTERPORTALBASEURL	Prompts for the Portal base URL of the clustered environment. This should match the Instance URL generated from the Control instance's Add Instance window. If blank, then the server is not clustered. For more information, refer to Setting Up A Cluster.	--
ServerAdministratorEmail	DECISIONS_SERVERADMINISTRATOREMAIL	Prompts for which email will be contacted by actions such as Send Logs to Support and Send Notification to Server Admin.	support@ decisions.com
ServerType	DECISIONS_SERVERTYPE	Determines the Container's server type. Without this variable, containers are installed as a standard Application server.	Default: Unmanaged Repository: Repository MT Control Instance: Hosted MT Tenant Instance: Tenant
ControlInstanceURL	DECISIONS_CONTROLINSTANCEURL	Prompts for the control instance URL in multi-tenancy environments.	https://decisions-control-instance/
InstanceAuthenticationKey	DECISIONS_INSTANCEAUTHENTICATIONKEY	Prompts for the instance Authorization Key.	--
DeploymentLockEnabled	DECISIONS_DEPLOYMENTLOCKENABLED	Toggles block users from creating or modifying any Designer Elements in the server.	false
ByPassSmtpServer	DECISIONS_MAIL_BYPASSSMTPSERVER	Toggles bypassing below SMTP settings instead of using direct mail. It is not recommended to set it to True unless for testing purposes. Refer to the Email and SMTP in Decisions article for further information.	true
ServerAddress	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_SERVERADDRESS	Enter the domain name of the SMTP service.	--
Port	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_PORT	Enter the port number of the SMTP server.	25
RequiresAuthentication	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_REQUIRESAUTHENTICATION	Toggles if authentication is necessary to log in to the SMTP server.	false
Username	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_USERNAME	Enter the username of the SMTP server.	--
Password	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_PASSWORD	Enter the password for the specified user.	--
UseSSL	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_USESSL	Toggles secure socket layer (SSL) encryption on SMTP mail.	false
UseImplicitSSL	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_USEIMPLICITSSL		--
SkipCertificateRevocationCheck	DECISIONS_MAIL_SMTPSERVER_SKIPCERTIFICATEREVOCATIONCHECK		false
PushMode	DECISIONS_PUSHMODE		Enabled
ServerName	DECISIONS_SERVERNAME	Specifies the name of the Decisions server. This information is crucial for identification and management purposes in networked or distributed environments.	--
SplitInstancesToProcesses	DECISIONS_SPLITINSTANCESTOPROCESSES		true
RestartStoppedInstances	DECISIONS_RESTARTSTOPPEDINSTANCES	If set to true, enables the automatic restart of stopped instances. Automatic restart helps maintain continuous availability and responsiveness.	true
ServerHeart BeatIntervalInSeconds	DECISIONS_SERVERHEARTBEATINTERVALINSECONDS	Configuring this interval influences the frequency of these health-check signals.	5
SendWakeUpUsingOneWayCall	DECISIONS_SENDWAKEUPUSINGONEWAYCALL		false
UseLuceneFullTextSearch	DECISIONS_USELUCENEFULLTEXTSEARCH	If set to true, enables the use of Lucene for full-text search capabilities. Lucene is a powerful search engine library, and activating this variable enhances the platform's ability to perform efficient full-text searches.	false
SplashScreenText	DECISIONS_SPLASHSCREENTEXT	Prompts for text to display when the Portal loads/reloads.	Decisions OS is Loading. . .
ProductTitle	DECISIONS_PRODUCTTITLE	Sets the title or name associated with the product	--
FileStorageLocation	DECISIONS_FILESTORAGELOCATION	Configures location to allow containers to preserve data. Since containers are Linux-based, paths for the file storage will be case-sensitive. Users must volume map the default value with the physical file storage location to ensure it is persistent.	/opt/decisions/data
LogCheckFieldTypes	DECISIONS_LOGCHECKFIELDTYPES	If set to true, activates the logging of field types during checks.	false
EnableSingleSignOn	DECISIONS_ENABLESINGLESIGNON	Toggles enable single-sign-on (SSO) for user logins for added security to the Container.	false
AsyncCheckPeriod	DECISIONS_ASYNCCHECKPERIOD		2000
AsyncNumChecks	DECISIONS_ASYNNUMCHECKS		7
AutoStartProfiler	DECISIONS_AUTOSTARTPROFILER	Toggles automatically start the Profiler to capture the session.	true
Recoverable PasswordEncryptionType	DECISIONS_RECOVERABLEPASSWORDENCRYPTIONTYPE	Sets the encryption type for recoverable passwords, such as DES.	DES
PasswordHashEncryptionType	DECISIONS_PASSWORDHASHENCRYPTIONTYPE	Specifies the encryption algorithm used for hashing passwords within the Decisions system.	SHA256
AllowedIPAddresses	DECISIONS_ALLOWEDIPADDRESSES	Permitted client IP addresses to access the server.
DeniedIPAddresses	DECISIONS_DENIEDIPADDRESSES	IP addresses to block access to the Decisions server.
InstanceName	DECISIONS_INSTANCENAME	Defines the name of the installed server instance referenced in the connection string, e.g., "localhost:80/Primary/"	Primary
LoginPageAllowedIPs	DECISIONS_LOGINPAGEALLOWEDIPS	Permitted IP addresses for users to log in to the server.
ORMSaveByMerge	DECISIONS_ORMSAVEBYMERGE	Flags whether the Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) system should save data by merging changes.	true
SkipEnforceDBExistsStep	DECISIONS_SKIPENFORCEDBEXISTSSTEP	When set to true, this variable instructs the server to skip enforcing the existence of the database during certain steps. This can be useful in scenarios where the database structure is managed externally or dynamically.	false
UsePrototypeInstance	DECISIONS_USEPROTOTYPEINSTANCE	Toggles using a template instance. Mainly used for multitenant environments.	true
FullTextSearch	DECISIONS_FULLTEXTSEARCH	Defines the status of full-text search within the platform, specifying whether it is enabled or disabled. Full-text search enhances the search capabilities, allowing for more comprehensive and efficient searching of textual data.	Enabled
HideDetailedErrorMessages	DECISIONS_HIDEDETAILEDERRORMESSAGES	Controls whether detailed error messages are hidden.	false
InterServer CommunicationMode	DECISIONS_INTERSERVERCOMMUNICATIONMODE	Specifies the mode of communication between servers, such as using HTTP. This variable influences the underlying communication protocols employed for inter-server interactions.	http
CaptureAspNetLogs	DECISIONS_CAPTUREASPNETLOGS	Toggles capturing HTTP requests and responses in a log file saved under /Logs/Asp.NET Core with the prefix "w3clog."	false
AspNetLogsFileCountLimit	DECISIONS_ASPNETLOGSFILECOUNTLIMIT	Allows to configure the maximum number of ASP NET logs to store. Newer logs will override the oldest logs	30
AspNetLogsFileSizeLimit	DECISIONS_ASPNETLOGSFILESIZELIMIT	Allows to configure the maximum size of an ASP NET log file. A log that exceeds this size then rolls over into a new file.	104857600
CaptureW3CLogs	DECISIONS_CAPTUREW3CLOGS	Toggles capturing W3C logs in the log file	false
ServiceAccountPassword	DECISIONS_SERVICEACCOUNTPASSWORD
DefaultSameSiteCookieMode	DECISIONS_DEFAULTSAMESITECOOKIEMODE	Allows selection of the cookie behavior for the server. SameSite attributes control how cookies are sent with cross-site requests, impacting security and privacy aspects.	Lax
ForceBaseURI	DECISIONS_FORCEBASEURI	This environment variable must be used if SSL terminates at the Load Balancer.
AllowProxyFrom	DECISIONS_ALLOWPROXYFROM	Toggles permitting proxy headers	false
HttpPort	DECISIONS_HTTPPORT	These variables allow the application to run on designated ports within the containers. By doing so, users can map the Container's port to a particular port on the host machine, facilitating access to the application running inside the Container from the host's network.	80
HttpsPort	DECISIONS_HTTPSPORT		443
ProxyFromWhiteList	DECISIONS_PROXYFROMWHITELIST	This setting is a comma-separated list of "protocol://host" values that make up a whitelist. The whitelist defines the addresses (protocols and hosts) the platform allows proxying. If this list is empty and AllowProxyFrom is set to true, it allows proxying from any source.
CustomHeaders	DECISIONS_CUSTOMHEADERS	For Custom Headers, users need to set the value of the DECISIONS_CUSTOMHEADERS in a JSON String format. This JSON String gets automatically deserialized and converted in XML format in Settings.xml. Example: [{"Name": "X-Frame-Options", "Value": "SAMEORIGIN"}]	[{"Name": "X-Frame-Options", "Value": "SAMEORIGIN"}]
ApplicationName	DECISIONS_APPLICATIONNAME	Prompts for a name that any created cookies can use.	Decisions
DisableAutoSSO SignInParameter	DECISIONS_DISABLEAUTOSSOSIGNINPARAMETER	When set to true, this variable disables the automatic inclusion of Single Sign-On (SSO) parameters during sign-in. This can be relevant for scenarios where custom handling of SSO parameters is required.	false
HttpsCerificateLocation	DECISIONS_HTTPSCERIFICATELOCATION	Specifies the location of the HTTPS certificate used for securing communications over HTTPS	PhysicalFilePath
CertificateThumbPrint	DECISIONS_CERTIFICATETHUMBPRINT	Prompts for certificate thumbprint of SSL certificate when using the certificate store option.
InstanceAuthenticationKey	DECISIONS_INSTANCEAUTHENTICATIONKEY	Prompts for the authentication key are generated from a Control instance's Add Instance window.
ObfuscateSessionIdInLogs	DECISIONS_OBFUSCATESESSIONIDINLOGS	When set to true, this variable instructs the system to obfuscate session IDs in logs.	false
AllowedFileAccessPaths	DECISIONS_ALLOWEDFILEACCESSPATHS	Allows to specify File Paths to which the Decisions Server can write files. The primary purpose of this setting is to prevent File Path Traversal. This setting should be used if users get an error "{FilePath} is outside the allowed directory paths.
EnableHttp	DECISIONS_ENABLEHTTP	The Decisions application running inside a container listens to ports 80 and 443 by default, and these variables toggle the use of the default web traffic ports for connections to the server. Note: Either HTTP or HTTPS must be marked True to access the application.	true
EnableHttps	DECISIONS_ENABLEHTTPS		false
HttpsCertificatePath	DECISIONS_HTTPSCERTIFICATEPATH	Enter the file path where the Container's certificate resides. This searches C:\Docker by default. Enter the certificate name at the end.
HttpsCertificatePassword	DECISIONS_HTTPSCERTIFICATEPASSWORD	Use this variable if the SSL certificate is password protected.
EnableHttpToHttpsRedirection	DECISIONS_ENABLEHTTPTOHTTPSREDIRECTION	This setting will redirect the connection from HTTP to HTTPS.	false

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What's Next

Configuring Settings.xml to Environment Variable

Table of contents

Overview
Example YAML File
Required Environment Variables
Additional Environment Variables
Settings.xml and their corresponding Environment Variable