This page documents all environment variables used by wit for configuration.
AI Features
| Variable | Description | Required |
|---|
OPENAI_API_KEY | OpenAI API key for AI features | For AI |
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY | Anthropic API key (alternative to OpenAI) | For AI |
WIT_AI_MODEL | AI model to use (default: gpt-4o) | No |
Usage
# Use OpenAI
export OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-..."
# Or use Anthropic
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="sk-ant-..."
# Specify model
export WIT_AI_MODEL="gpt-4-turbo"
Semantic Search
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|
WIT_SEARCH_MODEL | Embedding model for search | text-embedding-3-small |
WIT_SEARCH_IGNORE | Patterns to ignore (comma-separated) | node_modules,dist,.git |
Usage
export WIT_SEARCH_MODEL="text-embedding-3-large"
export WIT_SEARCH_IGNORE="node_modules,dist,build,.git,vendor"
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|
PORT | API server port | 3000 |
HOST | Hostname to bind | 0.0.0.0 |
DATABASE_URL | PostgreSQL connection string | Required for server |
REPOS_DIR | Repository storage path | ./repos |
JWT_SECRET | Secret for JWT token signing | Required for auth |
NODE_ENV | Environment mode | development |
Usage
# Database connection
export DATABASE_URL="postgresql://user:password@localhost:5432/wit"
# Server configuration
export PORT=3000
export HOST="0.0.0.0"
export REPOS_DIR="/var/lib/wit/repos"
# Security
export JWT_SECRET="your-secure-secret-key"
export NODE_ENV="production"
Repository Storage (REPOS_DIR)
The REPOS_DIR environment variable controls where wit stores git repositories on disk. This is a critical setting for the platform to function correctly.
If REPOS_DIR is not set correctly, you may see “Repository not found on disk” errors when trying to view files, save changes in the IDE, or perform git operations.
How It Works
When you create a repository through the web UI, wit:
- Creates a bare git repository at
{REPOS_DIR}/{username}/{repo-name}.git
- Stores the path
/repos/{username}/{repo-name}.git in the database
- Resolves this path using
REPOS_DIR when accessing the repository
Configuration Examples
# Development (default) - relative to project directory
REPOS_DIR=./repos
# User home directory
REPOS_DIR=~/.wit/repos
# Absolute path for production
REPOS_DIR=/var/lib/wit/repos
# Docker volume
REPOS_DIR=/data/repos
Troubleshooting
If you’re getting “Repository not found on disk” errors:
-
Check where repos are stored:
# Find existing repositories
find ~/.wit -name "*.git" -type d 2>/dev/null
find ./repos -name "*.git" -type d 2>/dev/null
-
Set REPOS_DIR to match:
# In your .env file
REPOS_DIR=/path/to/where/repos/actually/are
-
Restart the server:
Migration
If you need to move repositories to a new location:
# 1. Stop the server
wit down
# 2. Move repositories
mv ./repos /var/lib/wit/repos
# 3. Update .env
echo 'REPOS_DIR=/var/lib/wit/repos' >> .env
# 4. Restart
wit up
Git Configuration
| Variable | Description | Used For |
|---|
WIT_AUTHOR_NAME | Default commit author name | Commits |
WIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL | Default commit author email | Commits |
GIT_AUTHOR_NAME | Fallback author name | Commits |
GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL | Fallback author email | Commits |
WIT_* variables first, then falls back to GIT_* variables.
Usage
export WIT_AUTHOR_NAME="Your Name"
export WIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL="you@example.com"
Code Review
| Variable | Description | Required |
|---|
CODERABBIT_API_KEY | CodeRabbit API key | For CodeRabbit reviews |
Usage
export CODERABBIT_API_KEY="your-coderabbit-key"
wit review --coderabbit
Email Notifications
Email configuration for collaborator invitations.
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|
RESEND_API_KEY | Resend API key | - |
EMAIL_FROM_ADDRESS | Sender email address | noreply@wit.dev |
EMAIL_FROM_NAME | Sender display name | wit |
Usage
export RESEND_API_KEY="re_..."
export EMAIL_FROM_ADDRESS="noreply@yourcompany.com"
export EMAIL_FROM_NAME="Your Company Git"
GitHub Integration
| Variable | Description | Required |
|---|
GITHUB_TOKEN | GitHub personal access token | For GitHub features |
GITHUB_CLIENT_ID | OAuth app client ID | For OAuth |
GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET | OAuth app client secret | For OAuth |
Usage
# Personal access token for CLI
export GITHUB_TOKEN="ghp_..."
# OAuth for web app
export GITHUB_CLIENT_ID="your-client-id"
export GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET="your-client-secret"
SSH Configuration
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|
SSH_PORT | SSH server port | 22 |
SSH_HOST_KEY | Path to host key | ~/.wit/ssh/host_key |
Development & Debugging
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|
DEBUG | Enable debug logging | false |
WIT_VERBOSE | Verbose output | false |
LOG_LEVEL | Log level (debug, info, warn, error) | info |
Usage
# Enable debug mode
export DEBUG=true
export LOG_LEVEL="debug"
export WIT_VERBOSE=true
Rate Limiting
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|
RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW | Rate limit window (ms) | 60000 |
RATE_LIMIT_MAX | Max requests per window | 100 |
RATE_LIMIT_ENABLED | Enable rate limiting | true |
Example Configuration
Development Environment
# .env.development
OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-dev-key"
DATABASE_URL="postgresql://wit:wit@localhost:5432/wit"
PORT=3000
NODE_ENV="development"
DEBUG=true
LOG_LEVEL="debug"
Production Environment
# .env.production
OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-prod-key"
DATABASE_URL="postgresql://wit:secure-password@db.example.com:5432/wit"
PORT=3000
NODE_ENV="production"
JWT_SECRET="your-very-secure-secret"
REPOS_DIR="/var/lib/wit/repos"
# Email
RESEND_API_KEY="re_..."
EMAIL_FROM_ADDRESS="git@yourcompany.com"
# Rate limiting
RATE_LIMIT_ENABLED=true
RATE_LIMIT_MAX=100
CI/CD Environment
# For CI pipelines
WIT_AUTHOR_NAME="CI Bot"
WIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL="ci@yourcompany.com"
GITHUB_TOKEN="${GITHUB_TOKEN}"
Loading Environment Variables
Using .env Files
wit supports .env files in your project root:
# Create .env file
cat > .env << EOF
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://...
EOF
# wit automatically loads .env
wit ai commit
Using direnv
For project-specific configuration:
# .envrc
export OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-..."
export WIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL="work@company.com"
Shell Configuration
Add to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc):
# wit configuration
export OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-..."
export WIT_AUTHOR_NAME="Your Name"
export WIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL="you@example.com"
Security Best Practices
- Never commit secrets - Use
.env files and add them to .gitignore
- Use different keys per environment - Dev, staging, production
- Rotate secrets regularly - Especially for production
- Use secret managers - AWS Secrets Manager, HashiCorp Vault, etc.
# .gitignore
.env
.env.local
.env.*.local
