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https://github.com/simonprickett/google-cloud-functions-environment-variables

Google Cloud Functions Environment Variables Demo
https://github.com/simonprickett/google-cloud-functions-environment-variables

environment-variables google-cloud google-cloud-functions google-cloud-platform node node-js nodejs secrets-management serverless

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Google Cloud Functions Environment Variables Demo

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# Google Cloud Functions Environment Variables Test



Test Google Cloud Function that uses environment variables (recently added functionality on Google Cloud).



Also be sure to check out the [Google documentation for this](https://cloud.google.com/functions/docs/env-var).



I also wrote a [Medium article about this](https://medium.com/@simon_prickett/using-environment-variables-with-google-cloud-functions-e9948f70f6cd).



## Setup



Ensure that you have Google's `gcloud` commands installed and updated to the latest, including the `beta` commands.  Also ensure that you have a Google Cloud project set up with Cloud Functions enabled.



In Terminal, clone this repo and `cd` to the folder containing it.



In `index.js`, we have a function `helloEnvVars`.  This expects to be able to access three environment variables named:



* `SUCH_SECRET`

* `MANY_ENCRYPTS`

* `SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS`



and will display their names and values in a HTML table.  As you can see, the value for each environment variable is retrieved in the same was as any other Node.js code:



```

process.env.VAR_NAME

```



## Deployment



This is a HTTP function so deploy as follows:



```

gcloud functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --project 

```



Then test by pointing the browser at the URL that `gcloud` output at the end of the deployment, which looks something like this:



```

https://-.cloudfunctions.net/helloEnvVars

```



Note that all three environment variables show `UNKNOWN` for their value.



## Setting Environment Variables



Google provides two ways to supply values for the environment variables.



### Individually from the Command Line



Supply name/value pairs when deploying the function e.g. (note we have to use `beta` for this):



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --set-env-vars SUCH_SECRET=hello --project 

```



### Multiple from the Command Line



Multiple values can be provided together, note also have to be careful about quoting and escaping values:



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --set-env-vars SUCH_SECRET="Ssssh it's a secret",MANY_ENCRYPTS="rTgHi0444452\!",SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS="Oh yes" --project 

```



### From a YAML File



Environment variables can also be set via a YAML file (which will overwrite all existing variable values and unset any that aren't listed in the file).



Example `env.yaml`:



```

SUCH_SECRET: Ssssh it's a secret

MANY_ENCRYPTS: rTgHi0444452!

SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS: Oh yes

```



Deploy as follows (note we have to use `beta` for this):



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --env-vars-file env.yaml --project 

```



Then refresh the browser to see the new values.



## Updating Environment Variables



To change the value of a deployed environment variable use `--update-env-vars`, which works like `--set-env-vars`:



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --update-env-vars SUCH_SECRET="Updated",MANY_ENCRYPTS="Also updated",SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS="Updated too" --project 

```



(You can also use `--set-env-vars` to overwrite the values of existing environment variables and `--update-env-vars` to add set values for new environment values, so theese seem pretty interchangeable `¯\_(ツ)_/¯`).



## Deleting Environment Variables



Environment variables are deleted as follows:



### Selective Delete



(Again note we have to use `beta` for this):



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --remove-env-vars SUCH_SECRET,MANY_ENCRYPTS --project 

```



### Remove All



(Again note we have to use `beta` for this):



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --clear-env-vars --project 

```



## Notes



* Environment variables are scoped by function, so are not shared between functions - you need to add separate environment variables for each function even if they are deployed together and/or exist in the same source code file

* The maximum allowable size for environment variables is 32kb per function

* You should probably add any YAML files that you use to store environment variable values in to your project's `.gitignore` file as you likely don't want these adding to source control!

* A deployment failure will not update any environment variables, only a completely successful deployment updates environment variables

* Once environment variables are set, deploying the function again without specifying any environment variable options will leave the current settings intact.  e.g. this does not change the values of any environment variables, nor unset any that previously existed: `gcloud functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --project `

* The current values of all environment variables will be displayed in the output of `gcloud` every time you deploy a function



## Gotchas



### Escaping Values on Command Line



Don't forget to quote and escape values when using `--set-env-vars` or `--update-env-vars`:



```

gcloud beta functions deploy helloEnvVars --trigger-http --set-env-vars SUCH_SECRET="Ssssh it's a secret",MANY_ENCRYPTS="rTgHi0444452\!",SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS="Oh yes" --project 

```



### Boolean and Int Types with YAML



When deploying environment variables in a YAML file, be careful of values that can be coerced to `boolean` or `int` types by the YAML parser e.g.:



```

SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS: true

```



These cause deployment errors:



```

ERROR: gcloud crashed (ValidationError): Expected type  for field value, found True (type )

```



Workaround is to make the value a string:



```

SO_FINALLY_CAUGHT_UP_WITH_AWS: "true"

```



The same applies for numeric values, for example:



```

MANY_ENCRYPTS: 12

```



will error on deploy, but:



```

MANY_ENCRYPTS: "12"

``` 



will not.