getredash/redash

Environment variable configuration should take precedence over database settings

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#5626 opened on Oct 18, 2021

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Backendhelp wanted

Description

Right now, if settings are introduced that are configurable by environment variables, they will be ignored in favour of configured database settings.

This is because the organization model prefers to get its settings from the database (short circuit): https://github.com/getredash/redash/blob/143d22db04a9058966b8c7d678b06f228b937326/redash/models/organizations.py#L69

and there is no mechanism to synchronize database settings with detected environment variables, even if they are initially loaded via https://github.com/getredash/redash/blob/master/redash/settings/organization.py .

I would like to suggest that environment variables, when present, should be preferred over prior DB stored settings, as they should always be assumed to have been most recently provided as the desired configuration versus anything that may have been previously configured and persisted.

This matches the typical behaviour of many other software, where command-line arguments or envars always take precedence over local files.

Contributor guide

Tech stack
python
Domain
backend
Issue type
feature
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
stale
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
clear
Prerequisites
PythonRedash codebaseEnvironment variable concepts
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
80
Research direction
Examine the get settings method in redash/models/organizations.py (line 69) where database settings take precedence. Understand how environment variables are loaded in redash/settings/organization.py. Modify the logic to check environment variables first before falling back to database settings. Ensure that if an environment variable is set, it overrides any stored database value.