Environment Variables

Overview

LLM Provider API Keys

Crowe uses environment variables to store API keys for various LLM providers, ensuring secure credential management and easy configuration across environments.

# OpenAI
OPENAI_API_KEY="your-openai-key"

# Anthropic
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-anthropic-key"

# Google
GEMINI_API_KEY="your-gemini-key"

# Hugging Face
HUGGINGFACE_TOKEN="your-huggingface-token"

# Perplexity AI
PPLX_API_KEY="your-perplexity-key"

Security Best Practices

1. Managing Environment Files

  • Place a .env file in the root directory of your project.

  • Always exclude .env from version control to prevent accidental exposure of secrets.

  • Update .gitignore to include the .env file:

echo ".env" >> .gitignore

2. Protecting API Keys

To keep your credentials safe:

  • Rotate keys periodically to reduce the risk of misuse.

  • Use separate keys for development and production environments.

  • Avoid embedding API keys directly in your source code.

  • Assign the minimal set of permissions required.

  • Actively monitor API usage for unexpected activity.

3. Configuration Template

Provide a .env.example file to help others set up their environment without exposing your real keys:

# Essential Settings
OPENAI_API_KEY=""
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=""
GROQ_API_KEY=""
WORKSPACE_DIR="agent_workspace"

# Optional Settings
CROWE_VERBOSE_MODE="False"

4. Loading Environment Variables in Python

import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv

# Load variables from .env file
load_dotenv()

# Retrieve values
workspace_dir = os.getenv("WORKSPACE_DIR")
openai_key = os.getenv("OPENAI_API_KEY")

Environment Setup Guide

#Install Dependencies
pip install python-dotenv

#Create Environment File
cp .env.example .env

#Configure Variables
Open .env in your text editor
Add your API keys and configuration
Save the file

#Verify Setup
import os
from dotenv import load_dotenv

load_dotenv()
assert os.getenv("OPENAI_API_KEY") is not None, "OpenAI API key not found"

Environment-Specific Configuration

#Development
WORKSPACE_DIR="agent_workspace"
CROWE_VERBOSE_GLOBAL="True"

#Production
WORKSPACE_DIR="/var/crowe/workspace"
CROWE_VERBOSE_GLOBAL="False"

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Environment Variables Not Loading

  • Verify .env file exists in project root

  • Confirm load_dotenv() is called before accessing variables

  • Check file permissions

API Key Issues

  • Verify key format is correct

  • Ensure key has not expired

  • Check for leading/trailing whitespace

Workspace Directory Problems

  • Confirm directory exists

  • Verify write permissions

  • Check path is absolute when required

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