Configuration Precedence

Octipus cannot read database settings until it can open storage, so configuration happens in stages:

process environment / .env
        │
        ▼
bootstrap storage and security configuration
        │
        ▼
migrations and first-run seeding
        │
        ▼
database settings + encrypted vault

After initialization, the database is authoritative for settings that were migrated there. Editing an old optional value in .env may therefore have no effect. Storage location, master encryption material, and other values needed before database access remain bootstrap configuration.

Some consumers reload changed database settings while the process is running; others read configuration during startup. Restart after a configuration change when the relevant page or repository documentation does not explicitly say it reloads live.

Resetting or rotating values

Do not clear migration markers merely to force a value through. Edit the persisted setting through the UI or API. For the master key, follow the repository’s rotation procedure and run its dry-run mode first; direct replacement can make vault records unreadable.