Environment Variables

Overview #

There a multiple types of Variables that can be set and used by a workflow. There is also an order of inheritance that they are used in, which can matter if there are variables of the same name.

1. Environment Variables – which can be referenced by any workflow running within that environment (such as Dev, Test, or Prod).
2. Project Variables – which can be referenced by any workflow contained within that Project.
3. Workflow Variables – which can be referenced only within that workflow.
    
   SPECIAL NOTE: Task Variables and Flow Attributes – these are special types of variables that can contain business logic, and are discussed in other documentation, due to the multiple use cases and rules that can be applied, which differs from these environment variables. See the associated topic (Task Presets).

The Config Panel of an Environment, Project, or Workflow is where you will be able to create, update or delete each of the 3 types of environment variables.

Order of Inheritance #

The order of inheritance matters if a variable contains the same name at different levels (Environment, Project, or Workflow). For instance, if you created an Environment variable called “HR-Database”, and a Project variable of the same name, the Project variable would be used by any workflows within that Project. The order of inheritance is as follows:

1. Environment Variables are inherited by any workflow running in that environment.
2. Project Variables with the same name as an Env Var will be used instead of the Env Var for any workflows within that Project.
3. Workflow Variables with the same name as a Project Var or Env Var will be used instead, for that specific workflow.

NOTE: Standard Environment Variable rules apply across environments. For example:

• An Environment variable called “HR-Database” in the Dev environment will only apply to workflows running in Dev
• An Environment variable called “HR-Database” in the Prod environment will only apply to workflows running in Prod

Advanced Concepts #

For more information about Task Variables and Flow Attributes, see the associated topic (Task Presets).