env-sync

Env Sync

Your .env has 30 variables and nobody knows what half of them do. This tool creates a properly documented .env.example with secrets stripped out.

One command. Zero config. Just works.

Quick Start

npx ai-env-sync

What It Does

• Reads all your .env files (.env, .env.local, .env.development)
• Strips secret values but keeps the keys
• Adds helpful comments explaining each variable
• Generates a clean .env.example

Usage Examples

# Generate .env.example
npx ai-env-sync

# Specify project directory
npx ai-env-sync ./my-project

Best Practices

• Run before committing - keep .env.example in sync
• Add to CI - verify .env.example matches .env structure
• Group related vars - makes it easier to configure
• Document required vs optional - not everything needs a value

When to Use This

• Onboarding new team members
• Setting up CI/CD environments
• Documenting environment requirements
• Keeping .env.example up to date

Part of the LXGIC Dev Toolkit

This is one of 110+ free developer tools built by LXGIC Studios. No paywalls, no sign-ups, no API keys on free tiers. Just tools that work.

Find more:

• GitHub: https://github.com/LXGIC-Studios
• Twitter: https://x.com/lxgicstudios
• Substack: https://lxgicstudios.substack.com
• Website: https://lxgicstudios.com

Requirements

No install needed. Just run with npx. Node.js 18+ recommended. Needs OPENAI_API_KEY environment variable.

npx ai-env-sync --help

How It Works

Reads your .env files, identifies the variables, and uses GPT-4o-mini to generate helpful descriptions for each one. Sensitive values are replaced with placeholder text like "your_api_key_here".

License

MIT. Free forever. Use it however you want.