> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.pikopod.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Environment variables

> Every variable pikopod reads, and what it overrides.

Environment variables override `pikopod.yaml`. None of them is ever accepted as a command-line argument, because argv is visible to every user on the machine.

## Runtime

| Variable           | Overrides                                   |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------- |
| `PIKOPOD_LISTEN`   | `listen`                                    |
| `PIKOPOD_DATA_DIR` | `data_dir`                                  |
| `PIKOPOD_TOKEN`    | The listener token. Wins over `token_file`. |
| `PIKOPOD_DEBUG`    | Verbose diagnostics                         |

## Model key

| Variable          | Overrides     |
| ----------------- | ------------- |
| `PIKOPOD_LLM_KEY` | `llm.api_key` |

The key is resolved once, in this order: `llm.api_key` in the file, then `PIKOPOD_LLM_KEY`, then the standard variable of the provider named in `llm.provider`. A key stored in the file requires the file to be mode `0600`. A key in the environment does not.

The key is optional and only three features use it: `scenario create`, `fix`, and a documentation-URL import that could not find a spec any other way. See [Configuration](/operations/configuration#llm).

## Webhook signing

| Variable                                                                                             | Read by                                                                                                              |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| The variable named by `signature.keyEnv` in a webhook envelope, for example `EXAMPLEPAY_WEBHOOK_KEY` | `pikopod up`, when a sandbox has a webhook sink and its spec declares a signature. `up` refuses to start without it. |

The key is never written to disk.

## Forge credentials

Read by `pikopod pr comment`, `pikopod pr open` and `pikopod fix --pr`.

| Variable                                                   | Use                 |
| ---------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------- |
| `GITHUB_TOKEN`, then `GH_TOKEN`, then a logged-in `gh` CLI | GitHub              |
| `GITLAB_TOKEN`                                             | GitLab, `api` scope |

## CI detection

Platform, repository, pull request number and head SHA default from the CI environment, so `pr comment` needs no flags inside a pipeline.

| Variable                                                                                     | Read as                                                            |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `GITHUB_ACTIONS=true`                                                                        | platform `github`                                                  |
| `GITHUB_REPOSITORY`, `GITHUB_SHA`, `GITHUB_REF`                                              | repository, sha, PR number                                         |
| `GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY`                                                                        | Where `pr comment` writes the report when the token cannot comment |
| `GITLAB_CI=true`                                                                             | platform `gitlab`                                                  |
| `CI_PROJECT_ID`, `CI_PROJECT_PATH`, `CI_COMMIT_SHA`, `CI_MERGE_REQUEST_IID`, `CI_API_V4_URL` | project, sha, MR iid, API base                                     |

Pass `--platform`, `--repo`, `--number`, `--sha` and `--api` to override any of them outside CI.