server_environment_files

You can edit the settings you need in the server_environment_files addon. The server_environment_files_sample can be used as an example:

• values common to all / most environments can be stored in the default/ directory using the .ini file syntax;
• each environment you need to define is stored in its own directory and can override or extend default values;
• you can override or extend values in the main configuration file of your instance;

Environment variable

You can define configuration in the environment variable SERVER_ENV_CONFIG and/or SERVER_ENV_CONFIG_SECRET. The 2 variables are handled the exact same way, this is only a convenience for the deployment where you can isolate the secrets in a different, encrypted, file. They are multi-line environment variables in the same configparser format than the files. If you used options in server_environment_files, the options set in the environment variable override them.

The options in the environment variable are not dependent of running_env, the content of the variable must be set accordingly to the running environment.

Example of setup:

A public file, containing that will contain public variables:

# These variables are not odoo standard variables,
# they are there to represent what your file could look like
export WORKERS='8'
export MAX_CRON_THREADS='1'
export LOG_LEVEL=info
export LOG_HANDLER=":INFO"
export DB_MAXCONN=5

# server environment options
export SERVER_ENV_CONFIG="
[storage_backend.my_sftp]
sftp_server=10.10.10.10
sftp_login=foo
sftp_port=22200
directory_path=Odoo
"

A second file which is encrypted and contains secrets:

# This variable is not an odoo standard variable,
# it is there to represent what your file could look like
export DB_PASSWORD='xxxxxxxxx'
# server environment options
export SERVER_ENV_CONFIG_SECRET="
[storage_backend.my_sftp]
sftp_password=xxxxxxxxx
"

WARNING

my_sftp must match the name of the record. If you want something more reliable use server.env.techname.mixin and use tech_name field to reference records. See “USAGE”.

Default values

When using the server.env.mixin mixin, for each env-computed field, a companion field <field>_env_default is created. This field is not environment-dependent. It’s a fallback value used when no key is set in configuration files / environment variable.

When the default field is used, the field is made editable on Odoo.

Note: empty environment keys always take precedence over default fields

Server environment integration

Read the documentation of the class models/server_env_mixin.py and [models/server_env_tech_name_mixin.py] (models/server_env_tech_name_mixin.py)

Restoring columns on uninstall

When server.env.mixin is bound to an existing model, the ORM drops the original stored columns for all env-managed fields. If the binding addon is later uninstalled, those columns must be recreated so the database remains usable.

Add an uninstall_hook to your addon and delegate to restore_env_managed_columns:

# your_addon/__init__.py
from ./hooks import uninstall_hook
# your_addon/hooks.py
from odoo.addons.server_environment import uninstall

def uninstall_hook(env):
    uninstall.restore_env_managed_columns(
        env,
        "storage.backend",
        ["directory_path", "other_field"],
    )

# your_addon/__manifest__.py
{
    ...
    "uninstall_hook": "uninstall_hook",
}

The helper creates any missing columns (idempotent: safe to call multiple times) and repopulates them with each record’s current effective value — whether that value came from an environment configuration file or from the stored default field (x_<field>_env_default).

The hook must run before the ORM extensions are removed, which is guaranteed by Odoo’s uninstall sequence (hooks execute before Module.module_uninstall()).

def uninstall_hook(env):
    restore_env_managed_columns(
        env,
        "ir.mail_server",
        ["smtp_host", "smtp_authentication"],
        field_defaults={
            "smtp_authentication": "login",  # fallback for required field
        },
    )

Migrating when dropping server_environment dependency

When refactoring an existing addon that embeds a server.env.mixin binding, you may want to extract the binding into a separate glue addon and drop the server_environment dependency from the original. This keeps the base addon lightweight while preserving server-environment features for those who install the glue addon.

Pattern:

• Original addon (v1): depends on server_environment and binds the mixin directly in model code.
• Refactored addon (v2): removes server_environment from dependencies, removes the mixin binding and the related ORM model inheritance.
• New glue addon (optional, same version): depends on both server_environment and the original addon v2; re-adds the mixin binding in a separate module file.

Migration checklist:

1. In the original addon’s v2 ``__manifest__.py``:

   • Remove "server_environment" from depends.
   • Remove the model file(s) that contained the mixin binding.
   • Update depends to add the new glue addon if the base addon still needs it (otherwise, make the glue addon optional for users who want env-binding).

2. In the original addon’s v2 model code:

   • Delete or simplify the model class that inherited from server.env.mixin.
   • If the model was only there for the binding, remove it entirely.
   • Restore the original field definitions (not as computed fields).

3. Create a migration script (if needed) to restore columns during the addon upgrade, before the ORM model extensions are unloaded. Use a @post_load hook or a dedicated migration script:

   # migrations/18.0.1.0.0/post-restore-columns.py
   def migrate(cr, version):
       # Call the restoration logic while the v1 model is still active
       env = odoo.api.Environment(cr, odoo.SUPERUSER_ID, {})
       # If any field is required and may have no value in the environment,
       # provide a fallback via field_defaults
       restore_env_managed_columns(
           env,
           "storage.backend",
           ["directory_path", "other_field"],
           field_defaults={
               "directory_path": "/tmp",  # fallback for required field
           },
       )
   

4. Create the glue addon with the model re-inheritance:

   # your_addon_env/__init__.py
   from . import models
   
   # your_addon_env/models/__init__.py
   from . import storage_backend
   
   # your_addon_env/models/storage_backend.py
   class StorageBackend(models.Model):
       _name = "storage.backend"
       _inherit = ["storage.backend", "server.env.mixin"]
   
       @property
       def _server_env_fields(self):
           return {"directory_path": {}}
   
   # your_addon_env/__manifest__.py
   {
       "name": "Storage Backend – Server Environment",
       "version": "18.0.1.0.0",
       "depends": ["server_environment", "storage_backend"],
       "installable": True,
   }
   

Key points:

• Column restoration must happen during the addon upgrade (step 3), not as an uninstall hook, because the original model binding is still active.
• The restore_env_managed_columns helper is idempotent and safe to call even if columns already exist.
• Users who do not need server environment features simply do not install the glue addon—the base addon continues to work with plain database columns.
• Users who do need server environment can install both the base addon (v2+) and the glue addon (same version) to get the binding back.

Authors

• Camptocamp

Contributors

• Florent Xicluna (Wingo) <florent.xicluna@gmail.com>
• Nicolas Bessi <nicolas.bessi@camptocamp.com>
• Alexandre Fayolle <alexandre.fayolle@camptocamp.com>
• Daniel Reis <dgreis@sapo.pt>
• Holger Brunn <hbrunn@therp.nl>
• Leonardo Pistone <leonardo.pistone@camptocamp.com>
• Adrien Peiffer <adrien.peiffer@acsone.com>
• Thierry Ducrest <thierry.ducrest@camptocamp.com>
• Guewen Baconnier <guewen.baconnier@camptocamp.com>
• Thomas Binfeld <thomas.binsfeld@acsone.eu>
• Stéphane Bidoul <stefane.bidoul@acsone.com>
• Simone Orsi <simahawk@gmail.com>

Maintainers

This module is maintained by the OCA.

OCA, or the Odoo Community Association, is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support the collaborative development of Odoo features and promote its widespread use.

This module is part of the OCA/server-env project on GitHub.

You are welcome to contribute. To learn how please visit https://odoo-community.org/page/Contribute.