# RailsConfig

## Summary

RailsConfig helps you easily manage environment specific Rails settings in an easy and usable manner

## Features

* simple YAML config files
* config files support ERB
* config files support inheritance
* access config information via convenient object member notation

## Compatibility

* Rails 3.0

For older versions of Rails and other Ruby apps, use [AppConfig](http://github.com/fredwu/app_config).

## Installing on Rails 3

Add this to your `Gemfile`:

    gem "rails_config"

## Customizing RailsConfig

You may customize the behavior of RailsConfig by generating an initializer file:

    rails g rails_config:install

This will generate `config/initializers/rails_config.rb` with a set of default settings as well as to generate a set of default settings files:

    config/settings.yml
    config/settings/development.yml
    config/settings/production.yml
    config/settings/test.yml

## Accessing the Settings object

After installing this plugin, the Settings object will be global available. Entries are accessed via object member notation:

    Settings.my_config_entry

Nested entries are supported:

    Settings.my_section.some_entry

If you have set a different constant name for the object in the initializer file, use that instead.

## Common config file

Config entries are compiled from

    config/settings.yml
    config/settings/#{environment}.yml
    config/environments/#{environment}.yml

settings defined in files that are lower in the list override settings higher

### Reloading settings

You can reload the Settings object at any time by running Settings.reload!

### Reloading settings and config files

You can also reload the Settings object from different config files at runtime.

For example, in your tests if you want to test the production settings, you can:

    Rails.env = "production"
    Settings.reload_from_files(
      Rails.root.join("config", "settings.yml").to_s,
      Rails.root.join("config", "settings", "#{Rails.env}.yml").to_s,
      Rails.root.join("config", "environments", "#{Rails.env}.yml").to_s
    )

### Environment specific config files

You can have environment specific config files.  Environment specific config entries take precedence over common config entries.

Example development environment config file:

    #{Rails.root}/config/environments/development.yml

Example production environment config file:

    #{Rails.root}/config/environments/production.yml

## Embedded Ruby (ERB)

Embedded Ruby is allowed in the configuration files.  See examples below.

## Accessing Configuration Settings

Consider the two following config files.

 #{Rails.root}/config/settings.yml:

    size: 1
    server: google.com

 #{Rails.root}/config/environments/development.yml:

    size: 2
    computed: <%= 1 + 2 + 3 %>
    section:
      size: 3
      servers: [ {name: yahoo.com}, {name: amazon.com} ]

Notice that the environment specific config entries overwrite the common entries.

    Settings.size   # => 2
    Settings.server # => google.com

Notice the embedded Ruby.

    Settings.computed # => 6

Notice that object member notation is maintained even in nested entries.

    Settings.section.size # => 3

Notice array notation and object member notation is maintained.

    Settings.section.servers[0].name # => yahoo.com
    Settings.section.servers[1].name # => amazon.com

## Authors

* [Jacques Crocker](http://github.com/railsjedi)
* [Fred Wu](http://github.com/fredwu)
* Inherited from [AppConfig](http://github.com/cjbottaro/app_config) by [Christopher J. Bottaro](http://github.com/cjbottaro)