Improve .env.sample readability and developer onboarding

[harshiit-rana]

Summary

Improved the .env.sample file by organizing environment variables into clear sections and adding descriptive comments.

Changes

• Grouped variables into logical categories (core, database, deployment, etc.)
• Added comments for better clarity and onboarding
• Improved overall readability and structure

Related issues

N/A

Checklist

• Change is non-breaking
• Improves developer experience
• No functional logic modified

Overview

Reorganized and enhanced the .env.sample file to improve developer experience and onboarding through better structure and documentation.

Key Changes

Structure & Organization:

• Introduced 9 logical sections with visual headers (Core Settings, Database Configuration, Application Settings, Email/Notifications, Security, Stripe, Google Cloud Storage, Twitter API, Deployment Settings)
• Grouped related configuration variables together for improved discoverability

Improved Documentation:

• Added inline comments explaining the purpose and usage of each configuration variable
• Included guidance comments for sensitive values (e.g., "generate securely for production" for SECRET_KEY, "generate using: python web/master_key.py" for MESSAGE_ENCRYPTION_KEY)

Updated Configuration Values:

• Set ENVIRONMENT=development and DJANGO_DEBUG=True as development defaults
• Added DEBUG=False to clarify distinction between Django debug and general debug modes
• Changed MESSAGE_ENCRYPTION_KEY placeholder to your-generated-key-here with clearer generation guidance
• Updated SERVICE_ACCOUNT_FILE path format to path/to/service-account.json
• Added new deployment variables: PROJECT_NAME, PYTHON_VERSION, and VPS_IP

Impact

• Non-breaking change - purely organizational with no functional logic modifications
• Enhances developer onboarding by making environment configuration more intuitive and self-documented
• No impact on functionality - changes are limited to file structure and documentation

[github-actions]

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ℹ️ Recent review info

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📥 Commits

Reviewing files that changed from the base of the PR and between 7a682c2 and c756e77.

📒 Files selected for processing (1)

• .env.sample

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Walkthrough

The .env.sample file has been reorganized from a flat, minimal configuration list into a well-structured template with labeled sections (core, database, application, email/notifications, security, Stripe, cloud storage, Twitter, deployment). Environment defaults were updated and configuration placeholders were clarified with more descriptive value examples.

Changes

Cohort / File(s)	Summary
Configuration Template .env.sample	Restructured into organized sections with improved documentation. Updated defaults for ENVIRONMENT, DJANGO_DEBUG, and DEBUG. Clarified placeholder values like MESSAGE_ENCRYPTION_KEY and SERVICE_ACCOUNT_FILE. Added new deployment-related variables (PROJECT_NAME, PYTHON_VERSION, VPS_IP).

Estimated code review effort

🎯 2 (Simple) | ⏱️ ~8 minutes

✨ Finishing Touches

🧪 Generate unit tests (beta)

• Create PR with unit tests

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[github-actions]

🚚 This Repository Is Moving

Hi @harshiit-rana, thank you for your contribution!

We are in the process of migrating most of the logic from this repository to our new repository: alphaonelabs/learn.

What this means for your PR

Please do not merge or continue work here. Instead:

1. Review the alphaonelabs/learn repository and familiarize yourself with its tech stack.
2. Adapt your changes to work with that codebase.
3. Open a new Pull Request in alphaonelabs/learn.

This PR has been automatically closed. Once you have opened your PR in the new repository, feel free to reference it here.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support! 🙏