Docker Compose Pre-defined Environment Variables

--- description: Compose pre-defined environment variables keywords: fig, composition, compose, docker, orchestration, cli, reference title: Set or change pre-defined environment variables in Docker Compose linkTitle: Pre-defined environment variables weight: 30 aliases: - /compose/reference/envvars/ - /compose/environment-variables/envvars/ --- Compose already comes with pre-defined environment variables. It also inherits common Docker CLI environment variables, such as `DOCKER_HOST` and `DOCKER_CONTEXT`. See [Docker CLI environment variable reference](/reference/cli/docker/#environment-variables) for details. This page contains information on how you can set or change the following pre-defined environment variables if you need to: - `COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME` - `COMPOSE_FILE` - `COMPOSE_PROFILES` - `COMPOSE_CONVERT_WINDOWS_PATHS` - `COMPOSE_PATH_SEPARATOR` - `COMPOSE_IGNORE_ORPHANS` - `COMPOSE_REMOVE_ORPHANS` - `COMPOSE_PARALLEL_LIMIT` - `COMPOSE_ANSI` - `COMPOSE_STATUS_STDOUT` - `COMPOSE_ENV_FILES` - `COMPOSE_MENU` - `COMPOSE_EXPERIMENTAL` - `COMPOSE_PROGRESS` ## Methods to override You can set or change the pre-defined environment variables: - With an [`.env` file located in your working directory](/manuals/compose/how-tos/environment-variables/variable-interpolation.md) - From the command line - From your [shell](variable-interpolation.md#substitute-from-the-shell) When changing or setting any environment variables, be aware of [Environment variable precedence](envvars-precedence.md). ## Configure ### COMPOSE\_PROJECT\_NAME Sets the project name. This value is prepended along with the service name to the container's name on startup. For example, if your project name is `myapp` and it includes two services `db` and `web`, then Compose starts containers named `myapp-db-1` and `myapp-web-1` respectively. Compose can set the project name in different ways. The level of precedence (from highest to lowest) for each method is as follows: 1. The `-p` command line flag 2. `COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME` 3. The top-level `name:` variable from the config file (or the last `name:` from a series of config files specified using `-f`) 4. The `basename` of the project directory containing the config file (or containing the first config file specified using `-f`) 5. The `basename` of the current directory if no config file is specified Project names must contain only lowercase letters, decimal digits, dashes, and underscores, and must begin with a lowercase letter or decimal digit. If the `basename` of the project directory or current directory violates this constraint, you must use one of the other mechanisms. See also the [command-line options overview](/reference/cli/docker/compose/_index.md#command-options-overview-and-help) and [using `-p` to specify a project name](/reference/cli/docker/compose/_index.md#use--p-to-specify-a-project-name). ### COMPOSE\_FILE Specifies the path to a Compose file. Specifying multiple Compose files is supported. - Default behavior: If not provided, Compose looks for a file named `compose.yaml` in the current directory and, if not found, then Compose searches each parent directory recursively until a file by that name is found. - When specifying multiple Compose files, the path separators are, by default, on: - Mac and Linux: `:` (colon) - Windows: `;` (semicolon) For example: ```console COMPOSE_FILE=compose.yaml:compose.prod.yaml ``` The path separator can also be customized using [`COMPOSE_PATH_SEPARATOR`](#compose_path_separator). See also the [command-line options overview](/reference/cli/docker/compose/_index.md#command-options-overview-and-help) and [using `-f` to specify name and path of one or more Compose files](/reference/cli/docker/compose/_index.md#use--f-to-specify-the-name-and-path-of-one-or-more-compose-files). ### COMPOSE\_PROFILES Specifies one or more profiles to be enabled when `docker compose up` is run. Services with matching profiles are started as well as any services for which no profile has been defined.

This document describes the pre-defined environment variables used by Docker Compose, including how to set or change them. It details variables like `COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME`, `COMPOSE_FILE`, and `COMPOSE_PROFILES`, explaining their purpose and how to configure them via `.env` files, command line, or shell. It also outlines the precedence rules for environment variables.