Environment variables

SDK configuration (backend)

Variable	Used by	Description
`AUTTER_RUNTIME_KEY`	`@autter/runtime-node`, any OTel SDK	Secret server key (`autter_rt_…`). Passed as `apiKey` to `initAutterServer` / `createBrowserRelayHandler`, or as the `Authorization: Bearer` header for a raw OTLP exporter.
`AUTTER_ENDPOINT`	`@autter/runtime-node`	Base URL of your ingester. Defaults to Autter’s hosted endpoint (`https://otlp.autter.dev`) if unset.
`GIT_SHA`	any	Convention used in the docs and examples for the `release` field — wire it to your build’s git commit so regressions can be traced to a release.
`NODE_ENV`	`@autter/runtime-node`	Commonly passed through as `environment`.

Frontend equivalents are passed directly to initAutterBrowser({...}) rather than read from process.env (bundlers don’t expose server env vars to the browser by default) — for example import.meta.env.VITE_GIT_SHA for release.

Endpoint regression SDK options

These are JavaScript options for initAutterServer and Next.js registerAutter, not additional environment variables.

release: set this to the deployed commit SHA. GIT_SHA is a convention that your build must supply.
environment: use the actual deployment environment and keep its name stable.
retainTracesAboveMs: a positive duration in milliseconds opts into bounded retention of slow successful server traces in the local process. Use 2000 as a starting example, not a universal threshold. Zero or omission leaves this retention off. Check export volume after enabling it.
instrumentations: add required database or dependency instrumentation to the existing initialization. Do not create a second SDK.

Needs Node/Next.js SDK 1.3.0+ and, self-hosted, ingester 1.3.1+ (compatibility table). There is no dedicated retainTracesAboveMs environment variable. See Endpoint regressions for limits and external OTel requirements.

Operation logging options

After checking installed and deployed support, pass these options to the existing initAutterServer or Node-only Next.js registerAutter call. They are JavaScript options, not environment variables:

Option	Default	Behavior
`logging.console`	`true`	Writes scrubbed diagnostic records to stdout; set `false` when your existing logger handles console output. Export remains enabled.
`logging.minLevel`	`debug`	Filters ordinary messages using `debug`, `info`, `warning`, or `error`; completed operation summaries are retained independently.

Use the same AUTTER_RUNTIME_KEY, service, environment, release and ingester endpoint as tracing. Browser/client keys cannot send server logs. Other language exporters may support OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_LOGS_ENDPOINT, OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_LOGS_PROTOCOL and OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_LOGS_HEADERS; these variables alone do not create a logs provider or bridge. See OTLP loggers.

Ingester configuration (self-hosted)

Operation logging requires an ingester release containing /v1/logs and migration 0011-runtime-logs. Deploy it before upgrading logging SDKs; the platform readers and analysis/fix consumers need their matching deployment. No new ingest credential is required: use the existing repository server key.

Variable	Required	Description
`CLICKHOUSE_URL`	yes	ClickHouse HTTP(S) endpoint the ingester writes to.
`CLICKHOUSE_PASSWORD`	yes	ClickHouse password for the ingester’s user.
`AUTTER_INGEST_KEYS`	yes, unless using `AUTTER_KEY_VALIDATOR_URL`	JSON array mapping ingest keys to `{orgId, repositoryId}`. See format below.
`AUTTER_KEY_VALIDATOR_URL`	alternative to `AUTTER_INGEST_KEYS`	URL of your own key-validation service, for dynamic key management instead of a static env-var list.
`AUTTER_SINK_URL`	no	Optional webhook. Each ingest batch is POSTed here as normalized occurrences — see Architecture. Delivery is best-effort, fire-and-forget.

`AUTTER_INGEST_KEYS`

A JSON array, one entry per key:

AUTTER_INGEST_KEYS='[
  {"key":"autter_rt_REPLACE_ME","orgId":"my-org","repositoryId":"my-app"},
  {"key":"autter_rtc_REPLACE_ME","orgId":"my-org","repositoryId":"my-app",
   "scope":"client","allowedOrigins":["https://app.example.com"]}
]'

Server keys (autter_rt_…) have no scope field and can send OTLP traces/metrics/logs plus relay browser events.
Client keys (autter_rtc_…) need "scope": "client" and an allowedOrigins list — the ingester rejects /v1/browser requests whose Origin isn’t on the list.
One key pair per app or repository — repositoryId is how data is grouped for analysis.

Generate keys with anything sufficiently random, for example:

echo "autter_rt_$(openssl rand -hex 16)"

Full config reference: packages/otlp-ingester.

Self-hosting

Run the ingester locally, on a single server, or on AWS.

Get started

Guides

Reference