Rails 7.1: Storing secret_key_base in Credentials for Local Environment

2023/08/11

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The article discusses the changes in Rails 7.1 regarding the storage of secret_key_base in the local environment. In previous versions of Rails, the secret_key_base was stored in Rails.application.secrets.secret_key_base. However, in Rails 7.1, the secret_key_base will be moved to Rails.application.credentials.secret_key_base. This change is part of the deprecation of the secrets feature, which will be removed in Rails 7.2. The secret_key_base is a randomly generated string used to add an extra layer of security to prevent unauthorized tampering with cookies, sessions, and other application data. In the local environment, the secret_key_base value will be fetched from tmp/local_secret.txt. For other environments, Rails will first try to get the secret_key_base value from ENV["SECRET_KEY_BASE"], then credentials.secret_key_base, and finally secrets.secret_key_base. It is recommended to always retrieve the secret_key_base value by calling Rails.application.secret_key_base. This change is important for developers using Rails 7.1 and onwards, as it affects the way the secret_key_base is accessed and stored.