Environment Variables

Kolega Code reads configuration from environment variables and from a project-local .env file. This page lists everything it understands.

Precedence

For any given setting, the first available source wins:

CLI flags (e.g. --provider, --model)
Shell environment variables
Project .env file (in the project directory)
Saved Settings (settings.json)

Kolega Code requires an explicit provider/model selection from flags, environment variables, a project .env file, or saved settings. API key variables alone are not a model selection source.

API keys

Set the variable for each provider you use. Only the providers backing your active model roles are required.

API key variables provide credentials only. They do not select the active provider or model.

Variable	Provider
`ANTHROPIC_API_KEY`	Anthropic
`OPENAI_API_KEY`	OpenAI
`GOOGLE_API_KEY`	Google
`GROQ_API_KEY`	Groq
`TOGETHER_API_KEY`	Together.ai
`FIREWORKS_API_KEY`	Fireworks.ai
`XAI_API_KEY`	x.ai
`DASHSCOPE_API_KEY`	DashScope (Alibaba)
`MOONSHOT_API_KEY`	Moonshot
`DEEPSEEK_API_KEY`	DeepSeek
`ZAI_API_KEY`	Z.AI (GLM Coding Plan)
`KIMI_CODING_API_KEY`	Kimi Coding Plan

The local llama provider needs no key. The zai key authenticates against Z.AI’s Anthropic-compatible endpoint (it is the key Z.AI also documents as ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN). The kimi_coding key authenticates against the Kimi Coding Plan’s separate Anthropic-compatible endpoint (https://api.kimi.com/coding/), which is distinct from the standard Moonshot API used by the moonshot provider.

Model selection

Each role can be configured independently. Set just the provider to use that provider’s default model, or set both provider and model.

Variable	Role
`KOLEGA_CODE_PROVIDER` / `KOLEGA_CODE_MODEL`	Main (long-context) coding model
`KOLEGA_CODE_FAST_PROVIDER` / `KOLEGA_CODE_FAST_MODEL`	Fast utility model
`KOLEGA_CODE_THINKING_PROVIDER` / `KOLEGA_CODE_THINKING_MODEL`	Thinking model
`KOLEGA_CODE_THINKING_EFFORT`	Model-specific thinking effort

See Providers & Models for what each role does.

State & environment

Variable	Purpose
`KOLEGA_CODE_STATE_DIR`	Override where settings and sessions are stored
`KOLEGA_CODE_ENVIRONMENT`	Environment label attached to tracing/metadata (default `development`)

Telemetry (Langfuse)

Optional Langfuse tracing of LLM usage.

Variable	Purpose
`LANGFUSE_HOST`	Langfuse host URL
`LANGFUSE_PUBLIC_KEY`	Langfuse public key
`LANGFUSE_SECRET_KEY`	Langfuse secret key

Using a `.env` file

Kolega Code automatically loads a .env file from the project directory. A good starting point:

# Pick one provider's key (or several)
MOONSHOT_API_KEY=
DEEPSEEK_API_KEY=
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=

# Optional: choose models per role
KOLEGA_CODE_PROVIDER=moonshot
KOLEGA_CODE_MODEL=kimi-k2.7-code
KOLEGA_CODE_THINKING_EFFORT=auto

# Optional: Langfuse tracing
LANGFUSE_HOST=https://us.cloud.langfuse.com
LANGFUSE_PUBLIC_KEY=
LANGFUSE_SECRET_KEY=