Makefile include env file

Question

I'm trying to include some env vars into a Makefile. The env file looks like:

FOO=bar
BAZ=quux

Note there's no leading export to each env var. If I add the leading export and just include the env file in the Makefile, everything works as it should. But I need to keep the env vars sans leading export. That prevents me from just using include envfile in the Makefile.

I've also tried doing something like this:

sed '/^#/!s/^/export /' envfile > $(BUILDDIR)/env
include $(BUILDDIR)/env

But doing that cause make to throw an error because the env file isn't there for including.

Solution 1

If you are using gnu make, what should work is to include the envfile file, then export the list of vars got from the same file:

#!make
include envfile
export $(shell sed 's/=.*//' envfile)

test:
        env

Solution 2

I had a similar problem and landed on this thread. Another possible solution is to just do the make export command without any arguments:

include .env
export

This will export all make variables as environment variables. This behavior may or may not match all use cases, but it worked for me and didn't involve any shell scripting wizardry.

Solution 3

To complete previous anwswer from meuh, if you would like env file to be dynamic, you could define a setup function.

• create env/local-dev.env,env/integ.env file with some content
• define a method to load this

    define setup_env
        $(eval ENV_FILE := env/$(1).env)
        @echo " - setup env $(ENV_FILE)"
        $(eval include env/$(1).env)
        $(eval export sed 's/=.*//' env/$(1).env)
    endef

Then use it

    localDevEnv: ## load env/local-dev.env environment
        $(call setup_env,local-dev)
    integEnv: ## load env/integ.env environment
        $(call setup_env,integ)

Solution 4

Preserves pre existing ENV vars

export $(shell [ ! -n "$(ENVFILE)" ] || cat $(ENVFILE) | grep -v \
    --perl-regexp '^('$$(env | sed 's/=.*//'g | tr '\n' '|')')\=')

test:
    echo $$FOO

To run

make ENVFILE=envfile test # bar

export FOO=foo
make ENVFILE=envfile test # foo

Solution 5

an example of how you can use .env values in Makefile

#!make
include .env

migrateinit:
    migrate create -ext sql -dir mysql/migrations -seq int_schema

migrateup:
    migrate -path mysql/migrations -database "mysql://${DB_USER_NAME}:${DB_PASSWORD}@tcp(${DB_HOST}:${DB_PORT})/${DB_NAME}" -verbose up 1

migratedown:
    migrate -path mysql/migrations -database "mysql://${DB_USER_NAME}:${DB_PASSWORD}@tcp(${DB_HOST}:${DB_PORT})/${DB_NAME}" -verbose down 1

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Comments

[darnir]

Welcome to Unix&Linux. Please state the question you have clearly. What is it exactly that you're trying to accomplish?

[Michael Irwin]

I'm trying to include a file that contains environment variable pairs into a Makefile so that they are available to the environment in which make is running.

[Dawngerpony]

Thanks for this answer, it's brilliant! Although my version even works without the export $(shell... line. I just need the include line.

[ClintM]

It's worth noting that if you have any $ in the env file make won't like them and you'll have to escape them. PASS=Pass123$ will just show up as Pass123. This answer explains the caveats pretty well. stackoverflow.com/a/44637188/3384609

[Beni Cherniavsky-Paskin]

reference: gnu.org/software/bash/manual/html_node/…

[Piotr]

Works like a charm!

[Ebenezar John Paul]

I can't verify this on make 4.2.1. without export after the include.

[jlucktay]

For better backwards compatibility, I'd recommend setting the .EXPORT_ALL_VARIABLES: special target instead of using the export directive, as described here in the manual: gnu.org/software/make/manual/html_node/…