Reference

Configuration file

The installer writes the file .env for you, in the GuestLens folder. Most settings are in the admin, so you rarely need to open this file. When you do, edit it with File Manager in your hosting panel, save it, and press Clear caches in System health.

Never share your .env file, and never delete it. It holds your database password and the key that encrypts your payment keys. If APP_KEY is lost, the encrypted settings cannot be read again.

The settings you might change

Setting	What it does
`APP_URL`	Your site's address, such as `https://photos.yoursite.com`. Every link and QR code is built from it, and GuestLens only answers on this address. Change it if you move to a new domain.
`APP_TIMEZONE`	The time zone event times are typed and shown in, such as `America/New_York`. Use a name from the PHP list of time zones. Times already saved keep their clock time.
`APP_DEBUG`	`false` on a live site. Set it to `true` only for a few minutes, to read an error on a blank page.
`TRUSTED_PROXIES`	Set to `*` if your site is behind Cloudflare or a load balancer. Leave it empty on an ordinary host.
`CAPTCHA_OFF`	Set to `true` to turn the captcha off on every form, when wrong keys lock you out. Remove it once the keys are fixed. See Locked out by a wrong key.
`CRON_SECRET`	The secret in the URL cron address. See URL cron.
`DB_CONNECTION` and the `DB_` lines	The database: `mysql`, `mariadb`, or `sqlite`, with its details. For SQLite, `DB_DATABASE` is the path to the file.
`MAIL_` lines	Only used until you set up email in the admin. See Email.

Settings not to change

Setting	Why
`APP_KEY`	Encrypts your saved secrets and sessions. Changing it makes them unreadable.
`GUESTLENS_INSTALLED`	Keeps the installer locked. Remove it only to reinstall.
`SESSION_DRIVER`, `CACHE_STORE`, `QUEUE_CONNECTION`	Set by the installer for your database. Shared hosting has no Redis, so they use the database (or files, on SQLite).

The product name

APP_NAME is only a starting value. The name your customers see is set under Branding in the admin.