Environment Variables

All Mantis components support environment variable configuration. A component’s own prefixed keys (MANDIBLE__*, THORAX__*, TARSUS__*) override file-based settings.

The shared MANTIS_* keys do not: they are applied only where the file left the field at its default, so a value set in the config file wins over them.

Naming Conventions

Each component uses a different convention:

Component	Convention	Example
Mandible	`MANDIBLE__SECTION__KEY`	`MANDIBLE__JWT__SECRET`
Thorax	`THORAX__SECTION__KEY`	`THORAX__GRPC__PORT`
Tarsus	`TARSUS__SECTION__KEY`	`TARSUS__LISTEN__PORT`
Shared	`MANTIS_` or `DATABASE_URL`	`MANTIS_TLS_CERT_PATH`

All components use double underscore (__) as the separator for nested configuration sections. Shared variables (MANTIS_*, DATABASE_URL) use single underscores.

Shared Variables

These environment variables are used by multiple components.

Variable	Components	Description
`MANTIS_TLS_CERT_PATH`	Thorax, Tarsus	TLS certificate PEM file
`MANTIS_TLS_KEY_PATH`	Thorax, Tarsus	TLS private key PEM file
`MANTIS_TLS_CA_CERT_PATH`	Thorax, Tarsus	CA certificate PEM file
`MANTIS_TLS_CRL_PATH`	Thorax	Certificate revocation list PEM file. Revocation checking is off while unset
`MANTIS_TLS_CRL_URL`	Thorax	Published CRL bundle URL. Revocation checking is off while both CRL keys are unset
`MANTIS_TLS_AUTH_MODE`	Thorax	TLS auth mode: `thumbprint` or `ca_signed`
`MANTIS_ENCRYPTION_KEY`	Mandible	Base64-encoded 32-byte encryption key. Thorax does not read it — it holds no credentials at rest
`MANTIS_LOG_LEVEL`	Thorax, Tarsus	Log level override
`RABBITMQ_ENABLED`	Thorax	Thorax-only: auto-enables cluster coordination when RabbitMQ is on (Mandible uses `MANDIBLE__QUEUE__ENABLED`)
`MANTIS_MAX_SYNC_DOCUMENTS`	Mandible	Config-as-code: most documents one repository sync may evaluate. Default 500; a sync above the ceiling is rejected whole. Read once per process, so a change needs a restart. Not part of the `MANDIBLE__` layering — it is a plain variable

Mandible Variables

Mandible uses the config crate with MANDIBLE__ prefix and double underscore separators.

General Pattern

MANDIBLE__<SECTION>__<KEY>=value

The database connection URL is conventionally set with MANDIBLE__DATABASE__URL. The unprefixed DATABASE_URL is also honored (and is what the Docker examples below use).

Common variables (not exhaustive)

This lists the most-used variables, not every MANDIBLE__* key. Any field of the config structs can be set via its MANDIBLE__<SECTION>__<FIELD> form — e.g. the SSE, AUDIT, OIDC, IDENTITY, CONSOLE, CLIENT_SESSION, INSTANCE_CLEANUP, DISPATCH, SERVER__TLS, GRPC__RETRY/CIRCUIT_BREAKER, RATE_LIMIT__AUTH/TRUSTED_PROXIES, COOKIE, and JWT__PREVIOUS_* sections, plus the top-level ENABLE_SWAGGER_UI.

Variable	Default	Description
`MANDIBLE__SERVER__HOST`	`"0.0.0.0"`	HTTP bind address
`MANDIBLE__SERVER__PORT`	`3000`	HTTP port
`MANDIBLE__SERVER__REQUEST_TIMEOUT_SECS`	`30`	Request timeout
`MANDIBLE__SERVER__EXTERNAL_URL`	-	External URL for OAuth2 discovery
`MANDIBLE__SERVER__MAX_CONNECTIONS`	half the file descriptor limit	API connections held open at once: a number or `unlimited`
`MANDIBLE__DATABASE__URL`	-	PostgreSQL connection URL
`MANDIBLE__DATABASE__MAX_CONNECTIONS`	`10`	Connection pool max size
`MANDIBLE__JWT__SECRET`	-	HS256 signing secret
`MANDIBLE__SECURITY__TOKEN_LOOKUP_KEY`	-	Keys the lookup that finds a stored API key or OAuth2 token. Required for RS256 and HS256 alike
`MANDIBLE__JWT__ALGORITHM`	`"HS256"`	JWT algorithm
`MANDIBLE__JWT__PRIVATE_KEY_PATH`	-	RS256 private key
`MANDIBLE__JWT__PUBLIC_KEY_PATH`	-	RS256 public key
`MANDIBLE__JWT__KEY_ID`	`"k1"`	Current key ID
`MANDIBLE__JWT__PREVIOUS_SECRET`	-	Previous secret for rotation
`MANDIBLE__JWT__ACCESS_TOKEN_EXPIRY_SECS`	`3600`	Access token lifetime
`MANDIBLE__JWT__REFRESH_TOKEN_EXPIRY_SECS`	`2592000`	Refresh token lifetime
`MANDIBLE__CORS__ALLOWED_ORIGINS`	localhost dev origins	Comma-separated origins
`MANDIBLE__CORS__ALLOW_CREDENTIALS`	`true`	Allow credentials
`MANDIBLE__CORS__MAX_AGE_SECS`	`3600`	Preflight cache duration
`MANDIBLE__COOKIE__SECURE`	`true` (release)	HTTPS-only cookies
`MANDIBLE__COOKIE__SAME_SITE`	`"Lax"`	SameSite policy
`MANDIBLE__AUTH__LENS_BASE_URL`	`"https://localhost:5173/login"`	Lens UI login URL
`MANDIBLE__GRPC__ORCHESTRATION_URL`	`"https://localhost:50051"`	Thorax gRPC URL
`MANDIBLE__GRPC__TLS_CA_CERT_PATH`	-	gRPC CA cert path (HTTPS URLs)
`MANDIBLE__GRPC__TLS_CERT_PATH`	-	gRPC client cert path (mTLS)
`MANDIBLE__GRPC__TLS_KEY_PATH`	-	gRPC client key path (mTLS)
`MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__ENABLED`	`false`	Enable internal gRPC server
`MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__HOST`	`"0.0.0.0"`	Internal gRPC bind address
`MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__PORT`	`50052`	Internal gRPC port
`MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__TLS_CERT_PATH`	-	Internal gRPC server cert
`MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__TLS_KEY_PATH`	-	Internal gRPC server key
`MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__TLS_CA_CERT_PATH`	-	Internal gRPC CA cert
`MANDIBLE__RATE_LIMIT__ENABLED`	`true`	Enable rate limiting
`MANDIBLE__RATE_LIMIT__REQUESTS_PER_SECOND`	`100`	Max requests per second
`MANDIBLE__RATE_LIMIT__BURST_SIZE`	`200`	Burst size
`MANDIBLE__ENCRYPTION__KEY`	-	Base64-encoded 32-byte encryption key
`SSE_REDIS_URL`	`"redis://127.0.0.1:6379"`	SSE Redis URL
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__ENABLED`	`false`	Enable RabbitMQ
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__HOST`	`"localhost"`	RabbitMQ host
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__PORT`	`5671`	RabbitMQ AMQPS port
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__USERNAME`	`""`	RabbitMQ username
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__PASSWORD`	`""`	RabbitMQ password
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__VHOST`	`"/"`	RabbitMQ vhost
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__CA_CERT_PATH`	-	RabbitMQ CA cert
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__FALLBACK_ON_FAILURE`	`true`	Fall back to polling
`MANDIBLE__QUEUE__HEALTH_CHECK_INTERVAL_SECS`	`10`	Health check interval
`MANDIBLE__FILE_CACHE__ENABLED`	`true`	Enable file cache
`MANDIBLE__FILE_CACHE__MEMORY_MAX_SIZE_BYTES`	`104857600`	Cache max size (100 MB)
`MANDIBLE__DISPATCH__COMMAND_PICKUP_TIMEOUT_SECS`	`600`	A pending command expires after this long when its agent has made no contact for as long. A busy agent’s queued commands keep waiting
`MANDIBLE__DISPATCH__BUSY_TARGET_MAX_WAIT_SECS`	`86400`	How long a deployment may be queued before a target another deployment holds fails it
`MANDIBLE__METRICS__BIND_ADDR`	`"127.0.0.1:9091"`	Prometheus `/metrics` listener; `""` disables it. A bind beyond loopback requires `MANDIBLE__METRICS__AUTH_TOKEN`
`MANDIBLE__METRICS__AUTH_TOKEN`	-	Bearer token `/metrics` requires (at least 32 visible ASCII characters)
`MANDIBLE__LOG_ANALYZER__PROVIDER_TYPE`	`"ollama"`	LLM provider: ollama or openai
`MANDIBLE__LOG_ANALYZER__API_URL`	`"http://ollama:11434"`	LLM provider API URL
`MANDIBLE__LOG_ANALYZER__MODEL`	`"granite4"`	Model name

Thorax Variables

As with Mandible, this lists the most-used keys, not every THORAX__* key. Any field of the config structs can be set via its THORAX__<SECTION>__<FIELD> form.

Thorax loads its configuration in layers: the config file first, then a THORAX__ environment layer that uses double underscores between nested sections, then the unprefixed MANTIS_* keys shared with Tarsus. A THORAX__* value wins over the MANTIS_* equivalent.

Variable	Default	Description
`THORAX_CONFIG`	-	Path to config file
`THORAX__NAME`	hostname-derived	Server name
`MANTIS_LOG_LEVEL`	`"info"`	Log level
`THORAX__GRPC__ADDRESS`	`"0.0.0.0"`	gRPC bind address
`THORAX__GRPC__PORT`	`50051`	gRPC port
`THORAX__GRPC__ENROLLMENT_PORT`	-	Enrollment port (ca_signed)
`THORAX__METRICS__BIND_ADDR`	`"127.0.0.1:9090"`	Bind address of the HTTP listener (plaintext unless `THORAX__METRICS__TLS__*` is set) serving `/metrics`, `/health` and the WireGuard relay WebSocket. A bind beyond loopback requires `THORAX__METRICS__AUTH_TOKEN`; put a proxy or a management interface in front
`THORAX__METRICS__AUTH_TOKEN`	-	Bearer token `/metrics` and `/health` require (at least 32 visible ASCII characters); the relay does not take it
`THORAX__METRICS__TLS__CERT_PATH`	-	Certificate that listener serves over TLS; set with the key
`THORAX__METRICS__TLS__KEY_PATH`	-	Its private key
`MANTIS_TLS_CERT_PATH`	-	Server TLS certificate
`MANTIS_TLS_KEY_PATH`	-	Server TLS private key
`MANTIS_TLS_CA_CERT_PATH`	-	CA certificate
`MANTIS_TLS_CRL_URL`	-	Published CRL bundle URL, fetched at startup and refreshed periodically (`ca_signed` only)
`MANTIS_TLS_CRL_PATH`	-	Certificate revocation list. Revocation checking is off while unset
`MANTIS_TLS_AUTH_MODE`	`"thumbprint"`	TLS auth mode
`THORAX__CONSOLE__ENABLED`	`false`	Enable tokio-console
`THORAX__CONSOLE__ADDRESS`	`"127.0.0.1"`	Console bind address
`THORAX__CONSOLE__PORT`	`0` (rejected at startup)	Console port. Thorax has no compiled-in default and refuses to start on `0` once `ENABLED` is set, so `6669` (the convention) must be given explicitly here or in `thorax.toml`.
`THORAX__CONSOLE__RETENTION_SECS`	`60`	Console data retention
`THORAX__CONSOLE__PUBLISH_INTERVAL_MS`	`1000`	Console publish interval
`THORAX__CONSOLE__RECORDING_PATH`	-	Console recording path
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__ENDPOINT`	`"https://localhost:50052"`	Mandible gRPC endpoint (required)
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__CONNECT_TIMEOUT_SECS`	`10`	Mandible connect timeout
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__REQUEST_TIMEOUT_SECS`	`30`	Mandible request timeout
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__TLS_CERT_PATH`	-	Mandible client cert
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__TLS_KEY_PATH`	-	Mandible client key
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__TLS_CA_CERT_PATH`	-	Mandible CA cert
`THORAX__MANDIBLE__INSTANCE_NAME`	`thorax-<hostname>`	Name this instance registers with Mandible under. Follows `THORAX__CLUSTER__INSTANCE_ID` when that is set, so two instances on one host do not collide
`RABBITMQ_ENABLED`	`false`	Thorax-only: auto-enables cluster coordination unless `THORAX__CLUSTER__ENABLED` is set. The guard is the env var, not the file — an `enabled = false` under `[cluster]` in thorax.toml does not suppress it. Does not enable the queue — use `THORAX__QUEUE__ENABLED` for that.
`THORAX__QUEUE__ENABLED`	`false`	Queue enabled (explicit)
`THORAX__QUEUE__HOST`	`"localhost"`	RabbitMQ host
`THORAX__QUEUE__PORT`	`5671`	RabbitMQ port
`THORAX__QUEUE__USERNAME`	`""`	RabbitMQ username
`THORAX__QUEUE__PASSWORD`	`""`	RabbitMQ password
`THORAX__QUEUE__VHOST`	`"/"`	RabbitMQ vhost
`THORAX__QUEUE__CA_CERT_PATH`	-	RabbitMQ CA cert
`THORAX__QUEUE__CLIENT_CERT_PATH`	-	RabbitMQ client cert
`THORAX__QUEUE__CLIENT_KEY_PATH`	-	RabbitMQ client key
`THORAX__QUEUE__FALLBACK_ON_FAILURE`	`true`	Fall back to polling
`THORAX__QUEUE__RECONNECT_DELAY_SECS`	`5`	Reconnect delay
`THORAX__CLUSTER__ENABLED`	`false`	Cluster enabled (explicit)
`THORAX__CLUSTER__REDIS_URL`	`"redis://localhost:6379"`	Redis URL
`THORAX__CLUSTER__HEARTBEAT_INTERVAL_SECS`	`10`	Cluster heartbeat
`THORAX__CLUSTER__LIVENESS_TIMEOUT_SECS`	`30`	Liveness timeout
`THORAX__CLUSTER__NAMESPACE`	`"thorax"`	Redis key namespace
`THORAX__WIREGUARD__ENABLED`	`false`	Enable the WireGuard overlay controller (guide)
`THORAX__WIREGUARD__OVERLAY_IP`	`"10.99.0.1"`	Controller’s overlay address
`THORAX__WIREGUARD__OVERLAY_PREFIX_LEN`	`16`	Overlay subnet prefix length
`THORAX__WIREGUARD__UDP_BIND_ADDR`	`"0.0.0.0:51820"`	WireGuard data-plane UDP bind
`THORAX__WIREGUARD__UDP_ADVERTISE_ADDR`	(bind addr)	Publicly reachable UDP endpoint advertised to agents
`THORAX__WIREGUARD__PRIVATE_KEY_PATH`	`/var/lib/mantis/thorax-wireguard.key`	Persisted controller keypair path

Tarsus Variables

Tarsus loads its configuration the same way Thorax does: the config file first, then a TARSUS__ environment layer that uses double underscores between nested sections, then the unprefixed MANTIS_* keys. A TARSUS__* value wins over the MANTIS_* equivalent.

An unrecognised TARSUS__* key is a startup error rather than a silently ignored default, and so is a single-underscore spelling of one — a typo stops the agent instead of leaving it on the default you meant to change.

Variable	Default	Description
`TARSUS_CONFIG`	-	Path to config file
`TARSUS__NAME`	hostname	Client name
`TARSUS__MODE`	`"listen"`	Operating mode: `listen` or `poll`
`TARSUS__LOG_LEVEL`	`"info"`	Log level
`TARSUS__DATA_DIR`	platform data dir	Data directory
`TARSUS__MANDIBLE__ENDPOINT`	`"localhost:50052"`	Mandible internal gRPC endpoint for registration (host:port) — typically port 50052, not the REST API port 3000
`TARSUS__LISTEN__ADDRESS`	`"0.0.0.0"`	Listen bind address
`TARSUS__LISTEN__PORT`	`9342`	Listen port
`TARSUS__POLL__INTERVAL_SECS`	`30`	Poll interval (seconds)
`TARSUS__REGISTRATION__HEARTBEAT_INTERVAL_SECS`	`30`	Heartbeat interval (seconds)
`TARSUS__REGISTRATION__TOKEN`	-	Registration token
`MANTIS_TLS_CERT_PATH`	-	Client TLS certificate
`MANTIS_TLS_KEY_PATH`	-	Client TLS private key
`MANTIS_TLS_CA_CERT_PATH`	-	CA certificate
`TARSUS__TLS__ENROLLMENT_ADDRESS`	-	CSR enrollment address (host:port)
`TARSUS__CONSOLE__ENABLED`	`false`	Enable tokio-console
`TARSUS__CONSOLE__ADDRESS`	`"127.0.0.1"`	Console bind address
`TARSUS__CONSOLE__PORT`	`6671`	Console port. `6671` applies only while no console key is set at all; setting `ENABLED` (or any other `CONSOLE` key) without `PORT` leaves the port at its own default `0`, an ephemeral bind. Set both together.
`TARSUS__CONSOLE__RETENTION_SECS`	`60`	Console data retention
`TARSUS__CONSOLE__PUBLISH_INTERVAL_MS`	`1000`	Console publish interval
`TARSUS__CONSOLE__RECORDING_PATH`	-	Console recording path
`TARSUS__TRANSPORT__ENABLED`	`false`	Enable WireGuard transport
`TARSUS__TRANSPORT__PRIVATE_KEY_PATH`	-	WireGuard private key path
`TARSUS__TRANSPORT__KEY_ROTATION_INTERVAL_SECS`	`0`	WireGuard key rotation interval (seconds; `0` disables)

Lens Variables

The Lens UI server reads plain environment variables, with no prefix and no config file.

Variable	Default	Description
`MANTIS_API_URL`	required in the released image; `https://localhost:3000` in a development build	Mandible’s REST API origin, which the UI calls and its Content-Security-Policy allows
`HOST`	`"0.0.0.0"`	Bind address
`PORT`	`4173`	Bind port
`TLS_CERT_PATH`	`/etc/mantis/certs/lens-cert.pem`	TLS certificate
`TLS_KEY_PATH`	`/etc/mantis/certs/lens-key.pem`	TLS private key
`LENS_ALLOW_PLAINTEXT`	unset	`1`, `true`, `yes` or `on` serves plaintext when neither TLS file exists or is named; `0`, `false`, `no`, `off`, empty or unset does not, and any other value stops startup
`LENS_UI_DIR`	`lens/ui/build` in the source tree	Directory a development build serves the UI from; the released image embeds the UI and ignores it

Docker / Compose Examples

Mandible

environment:
  DATABASE_URL: 'postgres://mantis:secret@db:5432/mantis'
  MANDIBLE__JWT__SECRET: '${JWT_SECRET}'
  MANDIBLE__SECURITY__TOKEN_LOOKUP_KEY: '${TOKEN_LOOKUP_KEY}'
  MANDIBLE__CORS__ALLOWED_ORIGINS: 'https://lens.example.com'
  MANDIBLE__GRPC__ORCHESTRATION_URL: 'https://thorax:50051'
  MANDIBLE__INTERNAL_GRPC__ENABLED: 'true'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__ENABLED: 'true'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__HOST: 'rabbitmq'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__USERNAME: 'mantis'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__PASSWORD: '${RABBITMQ_PASSWORD}'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__CA_CERT_PATH: '/certs/ca.crt'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__CLIENT_CERT_PATH: '/certs/rabbitmq-client-cert.pem'
  MANDIBLE__QUEUE__CLIENT_KEY_PATH: '/certs/rabbitmq-client-key.pem'
  MANDIBLE__ENCRYPTION__KEY: '${ENCRYPTION_KEY}'

Thorax

environment:
  MANTIS_TLS_CERT_PATH: '/certs/server.crt'
  MANTIS_TLS_KEY_PATH: '/certs/server.key'
  MANTIS_TLS_CA_CERT_PATH: '/certs/ca.crt'
  THORAX__MANDIBLE__ENDPOINT: 'https://mandible:50052'
  RABBITMQ_ENABLED: 'true' # cluster coordination only
  THORAX__QUEUE__ENABLED: 'true'
  THORAX__QUEUE__HOST: 'rabbitmq'
  THORAX__QUEUE__USERNAME: 'mantis'
  THORAX__QUEUE__PASSWORD: '${RABBITMQ_PASSWORD}'
  THORAX__QUEUE__CA_CERT_PATH: '/certs/ca.crt'
  THORAX__QUEUE__CLIENT_CERT_PATH: '/certs/thorax-1-cert.pem'
  THORAX__QUEUE__CLIENT_KEY_PATH: '/certs/thorax-1-key.pem'
  THORAX__CLUSTER__REDIS_URL: 'redis://redis:6379'

Tarsus

environment:
  TARSUS__MODE: 'listen'
  TARSUS__MANDIBLE__ENDPOINT: 'mandible:50052'
  MANTIS_TLS_CA_CERT_PATH: '/certs/ca.crt'
  TARSUS__REGISTRATION__TOKEN: '${REGISTRATION_TOKEN}'

Next Steps

Mandible Configuration - Full Mandible config reference
Thorax Configuration - Full Thorax config reference
Tarsus Configuration - Full Tarsus config reference