Configuration Guide

Open WebUI can be configured through environment variables, providing flexibility for different deployment scenarios. This guide covers all major configuration options.

Setting Environment Variables

Docker
Docker Compose
.env File
Python/pip

Use the -e flag to set environment variables:

docker run -d -p 3000:8080 \
  -e OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://ollama:11434 \
  -e WEBUI_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key \
  -e ENABLE_SIGNUP=False \
  -v open-webui:/app/backend/data \
  --name open-webui \
  ghcr.io/open-webui/open-webui:main

Add variables to the environment section:

services:
  open-webui:
    image: ghcr.io/open-webui/open-webui:main
    environment:
      - OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://ollama:11434
      - WEBUI_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key
      - ENABLE_SIGNUP=False

Create a .env file in your project directory:

OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://localhost:11434
OPENAI_API_BASE_URL=
OPENAI_API_KEY=
WEBUI_SECRET_KEY=
CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=*
SCARF_NO_ANALYTICS=true
DO_NOT_TRACK=true
ANONYMIZED_TELEMETRY=false

Reference it in Docker Compose:

services:
  open-webui:
    env_file:
      - .env

Export variables before running:

export OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://localhost:11434
export WEBUI_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key
open-webui serve

Core Configuration

Application Settings

Variable	Description	Default
`WEBUI_NAME`	Application name displayed in UI	`Open WebUI`
`WEBUI_URL`	Base URL for the application	-
`ENV`	Environment mode (`dev`, `test`, `prod`)	`dev`
`DATA_DIR`	Directory for storing data	`/app/backend/data`
`FRONTEND_BUILD_DIR`	Frontend build directory	`/app/build`
`ENABLE_SIGNUP`	Allow new user registrations	`True`
`ENABLE_LOGIN_FORM`	Show login form	`True`
`DEFAULT_LOCALE`	Default UI language	-

Always set ENABLE_SIGNUP=False after creating your admin account to prevent unauthorized access.

Security Settings

Variable	Description	Default
`WEBUI_SECRET_KEY`	Secret key for sessions (required in production)	`t0p-s3cr3t`
`WEBUI_AUTH`	Enable authentication	`True`
`JWT_EXPIRES_IN`	JWT token expiration time	`4w`
`ENABLE_API_KEYS`	Allow users to create API keys	`False`
`WEBUI_SESSION_COOKIE_SAME_SITE`	Cookie SameSite attribute	`lax`
`WEBUI_SESSION_COOKIE_SECURE`	Require HTTPS for cookies	`false`

# Secure configuration for production
WEBUI_SECRET_KEY=$(openssl rand -base64 32)
WEBUI_AUTH=True
ENABLE_SIGNUP=False
WEBUI_SESSION_COOKIE_SECURE=True
JWT_EXPIRES_IN=1w

Model Provider Configuration

Ollama Settings

Variable	Description	Default
`ENABLE_OLLAMA_API`	Enable Ollama integration	`True`
`OLLAMA_BASE_URL`	Ollama server URL	`http://localhost:11434`
`OLLAMA_BASE_URLS`	Multiple Ollama servers (semicolon-separated)	-
`OLLAMA_API_CONFIGS`	API configurations per server	`{}`

OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://localhost:11434

OpenAI API Settings

Variable	Description	Default
`ENABLE_OPENAI_API`	Enable OpenAI integration	`True`
`OPENAI_API_KEY`	OpenAI API key	-
`OPENAI_API_BASE_URL`	OpenAI API endpoint	`https://api.openai.com/v1`
`OPENAI_API_KEYS`	Multiple API keys (semicolon-separated)	-
`OPENAI_API_BASE_URLS`	Multiple API endpoints	-

OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-...
OPENAI_API_BASE_URL=https://api.openai.com/v1

Database Configuration

SQLite (Default)

DATABASE_URL=sqlite:///app/backend/data/webui.db
DATABASE_ENABLE_SQLITE_WAL=False

PostgreSQL

DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@host:5432/database

Or use individual variables:

DATABASE_TYPE=postgresql
DATABASE_USER=openwebui
DATABASE_PASSWORD=your_password
DATABASE_HOST=postgres
DATABASE_PORT=5432
DATABASE_NAME=openwebui

Database Pool Settings

Variable	Description	Default
`DATABASE_POOL_SIZE`	Connection pool size	-
`DATABASE_POOL_MAX_OVERFLOW`	Max overflow connections	`0`
`DATABASE_POOL_TIMEOUT`	Connection timeout (seconds)	`30`
`DATABASE_POOL_RECYCLE`	Connection recycle time (seconds)	`3600`
`ENABLE_DB_MIGRATIONS`	Auto-run database migrations	`True`

For production PostgreSQL deployments, configure pool settings based on your load:

DATABASE_POOL_SIZE=20
DATABASE_POOL_MAX_OVERFLOW=10
DATABASE_POOL_TIMEOUT=30

Redis Configuration

Redis is required for horizontal scaling and multi-worker deployments.

Variable	Description	Default
`REDIS_URL`	Redis connection URL	-
`REDIS_CLUSTER`	Use Redis Cluster	`False`
`REDIS_KEY_PREFIX`	Key prefix for namespacing	`open-webui`
`REDIS_SENTINEL_HOSTS`	Sentinel hosts (comma-separated)	-
`REDIS_SENTINEL_PORT`	Sentinel port	`26379`

REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379/0
REDIS_KEY_PREFIX=open-webui

Storage Configuration

Local Storage (Default)

STORAGE_PROVIDER=local
DATA_DIR=/app/backend/data

Amazon S3

STORAGE_PROVIDER=s3
S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID=your_access_key
S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=your_secret_key
S3_REGION_NAME=us-east-1
S3_BUCKET_NAME=open-webui
S3_ENDPOINT_URL=https://s3.amazonaws.com

Google Cloud Storage

STORAGE_PROVIDER=gcs
GCS_BUCKET_NAME=open-webui
GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS_JSON='{"type":"service_account",...}'

Azure Blob Storage

STORAGE_PROVIDER=azure
AZURE_STORAGE_ENDPOINT=https://account.blob.core.windows.net
AZURE_STORAGE_CONTAINER_NAME=open-webui
AZURE_STORAGE_KEY=your_storage_key

RAG & Vector Database

Vector Database Options

Open WebUI supports multiple vector databases for RAG:

ChromaDB (default)
PGVector
Qdrant
Milvus
Elasticsearch
OpenSearch
Pinecone
S3Vector
Oracle 23ai

Configuration is typically done through the Admin Panel UI.

RAG Settings

Variable	Description	Default
`RAG_EMBEDDING_TIMEOUT`	Embedding generation timeout	-
`RAG_SYSTEM_CONTEXT`	Include RAG context in system messages	`False`
`ENABLE_QUERIES_CACHE`	Cache query results	`False`

Authentication & OAuth

OAuth Providers

Google OAuth
Microsoft OAuth
GitHub OAuth
Generic OIDC

GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id.apps.googleusercontent.com
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
GOOGLE_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:3000/oauth/google/callback
ENABLE_OAUTH_SIGNUP=True

MICROSOFT_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
MICROSOFT_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
MICROSOFT_CLIENT_TENANT_ID=your_tenant_id
MICROSOFT_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:3000/oauth/microsoft/callback
ENABLE_OAUTH_SIGNUP=True

GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
GITHUB_CLIENT_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:3000/oauth/github/callback
ENABLE_OAUTH_SIGNUP=True

OAUTH_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
OAUTH_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret
OPENID_PROVIDER_URL=https://auth.example.com/.well-known/openid-configuration
OPENID_REDIRECT_URI=http://localhost:3000/oauth/oidc/callback
OAUTH_PROVIDER_NAME=SSO
ENABLE_OAUTH_SIGNUP=True

LDAP/Active Directory

LDAP integration is configured through the Admin Panel UI.

SCIM 2.0 Provisioning

ENABLE_SCIM=True
SCIM_TOKEN=your_scim_bearer_token
SCIM_AUTH_PROVIDER=oidc

User Permissions

Default User Role

# Options: admin, user, pending
DEFAULT_USER_ROLE=pending

Chat Permissions

# Chat controls
USER_PERMISSIONS_CHAT_FILE_UPLOAD=True
USER_PERMISSIONS_CHAT_DELETE=True
USER_PERMISSIONS_CHAT_EDIT=True
USER_PERMISSIONS_CHAT_TEMPORARY=True

# Advanced features
USER_PERMISSIONS_CHAT_MULTIPLE_MODELS=True
USER_PERMISSIONS_CHAT_CALL=True

Workspace Permissions

# Access to workspace features
USER_PERMISSIONS_WORKSPACE_MODELS_ACCESS=False
USER_PERMISSIONS_WORKSPACE_KNOWLEDGE_ACCESS=False
USER_PERMISSIONS_WORKSPACE_PROMPTS_ACCESS=False
USER_PERMISSIONS_WORKSPACE_TOOLS_ACCESS=False

# Sharing permissions
USER_PERMISSIONS_WORKSPACE_MODELS_ALLOW_SHARING=False
USER_PERMISSIONS_WORKSPACE_PROMPTS_ALLOW_SHARING=False

Performance & Scaling

Worker Configuration

# Number of uvicorn worker processes
UVICORN_WORKERS=1

When using multiple workers (UVICORN_WORKERS > 1), you must configure Redis for session management:

UVICORN_WORKERS=4
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379/0

WebSocket Configuration

ENABLE_WEBSOCKET_SUPPORT=True
WEBSOCKET_MANAGER=
WEBSOCKET_REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379/0

Caching

# Model list caching (seconds)
MODELS_CACHE_TTL=1

# Query caching
ENABLE_QUERIES_CACHE=False

# Base models cache
ENABLE_BASE_MODELS_CACHE=False

Observability

OpenTelemetry

ENABLE_OTEL=True
ENABLE_OTEL_TRACES=True
ENABLE_OTEL_METRICS=True
ENABLE_OTEL_LOGS=True

OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT=http://localhost:4317
OTEL_SERVICE_NAME=open-webui
OTEL_TRACES_SAMPLER=parentbased_always_on

Audit Logging

ENABLE_AUDIT_LOGS_FILE=True
AUDIT_LOGS_FILE_PATH=/app/backend/data/audit.log
AUDIT_LOG_FILE_ROTATION_SIZE=10MB
AUDIT_LOG_LEVEL=METADATA

General Logging

GLOBAL_LOG_LEVEL=INFO
LOG_FORMAT=json

Network & CORS

# CORS configuration
CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=*

# Forwarded IPs (for proxy setups)
FORWARDED_ALLOW_IPS=*

# Forward user info headers
ENABLE_FORWARD_USER_INFO_HEADERS=False

Advanced Features

Image Generation

Configure through Admin Panel UI. Supports:

OpenAI DALL-E
Google Gemini
ComfyUI (local)
AUTOMATIC1111 (local)

Web Search

Configure search providers through Admin Panel UI. Supports 15+ providers including:

SearXNG
Google Programmable Search Engine
Brave Search
DuckDuckGo
Tavily
Perplexity

Tool/Function Calling

# Enable pip install for function requirements
ENABLE_PIP_INSTALL_FRONTMATTER_REQUIREMENTS=True

# Pip options
PIP_OPTIONS=--no-cache-dir

Environment-Specific Examples

# Development environment
ENV=dev
WEBUI_SECRET_KEY=dev_secret
ENABLE_SIGNUP=True
OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://localhost:11434
DATABASE_URL=sqlite:///app/backend/data/webui.db
GLOBAL_LOG_LEVEL=DEBUG

Next Steps

User Management

Set up roles, permissions, and access control

Model Configuration

Configure and manage AI models

API Reference

Integrate Open WebUI programmatically

Troubleshooting

Common issues and solutions

For a complete list of all environment variables, see the source code or check your .env.example file.

​Configuration Guide

​Setting Environment Variables

​Core Configuration

​Application Settings

​Security Settings

​Model Provider Configuration

​Ollama Settings

​OpenAI API Settings

​Database Configuration

​SQLite (Default)

​PostgreSQL

​Database Pool Settings

​Redis Configuration

​Storage Configuration

​Local Storage (Default)

​Amazon S3

​Google Cloud Storage

​Azure Blob Storage

​RAG & Vector Database

​Vector Database Options

​RAG Settings

​Authentication & OAuth

​OAuth Providers

​LDAP/Active Directory

​SCIM 2.0 Provisioning

​User Permissions

​Default User Role

​Chat Permissions

​Workspace Permissions

​Performance & Scaling

​Worker Configuration

​WebSocket Configuration

​Caching

​Observability

​OpenTelemetry

​Audit Logging

​General Logging

​Network & CORS

​Advanced Features

​Image Generation

​Web Search

​Tool/Function Calling

​Environment-Specific Examples

​Next Steps

User Management

Model Configuration

API Reference

Troubleshooting

Configuration Guide

Setting Environment Variables

Core Configuration

Application Settings

Security Settings

Model Provider Configuration

Ollama Settings

OpenAI API Settings

Database Configuration

SQLite (Default)

PostgreSQL

Database Pool Settings

Redis Configuration

Storage Configuration

Local Storage (Default)

Amazon S3

Google Cloud Storage

Azure Blob Storage

RAG & Vector Database

Vector Database Options

RAG Settings

Authentication & OAuth

OAuth Providers

LDAP/Active Directory

SCIM 2.0 Provisioning

User Permissions

Default User Role

Chat Permissions

Workspace Permissions

Performance & Scaling

Worker Configuration

WebSocket Configuration

Caching

Observability

OpenTelemetry

Audit Logging

General Logging

Network & CORS

Advanced Features

Image Generation

Web Search

Tool/Function Calling

Environment-Specific Examples

Next Steps