refactor: Improve .env handling and validation

README.md

@@ -148,6 +148,8 @@ To stop the container(s) defined in the `docker-compose.yml` file, run:
 docker compose down
 ```
 
+*Note: If you modify the `server/.env` file after the container is already running, you may need to restart the container for the changes to take effect. You can do this by running `docker compose down` followed by `docker compose up -d`, or by using `docker compose up -d --force-recreate`.*
+
 ## ✨ Features
 
 - Lightweight monitoring for Proxmox VE nodes.

docker-compose.yml

@@ -1,5 +1,3 @@
-version: '3.8'
-
 services:
   pulse-server:
     # Build context commented out - using pre-built image from Docker Hub
@@ -14,8 +12,9 @@ services:
       # You can change the host port (left side) if 7655 is already in use on your host
       - "7655:7655"
     env_file:
-      # Load environment variables from the .env file located in the server directory
-      - ./server/.env
+      # Load environment variables, prioritizing the one in the server directory
+      - ./server/.env # Primary location
+      - ./.env        # Fallback location (if server/.env is missing)
     # Optional: Define networks if needed, otherwise uses default bridge network
     # networks:
     #   - pulse_network

server/index.js

@@ -1,5 +1,44 @@
 require('dotenv').config(); // Load environment variables from .env file
 
+// --- BEGIN Environment Variable Validation ---
+const requiredEnvVars = [
+  'PROXMOX_HOST',
+  'PROXMOX_TOKEN_ID',
+  'PROXMOX_TOKEN_SECRET'
+];
+const placeholderValues = [
+  'your-proxmox-ip-or-hostname',
+  'your-api-token-id@pam!your-token-name',
+  'your-api-token-secret-uuid',
+  'your-password' // Added just in case password fallback is used without token
+];
+
+let missingVars = [];
+let placeholderVars = [];
+
+requiredEnvVars.forEach(varName => {
+  const value = process.env[varName];
+  if (!value) {
+    missingVars.push(varName);
+  } else if (placeholderValues.some(placeholder => value.includes(placeholder))) {
+    placeholderVars.push(varName);
+  }
+});
+
+if (missingVars.length > 0 || placeholderVars.length > 0) {
+  console.error('\n--- Configuration Error ---');
+  if (missingVars.length > 0) {
+    console.error(`Missing required environment variables in server/.env: ${missingVars.join(', ')}`);
+  }
+  if (placeholderVars.length > 0) {
+    console.error(`Environment variables seem to contain placeholder values in server/.env: ${placeholderVars.join(', ')}`);
+  }
+  console.error('Please ensure server/.env exists and contains valid Proxmox connection details.');
+  console.error('Refer to server/.env.example for the required format.\n');
+  process.exit(1); // Exit if configuration is invalid
+}
+// --- END Environment Variable Validation ---
+
 const express = require('express');
 const http = require('http');
 const path = require('path');