## Thinking Path
> - Paperclip is the open source control plane people use to manage AI
agents for work.
> - Environment variables and secrets sit in the configuration surfaces
that let agents, projects, routines, and company environments run with
the right runtime inputs.
> - The previous editor was a single legacy component with cramped row
behavior, weak secret conversion affordances, and duplicated handling
across several call sites.
> - Operators need a clearer editor that handles text values, secret
references, draft rows, and sensitive-value warnings consistently
wherever environment variables are configured.
> - This pull request replaces the legacy editor with a reusable
environment variables editor and migrates the existing configuration
surfaces to it.
> - The benefit is a more reliable editing workflow with targeted test
coverage around row state, dotenv parsing, secret selection, and
affected page integrations.
## Linked Issues or Issue Description
No public GitHub issue exists, so this PR describes the issue inline
following the feature request template.
### Subsystem affected
ui/ — React + Vite board UI
### Problem or motivation
Environment variables are edited in several Paperclip configuration
surfaces, including agent config, project properties, stage secrets,
routine sections, company environments, and company settings. The legacy
editor made common operator work difficult: rows could feel cramped,
secret conversion was inconsistent, draft rows and imported dotenv data
were easy to mishandle, and sensitive-value warnings did not have a
consistent place in the workflow.
### Proposed solution
Introduce a reusable environment variables editor component that
consistently supports text values, secret references, draft rows, dotenv
import parsing, sensitive-value hints, secret picking, secret creation,
and conversion to stored secrets. Migrate the existing
environment-variable call sites to the shared editor so behavior and
tests live in one component family.
### Alternatives considered
Keeping the existing `EnvVarEditor` and patching individual call sites
would preserve duplication and leave each surface responsible for its
own row and secret handling. This PR instead centralizes the behavior so
future fixes cover all migrated surfaces.
### Roadmap alignment
Checked `ROADMAP.md`; this does not duplicate a named roadmap item. It
supports the existing local-first and deployment-oriented product
direction by improving the UI where operators configure runtime
environment values.
### Additional context
The PR includes targeted tests for the editor model, dotenv parsing,
sensitive-value detection, component behavior, affected page
integrations, and Greptile review regressions around external saves and
bulk import immutability.
## What Changed
- Replaced the legacy `EnvVarEditor` with a reusable
`environment-variables-editor` component family.
- Added editor model helpers for draft rows, dotenv parsing,
sensitive-value detection, secret picking, secret creation, and
conversion to secret references.
- Migrated agent config, project properties, stage secrets, routine
editable sections, company environments, company settings, design guide
examples, and Storybook stories to the new editor.
- Added targeted tests for the editor model, parsing, sensitive-value
detection, component behavior, and affected company environment/settings
integrations.
- Fixed the company settings test harness to use the repo’s
`flushSync`-based React test helper pattern under the current React
build.
- Addressed Greptile feedback by flushing pending editor drafts before
enclosing form submits or external save-button clicks, cloning
bulk-import rows before mutation, and deferring the overflow
store-as-secret popover open path.
## Verification
- `pnpm exec vitest run
ui/src/components/environment-variables-editor/EnvironmentVariablesEditor.test.tsx
ui/src/pages/CompanyEnvironments.test.tsx
ui/src/components/AgentConfigForm.render.test.tsx` — passed, 3 files /
40 tests.
- Earlier focused Vitest coverage for model, dotenv parsing, sensitive
detection, company environments, and company settings passed, 6 files /
78 tests.
- `pnpm --filter @paperclipai/ui typecheck` — passed.
- GitHub PR checks on head `0aa49c6f8afed1f62d9e26da07fc466fbf299850` —
passed; CI checks green, security review neutral, Greptile check
success.
- Greptile review — 5/5 confidence on head
`0aa49c6f8afed1f62d9e26da07fc466fbf299850`; 0 unresolved review threads.
## Risks
- Medium UI risk: several environment-variable entry surfaces now share
the new editor, so regressions could affect multiple configuration
workflows at once.
- Secret conversion, draft-row behavior, external save flushing, and
bulk import behavior are covered by targeted tests, but reviewer
attention should still focus on manual editing flows, focus retention,
and save/cancel affordances.
- No database or API contract changes.
> For core feature work, check [`ROADMAP.md`](ROADMAP.md) first and
discuss it in `#dev` before opening the PR. Feature PRs that overlap
with planned core work may need to be redirected — check the roadmap
first. See `CONTRIBUTING.md`.
## Model Used
- OpenAI Codex, GPT-5-based coding agent with tool use and local command
execution; medium reasoning mode. Exact context-window metadata is not
exposed in this runtime.
## Checklist
- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either (a) linked existing issues with `Fixes: #` / `Closes
#` / `Refs #` OR (b) described the issue in-PR following the relevant
issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links (only public GitHub `#NNN` / `github.com/paperclipai/paperclip`
URLs)
- [x] My branch name describes the change (e.g. `docs/...`, `fix/...`)
and contains no internal Paperclip ticket id or instance-derived details
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [x] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge
---------
Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 4.8 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
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