Variable management
Target Audience: Developers & Non technical users
TL;DR
Define reusable variables to replace static configuration values, enabling dynamic and multi-tenant setups.
When to use this
Use this feature to manage multiple clients or environments where connection parameters (e.g., database hosts) change based on user context.
Core Functionality
Variable Management enables the creation of dynamic configurations across the platform.
Centralization: Define variables in one location for reuse in multiple configuration screens.
Dynamic Injection: Replace static text or integers with variables that resolve at runtime.
Context-Awareness: Supports multi-tenant architectures by injecting user-specific values into configurations.
Prerequisites
Access to the Settings menu within a Toucan.ai organization.
For User Attribute variables: A backend system capable of generating tokens with custom attributes.
Variable Types and Properties
Toucan AI supports one main type of variable:
User Attributes: These variables map directly to values stored in the authentication token. They are typically used for client-specific database routing or security scoping.
Variables are managed via a table in the Settings > Variables section.
Name
The unique identifier used to reference the variable.
Type
The data format: Text, Integer, Boolean, Float, or Datetime.
Default Value
An optional value used during testing and development.
Access rules Integration
User Attributes defined here are the primary source for access rules comparison values. For date-based filtering (e.g., created_at > last_login), ensure the User Attribute is explicitly typed as Datetime to enable comparison operators
Implementation: Database Connections
Variables can be applied to specific fields during the database connection process.
Selector Toggle: Supported fields allow a choice between a static value and a variable.
Type Matching: Toucan.ai filters the variable list to show only types compatible with the selected field.
Resolution: During a Test Connection, the platform resolves the variable using the default value or token attribute to validate the link.
Default value
The default value enables the definition of a preset value for testing purposes, applicable only within the platform.
Awaited formats for default values
to setup a default value, use the json format
String: Wrapped in double quotes (e.g.,
"example").Integer: A whole number without quotes (e.g.,
42).Float: A fractional number using a decimal point (e.g.,
3.14).Boolean: Lowercase
trueorfalsewithout quotes.Date: Passed as a String following the ISO 8601 standard (e.g.,
"2025-02-13T12:53:45Z").List (Array): An ordered collection of any of the above types, enclosed in square brackets
[].
Constraints
Type Strictness: Lists must contain values of a single, uniform type.
Security: Encryption for variable fields is not available in the current version.
Visibility: Variables are only selectable in fields specifically designed to support dynamic injection.
Last updated
Was this helpful?