One-off commands and project settings

Project settings groups

• Access and security: project visitor password and public/private exposure.
• Deployment settings: repository, branch, service, domains and deployment actions.
• Technical settings: runtime version, port, build/start commands and environment variables.

One-off imports and migrations

Putting an import in the start command can run it on every restart. Verify whether a one-off script is idempotent and targets the intended database.

The following command is for a server operator. Do not assume customer-panel users have host Docker or SSH access; request operator assistance if no shell is available.

docker exec -w /app <application_container> \
  python scripts/import_data.py /data/import.json

The runtime environment matters

docker exec does not automatically inherit variables exported by an entrypoint only to its own child process. In particular, verify DATABASE_URL matches the running application’s connection. Use the existing secure runtime configuration rather than putting passwords in shell history or chat.

When must it run again?

If the same persistent database is retained, a completed one-off import does not need to run on every deploy. A new dataset or recreated database may require another import. Determine repeat behaviour from the script’s insert/upsert logic, not its filename.