// ENVIRONMENT AND SECRETS
Build-Time vs Runtime Variables
AnySites doesn't distinguish the two — implications for Next.js `NEXT_PUBLIC_*` variables.
AnySites doesn't distinguish build-time and runtime environment variables — every variable is available at both stages (passed as a Docker build-arg during the image build, and as a container environment variable when it runs).
This matters most for frameworks that bake certain variables into the client bundle at build time — for example Next.js NEXT_PUBLIC_* variables. Because AnySites passes variables through as build-args, a NEXT_PUBLIC_* value set in the dashboard will be available during next build and get correctly embedded — but if you change it later, the running container still serves the old bundle until you trigger a new deploy, since a build-time value can't update without rebuilding.
NEXT_PUBLIC_* (or equivalent framework-level public) variable for anything that needs to be a genuine runtime secret — it ends up in client-side JavaScript regardless of how it reached the build.