Flexibility in renaming the rxconfig.py File

[OdyAsh]

Describe the Enhancement you want

• I work in an environment where we want to standardize file names to make discovery easy for newcomers (e.g., configuring app_module_import so that i can use main.py instead of being forced to use {app_name}.py, etc.).
• However, I can't do this for rxconfig.py, as it's hardcoded, as mentioned in this deepwiki chat.

Which feature do you want to improve? (and what problem does it have)

• Therefore, I suggest making this flexible as well by following the second response also mentioned in the aforementioned chat URL.

What is the benefit of the enhancement?

• This will make the project less opinionated, at least in repo-structure-naming-conventions.
  • Side note: the words "less opinionated" don't have a positive/negative connotation, as it depends on the use case.

• Show an example/usecase were the improvement are needed.

• Already demonstrated in the above description.

Additional context

• The aforementioned chat URL. If it's expired, then here's the chat copy/pasted:

Deepwiki Chat

DeepWiki Q&A with Code Context for Repository: reflex-dev/reflex

Q1

question, does the file have to be renamed to rxconfig.py or can i call it any other name?

Answer

No, the config file must be named rxconfig.py. Reflex hardcodes this filename in constants and uses it throughout the CLI, initialization, and runtime systems reflex:17-21 . The framework checks for constants.Config.FILE (which resolves to rxconfig.py) in operations like reflex init, reflex run, and project validation reflex:516-520 reflex:63-67 . The config is imported as the rxconfig module during loading reflex:577-614 , and templates generate rxconfig.py by default reflex:125-142 . Renaming it would break these integrations unless you modify the framework’s constants and import logic.

---

Why the name is fixed

• Constant definition: Config.MODULE = "rxconfig" and Config.FILE = Path(f"{MODULE}{Ext.PY}") in reflex/constants/config.py reflex:17-21 .
• Existence checks: CLI commands like reflex run and reflex rename verify constants.Config.FILE exists in the project root reflex:516-520 reflex:63-67 .
• Module import: The config is loaded by importing the rxconfig module, not by arbitrary filename reflex:577-614 .
• Templates: reflex init and reflex component generate rxconfig.py using the rxconfig_template reflex:125-142 reflex:24-34 .
• Tests: Unit tests assume the filename rxconfig.py when testing rename operations reflex:173-186 .

If you need a different name, you’d have to fork and modify the framework’s constants and all references to constants.Config.FILE and the rxconfig module import.

Notes

• The hardcoded name simplifies discovery and tooling but reduces flexibility.
• Environment variables (REFLEX_*) can override config values, but not the filename itself.
• Some edge cases in hot reload and project validation explicitly check for rxconfig.py reflex:424-426 .

Wiki pages you might want to explore:

• CLI Commands and Project Management (reflex-dev/reflex)

Citations

File: reflex/constants/config.py (L17-21)

    # The name of the reflex config module.
    MODULE = "rxconfig"
    # The python config file.
    FILE = Path(f"{MODULE}{Ext.PY}")

File: reflex/utils/prerequisites.py (L516-520)

    if not constants.Config.FILE.exists():
        console.error(
            f"[cyan]{constants.Config.FILE}[/cyan] not found. Move to the root folder of your project, or run [bold]{constants.Reflex.MODULE_NAME} init[/bold] to start a new project."
        )
        raise SystemExit(1)

File: reflex/utils/rename.py (L63-67)

    if not constants.Config.FILE.exists():
        console.error(
            "No rxconfig.py found. Make sure you are in the root directory of your app."
        )
        raise SystemExit(1)

File: reflex/config.py (L577-614)

def get_config(reload: bool = False) -> Config:
    """Get the app config.

    Args:
        reload: Re-import the rxconfig module from disk

    Returns:
        The app config.
    """
    cached_rxconfig = sys.modules.get(constants.Config.MODULE, None)
    if cached_rxconfig is not None:
        if reload:
            # Remove any cached module when `reload` is requested.
            del sys.modules[constants.Config.MODULE]
        else:
            return cached_rxconfig.config

    with _config_lock:
        orig_sys_path = sys.path.copy()
        sys.path.clear()
        sys.path.append(str(Path.cwd()))
        try:
            # Try to import the module with only the current directory in the path.
            return _get_config()
        except Exception:
            # If the module import fails, try to import with the original sys.path.
            sys.path.extend(orig_sys_path)
            return _get_config()
        finally:
            # Find any entries added to sys.path by rxconfig.py itself.
            extra_paths = [
                p for p in sys.path if p not in orig_sys_path and p != str(Path.cwd())
            ]
            # Restore the original sys.path.
            sys.path.clear()
            sys.path.extend(extra_paths)
            sys.path.extend(orig_sys_path)

File: reflex/compiler/templates.py (L125-142)

def rxconfig_template(app_name: str):
    """Template for the Reflex config file.

    Args:
        app_name: The name of the application.

    Returns:
        Rendered Reflex config file content as string.
    """
    return f"""import reflex as rx

config = rx.Config(
    app_name="{app_name}",
    plugins=[
        rx.plugins.SitemapPlugin(),
        rx.plugins.TailwindV4Plugin(),
    ]
)"""

File: reflex/utils/templates.py (L24-34)

def create_config(app_name: str):
    """Create a new rxconfig file.

    Args:
        app_name: The name of the app.
    """
    # Import here to avoid circular imports.
    from reflex.compiler import templates

    console.debug(f"Creating {constants.Config.FILE}")
    constants.Config.FILE.write_text(templates.rxconfig_template(app_name=app_name))

File: tests/units/test_prerequisites.py (L173-186)

def test_rename_imports_and_app_name(temp_directory, config_code, expected):
    file_path = temp_directory / "rxconfig.py"
    content = f"""
config = {config_code}
"""
    file_path.write_text(content)

    rename_imports_and_app_name(file_path, "old_name", "new_name")

    updated_content = file_path.read_text()
    expected_content = f"""
config = {expected}
"""
    assert updated_content == expected_content

File: reflex/utils/exec.py (L424-426)

                _has_child_file(module_path, "rxconfig.py")
                and module_path == Path.cwd()
            ):

Q2

which code should be changed if we want to make this changeable via reflex/constants/config.py ? (think of a solution similar to what you have with app_name and app_module_import config keys i guess) . Moreover, present your solution in a concise manner such that i could present it as a github issue for maintainers to act on

Answer

Proposal: Make the config filename configurable

Add two new config fields to allow users to customize the config module and filename, similar to app_name and app_module_import.

1. Add fields to BaseConfig

In reflex/config.py, add:

# The name of the config module (default: "rxconfig").
config_module: str = "rxconfig"
# The filename of the config file (default: derived from config_module).
config_file: str | None = None  # If None, use f"{config_module}.py"

These fields support REFLEX_CONFIG_MODULE and REFLEX_CONFIG_FILE environment overrides via update_from_env reflex:458-499 .

2. Resolve constants from loaded config

In reflex/constants/config.py, change MODULE and FILE from static values to helpers that read from the loaded config:

def _get_config_module() -> str:
    from reflex.config import get_config
    try:
        return get_config().config_module
    except Exception:
        return "rxconfig"  # fallback

def _get_config_file() -> Path:
    cfg = _get_config_module()
    from reflex.config import get_config
    try:
        file = get_config().config_file
        return Path(file or f"{cfg}.py")
    except Exception:
        return Path(f"{cfg}.py")

MODULE = _get_config_module()
FILE = _get_config_file()

This mirrors how app_module_import is resolved in Config.module reflex:448-456 .

3. Update import logic

In reflex/config.py, adjust _get_config and get_config to use the resolved module name:

• Replace constants.Config.MODULE with constants.Config.MODULE (now dynamic) in find_spec and importlib.import_module reflex:564-570 .
• Ensure get_config(reload=True) clears the correct module key in sys.modules reflex:586-590 .

4. Update CLI checks

• In reflex/utils/prerequisites.py and reflex/utils/rename.py, replace hardcoded constants.Config.FILE checks with the dynamic value reflex:516-520 reflex:63-67 .
• In reflex/utils/templates.py, write the file using constants.Config.FILE reflex:24-34 .
• In hot-reload logic, adjust the filename check to use the dynamic value reflex:424-426 .

5. Update templates and tests

• rxconfig_template remains unchanged; the filename is determined by the config fields at write time.
• Update unit tests to parametrize the config filename.

Why this approach

• Minimal changes: leverages existing env-var and config-loading patterns.
• Backward compatible: defaults to rxconfig/rxconfig.py.
• Consistent with app_module_import behavior.

Notes

• During early boot (before config is loaded), we fall back to rxconfig/rxconfig.py.
• If a user sets config_file without .py, we should validate or append it in Config._post_init.
• This change does not affect the module import name used within the config file itself; users still import rxconfig by default unless they change config_module.

Wiki pages you might want to explore:

• CLI Commands and Project Management (reflex-dev/reflex)
• Core Architecture (reflex-dev/reflex)

Citations

File: reflex/config.py (L448-456)

    def module(self) -> str:
        """Get the module name of the app.

        Returns:
            The module name.
        """
        if self.app_module_import is not None:
            return self.app_module_import
        return self.app_name + "." + self.app_name

File: reflex/config.py (L458-499)

    def update_from_env(self) -> dict[str, Any]:
        """Update the config values based on set environment variables.
        If there is a set env_file, it is loaded first.

        Returns:
            The updated config values.
        """
        if self.env_file:
            _load_dotenv_from_files(_paths_from_env_files(self.env_file))

        updated_values = {}
        # Iterate over the fields.
        for field in dataclasses.fields(self):
            # The env var name is the key in uppercase.
            environment_variable = None
            for prefix in self._prefixes:
                if environment_variable := os.environ.get(
                    f"{prefix}{field.name.upper()}"
                ):
                    break

            # If the env var is set, override the config value.
            if environment_variable and environment_variable.strip():
                # Interpret the value.
                value = interpret_env_var_value(
                    environment_variable,
                    field.type,
                    field.name,
                )

                # Set the value.
                updated_values[field.name] = value

                if field.name.upper() in _sensitive_env_vars:
                    environment_variable = "***"

                if value != getattr(self, field.name):
                    console.debug(
                        f"Overriding config value {field.name} with env var {field.name.upper()}={environment_variable}",
                        dedupe=True,
                    )
        return updated_values

File: reflex/config.py (L564-570)

    spec = find_spec(constants.Config.MODULE)
    if not spec:
        # we need this condition to ensure that a ModuleNotFound error is not thrown when
        # running unit/integration tests or during `reflex init`.
        return Config(app_name="", _skip_plugins_checks=True)
    rxconfig = importlib.import_module(constants.Config.MODULE)
    return rxconfig.config

File: reflex/config.py (L586-590)

    cached_rxconfig = sys.modules.get(constants.Config.MODULE, None)
    if cached_rxconfig is not None:
        if reload:
            # Remove any cached module when `reload` is requested.
            del sys.modules[constants.Config.MODULE]

File: reflex/utils/prerequisites.py (L516-520)

    if not constants.Config.FILE.exists():
        console.error(
            f"[cyan]{constants.Config.FILE}[/cyan] not found. Move to the root folder of your project, or run [bold]{constants.Reflex.MODULE_NAME} init[/bold] to start a new project."
        )
        raise SystemExit(1)

File: reflex/utils/rename.py (L63-67)

    if not constants.Config.FILE.exists():
        console.error(
            "No rxconfig.py found. Make sure you are in the root directory of your app."
        )
        raise SystemExit(1)

File: reflex/utils/templates.py (L24-34)

def create_config(app_name: str):
    """Create a new rxconfig file.

    Args:
        app_name: The name of the app.
    """
    # Import here to avoid circular imports.
    from reflex.compiler import templates

    console.debug(f"Creating {constants.Config.FILE}")
    constants.Config.FILE.write_text(templates.rxconfig_template(app_name=app_name))

File: reflex/utils/exec.py (L424-426)

                _has_child_file(module_path, "rxconfig.py")
                and module_path == Path.cwd()
            ):