> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.riff.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.riff.ai/reference/app-builder/riff-environment.md).

# Riff environment

Every Riff app has two environments that are completely independent.

| Environment     | Purpose                                                              |
| --------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Development** | Your private build workspace. Changes here do not affect live users. |
| **Production**  | The live environment. Becomes active when you deploy.                |

Development and production have separate databases, separate environment variables, and separate secrets values. You can point a secret (e.g. your ERP API key) to a test endpoint in development and the live endpoint in production.

## How apps are built

Riff apps use the following stack — the Riff agent manages all of this for you:

| Layer    | Technology              |
| -------- | ----------------------- |
| Frontend | React + TypeScript      |
| Backend  | Python + FastAPI        |
| Database | PostgreSQL (serverless) |

You describe what you want to build. The Riff agent writes, tests, and deploys the code. You do not need to know the technology stack.

## File structure

| Location                   | What lives there                      |
| -------------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| `frontend/src/pages/`      | One file per page (route) in your app |
| `frontend/src/components/` | Reusable UI components                |
| `backend/app/apis/`        | Backend API endpoints                 |
| `backend/app/libs/`        | Shared backend logic                  |

## Notes

* You do not need to manage infrastructure or hosting — the platform handles these. 
* The Riff agent connects to external systems through [Secrets](/reference/shared/secrets.md) and [Integrations](/reference/shared/integrations.md).
* Runtime output and errors are visible in [Logs](/reference/app-builder/logs.md).


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