Configuration variables

The framework provides a typed configuration variable system through TConfigVariable. Configuration variables are declared globally and provide a convenient way to expose settings that can be controlled from code, configuration files, or the command line.

Declaring variables

Declare configuration variables at file scope. The constructor takes a name, description, default value, and optional flags:

TConfigVariable<bool> gVSync("render.vsync", "Enable vertical sync", true);
TConfigVariable<i32> gMSAA("render.msaa", "MSAA sample count", 4, ConfigVariableFlag::RenderThreadSafe);
TConfigVariable<float> gVolume("audio.volume", "Master volume", 1.0f);
TConfigVariable<u32> gMaxLights("render.maxLights", "Maximum light count", 128, ConfigVariableFlag::ReadOnly);

Supported value types are bool, i32, u32, and float.

Reading and writing

Reading a configuration variable is a fast atomic load. Writing is done through TConfigVariable::Set:

// Read a value
if(gVSync.Get())
{
	// VSync is enabled
}

// Implicit conversion is also supported
float volume = gVolume;

// Change a value at runtime
gMSAA.Set(8);

// Query the default value
i32 defaultMSAA = gMSAA.GetDefault();

Value sources

Each variable tracks where its current value came from, via ConfigVariableSource. The sources have a defined priority — a higher-priority source always overrides a lower one:

Priority	Source	Description
Lowest	`ConfigVariableSource::Default`	The compile-time default value
	`ConfigVariableSource::ConfigFile`	Loaded from a configuration file
	`ConfigVariableSource::CommandLine`	Set via a command-line parameter
Highest	`ConfigVariableSource::Runtime`	Modified at runtime via Set()

You can query the current source with ConfigVariable::GetSource.

Flags

ConfigVariableFlag controls variable behavior:

ConfigVariableFlag::RenderThreadSafe - Value updates are deferred to frame boundaries, ensuring the render thread always sees a consistent value throughout a frame. Use this for any variable read by the renderer.
ConfigVariableFlag::ReadOnly - The variable cannot be changed after initialization. Useful for settings that should only come from the config file or command line.

Configuration files

Configuration files use a simple key=value format and are loaded during application startup from engine.ini in the executable directory:

# Rendering settings
render.vsync=true
render.msaa=4

# Audio settings
audio.volume=0.8

Lines starting with # are comments. Variable names are case-insensitive. Command-line parameters with matching names automatically override configuration file values.