From 785db2faa32a94ceefda8412bf3c5541d11a0b2d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Carlo Sala <carlosalag@protonmail.com>
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 2026 20:33:54 +0200
Subject: [PATCH] docs(dotenv): update to new parsing system

---
 plugins/dotenv/README.md | 38 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++---
 1 file changed, 35 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/plugins/dotenv/README.md b/plugins/dotenv/README.md
index 56b518f32..6a0ab8dcd 100644
--- a/plugins/dotenv/README.md
+++ b/plugins/dotenv/README.md
@@ -34,6 +34,25 @@ PORT=3001
 
 You can even mix both formats, although it's probably a bad idea.
 
+Multi-line values are supported using quoted strings:
+
+```sh
+PRIVATE_KEY="-----BEGIN RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
+MIIEowIBAAKCAQEA...
+-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----"
+```
+
+Variables defined earlier in the file can be referenced by later entries:
+
+```sh
+BASE_URL=https://example.com
+API_URL=$BASE_URL/api
+ASSETS_URL=${BASE_URL}/assets
+```
+
+Note: only variables defined within the same `.env` file are expanded this way —
+shell environment variables that already exist are **not** substituted.
+
 ## Settings
 
 ### ZSH_DOTENV_FILE
@@ -91,16 +110,29 @@ No additional configuration is required — the plugin automatically detects and
 The tests use [zunit](https://github.com/zunit-zsh/zunit). Install it per its documentation, then run:
 
 ```sh
-zunit plugins/dotenv/tests/test_run.sh
+cd plugins/dotenv && zunit
 ```
 
 ## Version Control
 
 **It's strongly recommended to add `.env` file to `.gitignore`**, because usually it contains sensitive information such as your credentials, secret keys, passwords etc. You don't want to commit this file, it's supposed to be local only.
 
-## Disclaimer
+## Security
 
-This plugin only sources the `.env` file. Nothing less, nothing more. It doesn't do any checks. It's designed to be the fastest and simplest option. You're responsible for the `.env` file content. You can put some code (or weird symbols) there, but do it on your own risk. `dotenv` is the basic tool, yet it does the job.
+The plugin applies several best-effort safeguards when loading a `.env` file:
+
+- **Size limit** — files larger than 10 MiB are rejected to prevent DoS.
+- **Syntax check** — the file is validated with `zsh -fn` before any variables are set.
+- **No command substitution** — entries containing `$(...)` or backtick constructs are skipped.
+- **Forbidden variables** — the following variables are never overwritten, regardless of what the
+  `.env` file contains: `NODE_OPTIONS`, `BASH_ENV`, `ENV`, `ZDOTDIR`, `ZSH`, `LD_PRELOAD`,
+  `LD_LIBRARY_PATH`, `DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES`, `GIT_CONFIG_GLOBAL`, `GIT_DIR`, `GIT_EDITOR`,
+  `GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF`, `GIT_EXEC_PATH`, `GIT_PAGER`, `GIT_SSH`, `GIT_SSH_COMMAND`,
+  `GIT_SSL_NO_VERIFY`, `GIT_TEMPLATE_DIR`, `VISUAL`, `PAGER`, `EDITOR`, and all zsh special
+  parameters.
+
+These measures are **best-effort** — you are still responsible for the content of your `.env`
+file. Do not use this plugin as a security boundary.
 
 If you need more advanced and feature-rich ENV management, check out these awesome projects: