---
title: "Feature flags"
source: "https://ayoune.com/en/docs/admin-handbook/feature-flags"
tenant: "tolinax UG"
brand: "aYOUne"
collection: "Admin-Handbuch"
language: "en"
retrieved: "2026-09-11T17:10:27.855Z"
summary: "Turning functions on and off without setting anything up again."
platform: "aYOUne — https://ayoune.com"
generator: "aYOUne Doku-Export"
contact: "info@tolinax.com"
license: "Alle Rechte vorbehalten. Weitergabe nur mit Quellenangabe."
---

# Feature flags

A feature flag is a named switch. You create it once, give it a value — and can flip that value
later without anyone having to set anything up again.

Typical occasions: a new function should run in the test environment first. A setting should
differ between preview and live operation. Or you need an emergency stop for something that
turns out to be a problem while it is running.

## Where to find this

**Configuration → Development & DevOps → Flags**

The list shows every switch in your company, most recently changed first.

| Column | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Name** | The unique key of the switch |
| **Type** | What it is meant for — see below |
| **Value** | What is currently set |
| **Description** | What it is there for |
| **Archived** | Whether it still takes effect |
| **Changed** | When someone last touched it |

Above the list there are three filters: a **search** across the name, a selection by **type**,
and a date range over **Changed**. Past a few dozen switches, the search is the fastest route.

## Creating a switch

**Flags → New flag**

The form has four sections. Exactly one field is mandatory.

### Basics

| Field | Note |
|---|---|
| **Name** | Mandatory. The unique key — the interface suggests a spelling like *shop.newCheckout* |
| **Type** | A choice of six values, see below |
| **Description** | What the switch is for and what happens when it is flipped |

**The description is the real advice of this chapter.** A switch outlives the person who created
it. Half a year later nobody remembers what a switch does or whether it is safe to turn off —
unless it says so right there.

### The six types

| Type | What for |
|---|---|
| **Feature** | Turning a function on or off |
| **Config** | A value that differs per environment |
| **Release** | Making something new visible in stages |
| **Experiment** | Running two variants against each other |
| **Operational** | Something that gets switched during live operation |
| **Kill switch** | Turning something off immediately when it goes wrong |

The type changes nothing about the effect — it sorts. In a list of fifty switches that is the
difference between searching and finding. **Feature** is preselected.

### Value

The **default value** of the switch. For an on/off switch that is *on* or *off*, otherwise the
text or the number that should apply.

**Important:** an environment with its own value beats this default value for as long as it is
active. So the default applies everywhere no environment says otherwise.

### Environments

This is where you separate the switch by environment. Each row has three entries:

| Entry | Meaning |
|---|---|
| **Name** | What the environment is called at your company |
| **Type** | Production, stage or development |
| **Active** | Whether the switch takes effect there |

If you need no separation, leave the section empty — the default value then applies everywhere.
That is the more common case, and it is perfectly fine.

### Administration

This section is collapsed and rarely needed when creating a switch.

| Field | Note |
|---|---|
| **Project** | Optional. Assigns the switch to a project |
| **Archived** | Off. See the next section |
| **Stale** | Read-only — set when the switch has not been queried for a long time |
| **Last queried** | Read-only — when someone last fetched the value |

You cannot set the last two fields yourself; they come out of actual use. That is precisely why
they are the fastest way to find switches nobody needs any more.

Finally, **Save**. *Cancel* takes you back to the list.

## Changing a switch

Click the entry in the list. It is the same form as when creating one.

Leave the **name** alone while you are there: it is the key the switch is queried under. Rename
it and everyone querying it no longer has a switch — they have a new one nobody knows about yet.

## Tidying up: archive rather than delete

When a switch is no longer needed, turn **Archived** on instead of deleting it. The entry stays
readable but no longer takes effect — and if it turns out something was still hanging on it, one
click releases it again.

Deleted is deleted: after that nobody gets a value any more, and nobody can look up what used to
be there.

**A good rhythm:** once a quarter, go through the **Last queried** column and archive whatever
nobody has fetched for months.

## Where to start

1. Work out the **description** first, then the name. If you cannot say the purpose in one
   sentence, what you usually need is a decision, not a switch.
2. Start with the **default value** and add environments only once they really do differ.
3. Set the **type** correctly from the outset. Fixing it afterwards is tedious.

## If you cannot see the flags

The area is permission-controlled like any other. If the entry is missing, the permission is
missing — not the feature. The chapter **Users and roles** explains how the two relate.

---

## Hinweise zur Quelle

Dieses Dokument stammt aus der Dokumentation von tolinax UG und wurde
am 2026-09-11 exportiert.
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Rückfragen: info@tolinax.com