INI files & precedence

Below the host-level .cnf files sit two INI templates a tenant can edit without root: the per-platform boa_platform_control.ini and the per-site boa_site_control.ini. They are parsed by the global PHP includes a Drupal or Backdrop site's settings.php loads, not sourced as bash: the Backdrop settings include (global-bd.inc) is a chain head of the same shape as the per-core Drupal ones and runs the same partials, so every variable a Drupal site honours at request time is honoured on Backdrop too, with the Backdrop-specific readings noted per variable below and in the templates. Grav capsules and Textpattern sites and platforms carry neither file: no Verify, nightly or Solr pass seeds one there, the tasks and the nightly remove the copies earlier releases left, and their runtimes never parse one. This page is the precedence reference — who wins when more than one layer sets the same value.

Where the INI files live

TXT

sites/all/modules/boa_platform_control.ini   (per Drupal or Backdrop platform)
sites/<domain>/modules/boa_site_control.ini  (per Drupal or Backdrop site)

On Drupal and Backdrop you do not have to create either file: the nightly writes both when they are missing, so a deleted one comes back the next night. The platform file is a full copy of the shipped template; the site file is a short active INI with one line per setting, and the documented template is dropped beside it as default.boa_site_control.ini (the platform template likewise as default.boa_platform_control.ini). Every line starts commented out except the few BOA's own module detections switch on (advagg_auto_configuration, allow_private_file_downloads, auto_detect_domain_access_integration, auto_detect_facebook_integration). Uncomment the lines you want to change in the live file. The templates live in the BOA tree at aegir/conf/ini/.

The templates are self-documenting — each settable variable is listed commented out, with its system default shown, so you see what you are overriding before you commit. The platform template exposes 35 settable variables and the site template 34 (the templates are authoritative; read them for the exact current set).

The four layers, narrowest to broadest

TXT

1. boa_site_control.ini       (per site)
       overrides
2. boa_platform_control.ini   (per Drupal platform)
       overrides
3. /root/.${USER}.octopus.cnf (per Octopus instance)
       overrides
4. /root/.barracuda.cnf       (host-wide)

Site INI is the narrowest scope (one site) and wins over everything. barracuda.cnf is the broadest scope and the bedrock — every default ultimately comes from here, by way of the compiled-in defaults below.

Layer	File	Who can edit
Site INI	`sites/<domain>/modules/boa_site_control.ini`	Tenant + operator
Platform INI	`sites/all/modules/boa_platform_control.ini`	Platform owner + operator
Octopus cnf	`/root/.o1.octopus.cnf` etc.	Root operator only
Barracuda cnf	`/root/.barracuda.cnf`	Root operator only

A tenant logged into their Octopus shell can edit site + platform INI for sites they own; they cannot touch the host-level .cnf files.

Where defaults come from

BOA's compiled-in defaults live in aegir/conf/global/global.inc and global-ini.inc. For example session_cookie_ttl defaults to 86400 seconds (24 h) in both global.inc and global-ini.inc; the INI template shows that default in a comment so you see "the system default is 86400" before deciding whether to override.

TXT

global.inc / global-ini.inc (BOA compiled-in default)
   overridden by, if set:
barracuda.cnf / octopus.cnf (host + instance)
   overridden by, if set:
boa_platform_control.ini
   overridden by, if set:
boa_site_control.ini

Each layer is optional — if boa_platform_control.ini does not exist, the chain skips it.

Effective compiled-in default vs template comment. A handful of template entries (auto_detect_domain_access_integration, auto_detect_facebook_integration) show FALSE in the template but ship a compiled-in runtime default of TRUE in global-ini.inc for backward compatibility, annotated there as slated to flip to FALSE in a later release. The template comment documents the intended default; the live default is what global-ini.inc sets. Where they differ, the compiled-in value wins until you set the variable explicitly.

Refresh timing

Layer	Effect picks up
barracuda.cnf	On next `barracuda upgrade` (plus a few read by per-minute cron)
octopus.cnf	On next `octopus upgrade` for this instance
Platform INI	~60 s (opcache TTL), or immediately for `.dev.` URLs
Site INI	~60 s (opcache TTL), or immediately for `.dev.` URLs

INI changes are deliberately fast — they are the layer tenants use for quick adjustments. .cnf changes need a full upgrade cycle because they affect host-level behaviour BOA validates holistically.

The `_SQL_CONVERT=YES` forcing exception

Most of the chain is a plain default-override: the narrower layer supplies a value only if it is set, otherwise the broader layer's value stands. The DB-conversion control is the exception. When _SQL_CONVERT=YES (or innodb) is set on the Octopus instance, the per-platform / per-site sql_conversion_mode INI variable is ignored entirely and InnoDB conversion is forced regardless. Here the host-level setting is a forcing override rather than a default — see octopus.cnf.

Notable INI variables

The templates group their variables into families. A few worth calling out, with their template-documented behaviour:

Variable	Default	Behaviour
`session_cookie_ttl`	`86400`	`session.cookie_lifetime` in seconds (24 h).
`session_gc_eol`	`86400`	`session.gc_maxlifetime` in seconds; keep at or below the `session_expire` module's TTL.
`redis_flush_forced_mode`	`TRUE`	Aggressive cache flush mode; Drupal 6/7 and Backdrop — the runtime gates it on `$drupal_core < 8` or `$backdropcms` and applies it via `$conf` (D8+ ignores it, invalidating by cache tags instead, so no `$settings` are emitted); on Backdrop only the 24 h cap on permanent entries applies, the Backdrop module having no per-bin flush modes. When active it caps each cache entry at a 24 h TTL (`redis_perm_ttl = 86400`). Disable with `FALSE` if a D6/7 module relying on `CACHE_PERMANENT` entries WSODs on the shortened TTL.
`redis_exclude_bins`	`FALSE`	Comma-separated cache bins to keep in MySQL instead of Redis (the template ships `FALSE`; set a comma-separated bin list to override). On Backdrop name the bins as core does, without the `cache_` prefix (`form`, `page`); a leading `cache_` is accepted and dropped.
`sql_conversion_mode`	`NO`	`innodb` or `myisam` weekly (Tuesday) auto-conversion target; ignored when `_SQL_CONVERT=YES` on the Octopus.
`sql_web_max_exec_ms`	`30000`	Cap in milliseconds on a single read-only `SELECT` during a web request, set as `max_execution_time` on every web connection; CLI (Drush, cron, migrations, backups) is never capped. `0` disables it. The statement is sent in a form MariaDB ignores, so a site whose database lives on a MariaDB server needs no override; the cap simply does not apply there.
`fix_files_permissions_daily`	`TRUE`	Honour the host `_PERMISSIONS_FIX=YES`; set `FALSE` to skip permission reset on Git-managed monolithic platforms.
`disable_admin_dos_protection`	`FALSE`	At the default `FALSE`, anonymous requests to `/admin` are redirected to the site homepage — admin URLs are never cached and always hit Drupal directly, which blunts DoS attempts. Set `TRUE` to allow anonymous access to `/admin` (showing only the 403 Access Denied page); use this if an expired session/cookie keeps redirecting logged-in users to the homepage.
`allow_anon_node_add`	`FALSE`	Allow anonymous access to `node/add` (also opens node edit); the default `FALSE` redirects to the homepage.

The Redis/Valkey cache family is the largest — the platform template carries 15 redis_* variables, including the resilience knobs redis_connect_timeout, redis_read_timeout, redis_backoff_ttl, redis_probe_retry, redis_flush_apcu_on_recovery, redis_debug, and redis_debug_header. Even when the host runs Valkey, all cache-control variables keep the stable redis_ namespace by design — the Valkey/Redis distinction exists only at the service-binary level.

barracuda.cnf — host-wide .cnf layer.
octopus.cnf — per-instance .cnf layer (and the _SQL_CONVERT forcing exception).
Overview — the marker / control-file system above the INI layer.
Reference appendix — consolidated variable index.