Remember the good ol' days when configuration meant hardcoding a few constants and commenting out everything but PRODUCTION before a commit? Life was simple—and dangerous.

Thankfully, things have evolved.

Since the introduction of the .NET Generic Host, we've gained a powerful and flexible configuration system that works across all types of applications. But with great power comes great complexity.

In this talk, we'll dive deep into the .NET configuration model. We'll explore when to use configuration files, environment variables, and cloud-based solutions like Azure App Configuration. We'll also cover common pitfalls, real-world patterns, and how to choose the right configuration strategy for your app.

Whether you're building cloud-native microservices or desktop apps, you'll leave with a clear understanding of how to wrangle configuration in a clean, secure, and scalable way.