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Configuration Guide

This guide covers all configuration options available in ForexSmartBot.

Configuration Methods

1. Settings Dialog (Recommended)

Access via the "Settings" button in the main window.

2. Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the project root.

3. Settings File

Modify ~/.forexsmartbot/settings.json directly.

General Settings

Strategy Configuration

  • Default Strategy: Choose the default trading strategy
  • Data Provider: Select data source (yfinance, csv)
  • Data Interval: Timeframe for data (1m, 5m, 15m, 1h, 4h, 1d)
  • Portfolio Mode: Enable multi-symbol trading
  • Live Trade Confirmation: Require confirmation for live trades

Example Configuration

{
  "strategy": "SMA_Crossover",
  "data_provider": "yfinance",
  "data_interval": "1h",
  "portfolio_mode": false,
  "confirm_live_trades": true
}

Broker Settings

Paper Trading

  • Mode: PAPER
  • Initial Balance: Starting capital (default: $10,000)

MetaTrader 4

  • Mode: MT4
  • Host: ZeroMQ server host (default: 127.0.0.1)
  • Port: ZeroMQ server port (default: 5555)

REST API

  • Mode: REST
  • API Key: Your broker's API key
  • API Secret: Your broker's API secret
  • Base URL: Broker's API endpoint

Example Configuration

{
  "broker_mode": "PAPER",
  "mt4_host": "127.0.0.1",
  "mt4_port": 5555,
  "rest_api_key": "",
  "rest_api_secret": "",
  "rest_base_url": "https://api.broker.com"
}

Risk Management Settings

Position Sizing

  • Base Risk %: Risk per trade as percentage of balance (default: 2%)
  • Max Risk %: Maximum risk per trade (default: 5%)
  • Min Trade Amount: Minimum position size in dollars (default: $10)
  • Max Trade Amount: Maximum position size in dollars (default: $100)

Drawdown Control

  • Max Drawdown %: Maximum allowed drawdown (default: 25%)
  • Daily Risk Cap %: Daily loss limit (default: 5%)

Example Configuration

{
  "risk_pct": 0.02,
  "max_risk_pct": 0.05,
  "trade_amount_min": 10.0,
  "trade_amount_max": 100.0,
  "max_drawdown_pct": 0.25,
  "daily_risk_cap": 0.05
}

UI Settings

Theme

  • Auto: Follow system theme
  • Light: Light theme
  • Dark: Dark theme

Symbols

  • Default Symbols: Comma-separated list of default symbols
  • Selected Symbols: Currently active symbols

Example Configuration

{
  "theme": "auto",
  "default_symbols": ["EURUSD", "USDJPY", "GBPUSD"],
  "selected_symbols": ["EURUSD"]
}

Environment Variables

Creating .env File

Create a .env file in the project root:

# Broker settings
BROKER_MODE=PAPER
MT4_ZMQ_HOST=127.0.0.1
MT4_ZMQ_PORT=5555

# Risk settings
RISK_PCT=0.02
MAX_DRAWDOWN_PCT=0.25
TRADE_AMOUNT_MIN=10
TRADE_AMOUNT_MAX=100

# UI settings
THEME=auto
DEFAULT_SYMBOLS=EURUSD,USDJPY,GBPUSD

Environment Variable Override

Environment variables override settings file values:

  1. .env file
  2. System environment variables
  3. Settings file defaults

Advanced Configuration

Symbol-Specific Risk

Configure different risk levels for different symbols:

{
  "symbol_risk_multipliers": {
    "EURUSD": 1.0,
    "GBPUSD": 1.2,
    "USDJPY": 0.8
  }
}

Strategy-Specific Risk

Configure different risk levels for different strategies:

{
  "strategy_risk_multipliers": {
    "SMA_Crossover": 1.0,
    "BreakoutATR": 1.5,
    "RSI_Reversion": 0.7
  }
}

Data Provider Settings

Yahoo Finance

{
  "data_provider": "yfinance",
  "data_interval": "1h",
  "data_retries": 3,
  "data_timeout": 30
}

CSV Provider

{
  "data_provider": "csv",
  "csv_directory": "data/csv",
  "csv_format": "standard"
}

Configuration Validation

Settings Validation

ForexSmartBot validates all settings on startup:

  • Required fields are present
  • Values are within valid ranges
  • Dependencies are satisfied

Common Validation Errors

  • Invalid Risk %: Must be between 0.001 and 0.1
  • Invalid Symbol: Must be valid forex pair format
  • Invalid Broker: Must be PAPER, MT4, or REST
  • Missing API Keys: Required for REST broker

Configuration Files

Settings File Location

  • Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.forexsmartbot\settings.json
  • macOS: ~/.forexsmartbot/settings.json
  • Linux: ~/.forexsmartbot/settings.json

Log Files Location

  • Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.forexsmartbot\logs\
  • macOS: ~/.forexsmartbot/logs/
  • Linux: ~/.forexsmartbot/logs/

Database Location

  • Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.forexsmartbot\trades.db
  • macOS: ~/.forexsmartbot/trades.db
  • Linux: ~/.forexsmartbot/trades.db

Configuration Examples

Conservative Trading

{
  "risk_pct": 0.01,
  "max_risk_pct": 0.02,
  "max_drawdown_pct": 0.15,
  "daily_risk_cap": 0.03,
  "strategy": "SMA_Crossover"
}

Aggressive Trading

{
  "risk_pct": 0.05,
  "max_risk_pct": 0.10,
  "max_drawdown_pct": 0.30,
  "daily_risk_cap": 0.08,
  "strategy": "BreakoutATR"
}

Portfolio Mode

{
  "portfolio_mode": true,
  "selected_symbols": ["EURUSD", "USDJPY", "GBPUSD", "AUDUSD"],
  "symbol_risk_multipliers": {
    "EURUSD": 1.0,
    "USDJPY": 0.8,
    "GBPUSD": 1.2,
    "AUDUSD": 1.1
  }
}

Troubleshooting Configuration

Settings Not Saving

  • Check file permissions
  • Ensure directory exists
  • Verify JSON syntax

Invalid Configuration

  • Check validation errors in log
  • Verify all required fields
  • Ensure values are within ranges

Environment Variables Not Working

  • Check .env file location
  • Verify variable names
  • Restart application after changes

Best Practices

Security

  • Never commit .env files to version control
  • Use strong API keys and secrets
  • Regularly rotate credentials

Performance

  • Use appropriate data intervals
  • Limit number of symbols in portfolio mode
  • Monitor memory usage

Reliability

  • Test configurations with paper trading
  • Keep backups of working configurations
  • Document custom settings

Configuration Migration

Upgrading Versions

  • Settings are automatically migrated
  • Old settings are backed up
  • Check release notes for breaking changes

Backup and Restore

# Backup settings
cp ~/.forexsmartbot/settings.json settings_backup.json

# Restore settings
cp settings_backup.json ~/.forexsmartbot/settings.json

For more detailed information, see the Installation Guide and Troubleshooting pages.