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Konfigurations refer to the arrangements of settings and parameters that determine how a system behaves. The term is used across computing, networking, electronics, and product design to describe the state of a device or software at a given time. It encompasses hardware resources, software options, and environmental factors that influence function, performance, and security.

A configuration is typically expressed through files, interfaces, or records that define values for components such as software options, hardware allocations, network addresses, and startup behavior. Common representations include configuration files (for example INI, JSON, YAML, TOML, XML), environment variables, command-line options, boot parameters, and registry entries in some operating systems. Configurations may be static or dynamic and can be stored locally or centrally.

Types of configurations include default configurations provided by developers, user-specific configurations that customize behavior, and system-wide configurations that affect multiple components. Configurations can be persistent, surviving reboots, or loaded at runtime. In complex environments, configurations are layered and may involve templating to adapt to different environments or deployments.

Management of configurations is a discipline known as configuration management. It focuses on versioning, change control, drift detection, and reproducibility, especially in large or automated environments. Tools and practices such as version control, infrastructure as code, and automated testing help maintain consistent configurations. Misconfigurations are a common source of outages and security vulnerabilities, making careful design, documentation, and auditing essential.

See also: configuration file, environment variable, registry, infrastructure as code, version control, configuration management.