Settings CJS mirror is built before reloadSettings(), so plugin settings hashes are never visible to CJS plugins

[mathewcsims]

Summary

#7421 added property getters on module.exports so that plugins using
require('ep_etherpad-lite/node/utils/Settings') can read settings directly.
That works for built-in settings such as toolbar, but not for plugin-specific
settings hashes (ep_* keys) supplied via settings.json.

The mirror is built from a snapshot of Object.keys(settings) taken at
module-evaluation time, which happens before reloadSettings() parses
settings.json and adds the plugin keys. A plugin reading its own configuration
the documented way therefore always sees undefined.

Observed on 3.3.3, and the same ordering is present in 2.7.3.

Root cause

In src/node/utils/Settings.ts:

• line ~912 — the CJS compatibility block from Fix ESM/CJS interop for Settings module breaking plugin compatibility #7421:

  if (typeof module !== 'undefined' && module.exports) {
    const currentExports = module.exports;
    for (const key of Object.keys(settings)) {
      if (!(key in currentExports)) {
        Object.defineProperty(currentExports, key, { get, set, ... });
      }
    }
  }

• line ~1464 — reloadSettings() is called, which runs storeSettings() and
  adds ep_* keys from settings.json.

Object.keys(settings) at line 912 contains only the defaults declared in the
module. ep_comments_page (or any ep_* hash) is not a default — it appears 550
lines later — so no getter is ever defined for it. The getters themselves are
live, so existing keys track correctly; the problem is purely which keys get
mirrored.

Reproduction

1. Add a plugin settings hash to settings.json:

   { "ep_comments_page": { "allowReadonlyComments": true } }

2. In any plugin, log what the documented accessor returns:

   const mod = require('ep_etherpad-lite/node/utils/Settings');
   console.log(mod.ep_comments_page);                       // undefined
   console.log(mod.default && mod.default.ep_comments_page); // the object
   console.log(Object.keys(mod).filter(k => k.startsWith('ep_')));         // []
   console.log(Object.keys(mod.default).filter(k => k.startsWith('ep_'))); // ['ep_comments_page']

Actual probe output from a stock 3.3.3 container with the above settings.json:

{"moduleType":"object","hasDefault":true,
 "default_ep_comments_page":{"allowReadonlyComments":true,"displayCommentAsIcon":true},
 "argsSettings_ep":{"allowReadonlyComments":true,"displayCommentAsIcon":true},
 "ep_keys_on_module":[],
 "ep_keys_on_default":["ep_comments_page"]}

No Unknown Setting warning is logged — storeSettings() accepts ep_* keys
correctly. The value is loaded; it just isn't reachable through the CJS mirror.

The same happens via the EP__ep_comments_page__allowReadonlyComments=true
environment variable, so it isn't specific to how the setting is supplied.

Impact

Any plugin that reads its own configuration with
require('ep_etherpad-lite/node/utils/Settings').ep_myplugin silently sees
undefined, so every configurable option of that plugin falls back to its
default with no error or warning. This is the pattern #7421 was intended to keep
working.

Concretely: ep_comments_page's allowReadonlyComments and
displayCommentAsIcon cannot be enabled at all on a stock install.

Suggested fix

Either move the CJS mirror block to after reloadSettings(), or replace the
key-by-key snapshot with a Proxy that forwards property access to settings,
so keys added later are covered without depending on evaluation order.

Workarounds that do work today, for reference: read .default (or use
.default || mod), or take args.settings from the loadSettings hook.

[AkprasadoP]

I’d like to investigate and work on this.

My initial approach is to keep the existing CJS getter-based compatibility API, but synchronize its exported getters after settings are loaded/reloaded so ep_* keys added from settings.json or environment variables are also exposed. I’ll add a regression test that loads a plugin-prefixed settings hash and verifies it is accessible through the documented CJS require(...) path.