A junior developer runs git pull on the production server. By mistake, they also run rm -rf .env followed by a botched mv command. The live .env.production is gone. The database connection string is lost. The API keys to the payment processor are missing. The application crashes globally.
Use two different storage types (e.g., Local File and Cloud Object Storage). .env.backup.production
Keep at least three copies of your data (Active, Local Backup, Remote Backup). A junior developer runs git pull on the production server
A file existing on a server is one thing. A file existing in a repository is another. .env.backup.production