From 808ed1d2f1164d9fd1114586c68a1f925bf73ddf Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Paul Nothaft <paul@MacStudio-von-Paul.local>
Date: Fri, 16 Jan 2026 08:57:52 +0100
Subject: [PATCH] fix: checkbox and toggle settings not persisting after page
 refresh

PostgreSQL's json column type returns parsed values directly (boolean
false instead of string "false"). The backend code used a truthy check
which failed for boolean false values, causing null to be returned
instead of the actual false value.

Changed condition from `if (setting.setting_value)` to explicit null
check `if (setting.setting_value !== null && setting.setting_value !== undefined)`
and added handling for already-parsed json column values.

Fixes #117
---
 backend/src/routes/adminSettings.js | 40 +++++++++++++++++++----------
 1 file changed, 27 insertions(+), 13 deletions(-)

diff --git a/backend/src/routes/adminSettings.js b/backend/src/routes/adminSettings.js
index 64896bbf..f650fc12 100644
--- a/backend/src/routes/adminSettings.js
+++ b/backend/src/routes/adminSettings.js
@@ -102,13 +102,20 @@ router.get('/', adminAuth, requirePermission('settings.view'), async (req, res)
     // Convert to object format
     const settingsObject = {};
     settings.forEach(setting => {
-      if (setting.setting_value) {
-        try {
-          // Try to parse as JSON first
-          settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = JSON.parse(setting.setting_value);
-        } catch (e) {
-          // If it's not valid JSON, use the raw value
+      // Check for null/undefined explicitly to handle boolean false and 0 values
+      // PostgreSQL json column returns parsed values (false as boolean, not string)
+      if (setting.setting_value !== null && setting.setting_value !== undefined) {
+        // If the value is already parsed (from json column), use it directly
+        if (typeof setting.setting_value !== 'string') {
           settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = setting.setting_value;
+        } else {
+          try {
+            // Try to parse as JSON first
+            settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = JSON.parse(setting.setting_value);
+          } catch (e) {
+            // If it's not valid JSON, use the raw value
+            settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = setting.setting_value;
+          }
         }
       } else {
         settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = null;
@@ -129,17 +136,24 @@ router.get('/:type', adminAuth, requirePermission('settings.view'), async (req,
     const settings = await db('app_settings')
       .where('setting_type', type)
       .select('*');
-    
+
     // Convert to object format
     const settingsObject = {};
     settings.forEach(setting => {
-      if (setting.setting_value) {
-        try {
-          // Try to parse as JSON first
-          settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = JSON.parse(setting.setting_value);
-        } catch (e) {
-          // If it's not valid JSON, use the raw value
+      // Check for null/undefined explicitly to handle boolean false and 0 values
+      // PostgreSQL json column returns parsed values (false as boolean, not string)
+      if (setting.setting_value !== null && setting.setting_value !== undefined) {
+        // If the value is already parsed (from json column), use it directly
+        if (typeof setting.setting_value !== 'string') {
           settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = setting.setting_value;
+        } else {
+          try {
+            // Try to parse as JSON first
+            settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = JSON.parse(setting.setting_value);
+          } catch (e) {
+            // If it's not valid JSON, use the raw value
+            settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = setting.setting_value;
+          }
         }
       } else {
         settingsObject[setting.setting_key] = null;