Django PostgreSQL Docker Template

A Django project template with Docker and PostgreSQL setup, created using django-admin startproject.

Features

• Django 4.2.26 (created with django-admin startproject)
• PostgreSQL 15
• Docker & Docker Compose
• Whitenoise for static files
• Environment variables configuration with python-decouple
• Ready-to-use templates
• All Django code organized in /app directory

Prerequisites

• Docker
• Docker Compose

Setup Instructions

1. Clone and Configure Environment

# Copy environment variables
cp .env.example .env

# Edit .env file and update the SECRET_KEY and other settings as needed

2. Build and Run with Docker

# Build and start containers
docker-compose up --build

# The application will be available at http://localhost:8000

3. Run Migrations

# In a new terminal, run migrations
docker-compose exec web python manage.py migrate

# Create a superuser for admin access
docker-compose exec web python manage.py createsuperuser

Common Commands

# Start containers
docker-compose up

# Start containers in detached mode
docker-compose up -d

# Stop containers
docker-compose down

# View logs
docker-compose logs -f web

# Run Django commands
docker-compose exec web python manage.py <command>

# Run migrations
docker-compose exec web python manage.py migrate

# Create superuser
docker-compose exec web python manage.py createsuperuser

# Collect static files
docker-compose exec web python manage.py collectstatic

# Access Django shell
docker-compose exec web python manage.py shell

# Access PostgreSQL
docker-compose exec db psql -U django_user -d django_db

Project Structure

.
├── app/                    # Django application directory
│   ├── config/            # Django configuration (created by startproject)
│   │   ├── __init__.py
│   │   ├── settings.py   # Django settings (configured for PostgreSQL)
│   │   ├── urls.py       # URL configuration
│   │   ├── wsgi.py       # WSGI configuration
│   │   └── asgi.py       # ASGI configuration
│   ├── templates/         # HTML templates
│   │   └── home.html
│   ├── static/            # Static files (CSS, JS, images)
│   └── manage.py          # Django management script
├── Dockerfile             # Docker configuration
├── docker-compose.yml     # Docker Compose configuration
├── requirements.txt       # Python dependencies
├── .env.example           # Environment variables template
├── .gitignore            # Git ignore file
└── README.md             # This file

Development

The project uses volume mounting, so any changes you make to the code will be reflected immediately without rebuilding the container.

Admin Panel

Access the admin panel at http://localhost:8000/admin after creating a superuser.

Environment Variables

Key environment variables (see .env.example):

• DEBUG: Enable/disable debug mode
• SECRET_KEY: Django secret key
• DB_NAME: Database name
• DB_USER: Database user
• DB_PASSWORD: Database password
• DB_HOST: Database host
• DB_PORT: Database port

Creating New Django Apps

To create a new Django app within the project:

# Enter the Django container
docker-compose exec web bash

# Create a new app (this will create it in /code directory inside container)
python manage.py startapp myapp

# Exit the container
exit

The new app will be created in the app/ directory. Remember to add it to INSTALLED_APPS in app/config/settings.py:

INSTALLED_APPS = [
    "django.contrib.admin",
    "django.contrib.auth",
    "django.contrib.contenttypes",
    "django.contrib.sessions",
    "django.contrib.messages",
    "django.contrib.staticfiles",
    "myapp",  # Add your new app here
]

Production Deployment

For production:

1. Set DEBUG=False in .env
2. Update SECRET_KEY with a secure random key
3. Configure ALLOWED_HOSTS properly
4. Use a production-grade WSGI server (gunicorn is included)
5. Set up proper static file serving
6. Configure database backups
7. Use environment-specific docker-compose files

License

MIT