Deployment Overview

Overview

SASCOP BME SubTec is a Django application designed to be deployed on multiple platforms including AWS, Vercel, and traditional WSGI servers. This guide covers deployment strategies, requirements, and best practices.

Deployment Options

The application supports several deployment methods:

WSGI Server

Deploy using Gunicorn behind Nginx or Apache

Traditional deployment
Full control over infrastructure
Recommended for AWS EC2, DigitalOcean, etc.

Vercel

Serverless deployment on Vercel

Zero configuration
Automatic scaling
Built-in CI/CD

Docker

Containerized deployment

Consistent environments
Easy scaling
Works with Kubernetes, ECS, etc.

Platform as a Service

Deploy to Heroku, Railway, or Render

Managed infrastructure
Simple deployment process
Automatic backups

WSGI Application

The application provides a WSGI entry point in bme_subtec/wsgi.py:1-8:

bme_subtec/wsgi.py

import os
from django.core.wsgi import get_wsgi_application

os.environ.setdefault('DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE', 'bme_subtec.settings')

application = get_wsgi_application()

app = application

The app variable is used by some platforms like Vercel that expect this naming convention.

Production Server

The application uses Gunicorn as its WSGI HTTP server:

requirements.txt

gunicorn==21.2.0

Running with Gunicorn

Basic Command

gunicorn bme_subtec.wsgi:application

Production Configuration

gunicorn bme_subtec.wsgi:application \
  --bind 0.0.0.0:8000 \
  --workers 4 \
  --timeout 120 \
  --access-logfile - \
  --error-logfile -

Using Gunicorn Config File

Create gunicorn_config.py:

gunicorn_config.py

import multiprocessing

# Server socket
bind = "0.0.0.0:8000"
backlog = 2048

# Worker processes
workers = multiprocessing.cpu_count() * 2 + 1
worker_class = "sync"
worker_connections = 1000
timeout = 120
keepalive = 2

# Logging
accesslog = "-"
errorlog = "-"
loglevel = "info"

# Process naming
proc_name = "sascop_bme_subtec"

# Server mechanics
daemon = False
pidfile = None
user = None
group = None
tmp_upload_dir = None

Run with config:

gunicorn -c gunicorn_config.py bme_subtec.wsgi:application

Static Files

The application uses WhiteNoise for serving static files in production:

bme_subtec/settings.py

MIDDLEWARE = [
    'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
    'whitenoise.middleware.WhiteNoiseMiddleware',  # Must be after SecurityMiddleware
    # ...
]

STATIC_URL = '/static/'
STATIC_ROOT = BASE_DIR / 'staticfiles'
STATICFILES_DIRS = [BASE_DIR / 'operaciones' / 'static',]

Collecting Static Files

Before deployment, collect all static files:

python manage.py collectstatic --noinput

WhiteNoise serves static files directly from the Django app, eliminating the need for Nginx or Apache to serve static content.

Optional: Enable Compression

For better performance, enable WhiteNoise compression:

bme_subtec/settings.py

STATICFILES_STORAGE = 'whitenoise.storage.CompressedManifestStaticFilesStorage'

Database Considerations

Production Database

The application uses PostgreSQL with SSL in production:

bme_subtec/settings.py

DATABASES = {
    'default': {
        'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.postgresql',
        'NAME': os.environ.get('RDS_DB_NAME', 'postgres'),
        'USER': os.environ.get('RDS_USERNAME', 'postgres'),
        'PASSWORD': os.environ.get('RDS_PASSWORD', ''),
        'HOST': os.environ.get('RDS_HOSTNAME', 'localhost'),
        'PORT': os.environ.get('RDS_PORT', '5432'),
        'OPTIONS': {
            'sslmode': 'require',
        }
    }
}

Database Migrations

Run migrations on production database:

python manage.py migrate --noinput

See Database Migrations for detailed information.

Environment Variables

Critical environment variables for production:

.env.production

# Django Core
SECRET_KEY=your-production-secret-key-here
DEBUG=False
ALLOWED_HOSTS=yourdomain.com,www.yourdomain.com

# Database
RDS_DB_NAME=production_db
RDS_USERNAME=db_user
RDS_PASSWORD=secure_password
RDS_HOSTNAME=db.example.com
RDS_PORT=5432

# Email
EMAIL_HOST=smtp.sendgrid.net
EMAIL_PORT=587
EMAIL_HOST_USER=apikey
EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD=your-sendgrid-api-key
DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL=SASCOP <[email protected]>

Critical Security Settings:

Set DEBUG=False in production
Use a strong, unique SECRET_KEY
Configure ALLOWED_HOSTS properly
Never commit .env files to version control

See Environment Variables for complete reference.

Security Checklist

DEBUG Mode

Ensure DEBUG=False in production:

DEBUG = os.getenv('DEBUG', 'True') == 'True'

Set environment variable: DEBUG=False

Secret Key

Generate a strong secret key:

python -c 'from django.core.management.utils import get_random_secret_key; print(get_random_secret_key())'

Set in environment:

SECRET_KEY=your-generated-key-here

Allowed Hosts

Configure allowed hosts:

bme_subtec/settings.py

ALLOWED_HOSTS = os.getenv('ALLOWED_HOSTS', '').split(',')

Set environment:

ALLOWED_HOSTS=yourdomain.com,www.yourdomain.com

HTTPS Configuration

Enable HTTPS security settings:

bme_subtec/settings.py

SECURE_SSL_REDIRECT = True
SESSION_COOKIE_SECURE = True
CSRF_COOKIE_SECURE = True
SECURE_HSTS_SECONDS = 31536000
SECURE_HSTS_INCLUDE_SUBDOMAINS = True
SECURE_HSTS_PRELOAD = True

Database SSL

Ensure SSL is enabled for database connections:

'OPTIONS': {
    'sslmode': 'require',
}

Deployment Workflow

Prepare Code

git checkout main
git pull origin main

Install Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

Set Environment Variables

Configure all required environment variables in your deployment platform.

Collect Static Files

python manage.py collectstatic --noinput

Run Migrations

python manage.py migrate --noinput

Create Superuser (First Time Only)

python manage.py createsuperuser --noinput \
  --username admin \
  --email [email protected]

Start Application

gunicorn bme_subtec.wsgi:application --bind 0.0.0.0:8000 --workers 4

Build Script

The application includes a build_files.sh script for deployment automation:

build_files.sh

#!/bin/bash
# Currently empty - add your build commands here

# Example build steps:
# pip install -r requirements.txt
# python manage.py collectstatic --noinput
# python manage.py migrate --noinput

Make it executable:

chmod +x build_files.sh

Monitoring and Logging

Application Logging

Configure Django logging for production:

bme_subtec/settings.py

LOGGING = {
    'version': 1,
    'disable_existing_loggers': False,
    'formatters': {
        'verbose': {
            'format': '{levelname} {asctime} {module} {message}',
            'style': '{',
        },
    },
    'handlers': {
        'console': {
            'class': 'logging.StreamHandler',
            'formatter': 'verbose',
        },
        'file': {
            'class': 'logging.FileHandler',
            'filename': '/var/log/sascop/django.log',
            'formatter': 'verbose',
        },
    },
    'root': {
        'handlers': ['console', 'file'],
        'level': 'INFO',
    },
    'loggers': {
        'django': {
            'handlers': ['console', 'file'],
            'level': 'INFO',
            'propagate': False,
        },
    },
}

Health Check Endpoint

Create a health check endpoint for monitoring:

core/views.py

from django.http import JsonResponse
from django.db import connection

def health_check(request):
    try:
        # Check database connection
        with connection.cursor() as cursor:
            cursor.execute("SELECT 1")
        
        return JsonResponse({
            'status': 'healthy',
            'database': 'connected'
        })
    except Exception as e:
        return JsonResponse({
            'status': 'unhealthy',
            'error': str(e)
        }, status=500)

Performance Optimization

Database Connection Pooling

For high-traffic applications, consider using pgBouncer or django-db-connection-pool.

Caching

Implement Redis caching:

bme_subtec/settings.py

CACHES = {
    'default': {
        'BACKEND': 'django.core.cache.backends.redis.RedisCache',
        'LOCATION': os.getenv('REDIS_URL', 'redis://127.0.0.1:6379/1'),
    }
}

Gunicorn Workers

Calculate optimal worker count:

workers = (2 * multiprocessing.cpu_count()) + 1

Rollback Strategy

Database Backup

Always backup database before deployment:

pg_dump -h $RDS_HOSTNAME -U $RDS_USERNAME $RDS_DB_NAME > backup_$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S).sql

Git Tag Release

Tag releases for easy rollback:

git tag -a v1.0.0 -m "Release version 1.0.0"
git push origin v1.0.0

Rollback Commands

If issues occur:

# Rollback code
git checkout v1.0.0

# Rollback migrations
python manage.py migrate app_name migration_name

# Restore database (if needed)
psql -h $RDS_HOSTNAME -U $RDS_USERNAME $RDS_DB_NAME < backup.sql

Next Steps

Environment Variables

Complete reference for all environment variables

Database Migrations

Learn about managing migrations in production

Static Files

Configure static file serving

Setup

Architecture

Deployment

Overview

Deployment Options

WSGI Server

Vercel

Docker

Platform as a Service

WSGI Application

Production Server

Running with Gunicorn

Static Files

Collecting Static Files

Optional: Enable Compression

Database Considerations

Production Database

Database Migrations

Environment Variables

Security Checklist

Deployment Workflow

Build Script

Monitoring and Logging

Application Logging

Health Check Endpoint

Performance Optimization

Database Connection Pooling

Caching

Gunicorn Workers

Rollback Strategy

Next Steps

Environment Variables

Database Migrations

Static Files

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Setup

Architecture

Deployment

​Overview

​Deployment Options

WSGI Server

Vercel

Docker

Platform as a Service

​WSGI Application

​Production Server

​Running with Gunicorn

​Static Files

​Collecting Static Files

​Optional: Enable Compression

​Database Considerations

​Production Database

​Database Migrations

​Environment Variables

​Security Checklist

​Deployment Workflow

​Build Script

​Monitoring and Logging

​Application Logging

​Health Check Endpoint

​Performance Optimization

​Database Connection Pooling

​Caching

​Gunicorn Workers

​Rollback Strategy

​Next Steps

Environment Variables

Database Migrations

Static Files

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

Deployment Options

WSGI Application

Production Server

Running with Gunicorn

Static Files

Collecting Static Files

Optional: Enable Compression

Database Considerations

Production Database

Database Migrations

Environment Variables

Security Checklist

Deployment Workflow

Build Script

Monitoring and Logging

Application Logging

Health Check Endpoint

Performance Optimization

Database Connection Pooling

Caching

Gunicorn Workers

Rollback Strategy

Next Steps