Installation & Deployment

Overview

Inventario is a Django 5.2 application designed for easy deployment on cloud platforms or traditional servers. This guide covers local development setup, environment configuration, and production deployment.

System Requirements

Python

Version: 3.11.9 or higherRequired for Django 5.2 compatibility

Database

Production: PostgreSQL 12+Development: SQLite (included)

Memory

Minimum: 512 MB RAMRecommended: 1 GB+ for production

Storage

Minimum: 500 MBIncludes dependencies, static files, and media uploads

Dependencies

The application requires the following key packages:

requirements.txt

Django==5.2.6
django-allauth==65.14.3          # Google OAuth & authentication
django-widget-tweaks==1.5.1      # Form rendering utilities
gunicorn==25.1.0                  # Production WSGI server
whitenoise==6.11.0                # Static file serving
psycopg2-binary==2.9.11           # PostgreSQL adapter
dj-database-url==3.1.2            # Database URL parsing
python-dotenv==1.2.1              # Environment variable management
openai==2.21.0                    # AI-powered insights
twilio==9.10.1                    # SMS notifications
Pillow==12.1.1                    # Image processing
reportlab==4.4.10                 # PDF generation
barcode==1.0.4                    # Barcode generation
pandas==3.0.0                     # Data analysis for reports
resend==2.0.0                     # Email service

Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the project root with the following configuration:

# Core Django Settings
DEBUG=False
SECRET_KEY=your-secret-key-here-min-50-characters
ALLOWED_HOSTS=yourdomain.com,www.yourdomain.com
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=https://yourdomain.com,https://www.yourdomain.com

# Database (PostgreSQL)
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://user:password@host:5432/database_name

# Email Configuration (Resend)
RESEND_API_KEY=re_xxxxxxxxxxxxx
DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL=[email protected]

# Google OAuth (Optional)
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your-google-client-id.apps.googleusercontent.com
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=your-google-client-secret

# AI Features (Optional)
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-proj-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

# SMS Notifications (Optional)
TWILIO_ACCOUNT_SID=ACxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN=your-twilio-auth-token
TWILIO_PHONE_NUMBER=+1234567890

# Security
SESSION_COOKIE_SECURE=True
CSRF_COOKIE_SECURE=True

Configuration Breakdown

SECRET_KEY - Required

Django’s cryptographic signing key. Generate a secure random string:

from django.core.management.utils import get_random_secret_key
print(get_random_secret_key())

Never commit this to version control!

DATABASE_URL - Production Required

Database connection string parsed by dj-database-url:

# From inventario/settings.py:79-84
DATABASES = {
    'default': dj_database_url.config(
        default=f'sqlite:///{BASE_DIR / "db.sqlite3"}',
        conn_max_age=600
    )
}

Format: postgresql://username:password@host:port/databaseIf not provided, defaults to SQLite (dev only).

Google OAuth - Optional

Enable “Sign in with Google” functionality:

Go to Google Cloud Console
Create a new project or select existing
Enable Google+ API
Create OAuth 2.0 credentials
Add authorized redirect URI: https://yourdomain.com/accounts/google/login/callback/

# Configuration from inventario/settings.py:130-141
SOCIALACCOUNT_PROVIDERS = {
    'google': {
        'SCOPE': ['profile', 'email'],
        'AUTH_PARAMS': {'access_type': 'online'},
        'VERIFIED_EMAIL': True,
        'APP': {
            'client_id': os.environ.get('GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID', ''),
            'secret': os.environ.get('GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET', ''),
            'key': ''
        }
    }
}

OpenAI API Key - Optional

Powers AI-driven dashboard insights and recommendations:

Predictive analytics for sales trends
Stock replenishment suggestions
Customer behavior analysis
Automated report summaries

Get your API key from OpenAI Platform

Twilio Configuration - Optional

Enable SMS notifications for:

Low stock alerts
Daily sales summaries
Order confirmations

Local Development Setup

Clone Repository

git clone <repository-url>
cd inventario

Create Virtual Environment

python3.11 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

Install Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

Configure Environment

Copy the development .env template:

cp _env .env

Edit .env and set minimum required variables:

DEBUG=True
SECRET_KEY=<generate-one>

Run Database Migrations

python manage.py migrate

This creates the SQLite database and all required tables.

Create Superuser

python manage.py createsuperuser

Enter username, email, and password. This account has full admin access.

Collect Static Files

python manage.py collectstatic --no-input

Gathers all static files (CSS, JS, images) into staticfiles/ directory.

Run Development Server

python manage.py runserver

Access the application at http://127.0.0.1:8000Admin panel: http://127.0.0.1:8000/admin/

Production Deployment

Option 1: Railway Deployment

Prepare Project

Ensure these files exist in your repository:Procfile:

web: gunicorn inventario.wsgi:application --log-file - --workers 2 --timeout 120

runtime.txt:

python-3.11.9

Create Railway Project

Go to Railway.app
Click New Project → Deploy from GitHub repo
Select your repository
Railway auto-detects Django and Python version

Add PostgreSQL Database

In your Railway project, click New → Database → Add PostgreSQL
Railway automatically creates DATABASE_URL environment variable
The database is linked to your application

Configure Environment Variables

In Railway dashboard, add all production environment variables:

DEBUG=False
SECRET_KEY=<generate-secure-key>
ALLOWED_HOSTS=${{RAILWAY_PUBLIC_DOMAIN}}
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=https://${{RAILWAY_PUBLIC_DOMAIN}}
DATABASE_URL=${{DATABASE_URL}}  # Auto-provided by Railway
RESEND_API_KEY=<your-resend-key>
DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL=[email protected]

Deploy

Railway automatically deploys on every push to your main branch.Build process:

Installs dependencies from requirements.txt
Runs migrations automatically
Collects static files
Starts Gunicorn server

Monitor deployment in Railway dashboard logs.

Configure Custom Domain (Optional)

In Railway project settings, go to Domains
Add your custom domain
Update DNS records as shown
Update ALLOWED_HOSTS and CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS with your domain

Option 2: Render Deployment

Prepare Build Script

Create build.sh in project root:

build.sh

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -o errexit

echo "📦 Installing dependencies..."
pip install -r requirements.txt

echo "📁 Collecting static files..."
python manage.py collectstatic --no-input

echo "🗄️ Running migrations..."
python manage.py migrate

echo "🌐 Configuring Site domain..."
python manage.py shell -c "
from django.contrib.sites.models import Site
site, _ = Site.objects.get_or_create(id=1)
site.domain = 'yourdomain.com'
site.name = 'Inventario'
site.save()
"

echo "✅ Build completed successfully."

Make it executable:

chmod +x build.sh

Create Render Web Service

Go to Render Dashboard
Click New → Web Service
Connect your GitHub/GitLab repository
Configure:
- Name: inventario
- Environment: Python 3
- Build Command: ./build.sh
- Start Command: gunicorn inventario.wsgi:application --workers 2 --timeout 120

Add PostgreSQL Database

In Render dashboard, click New → PostgreSQL
Create database
Copy the Internal Database URL
Add to your web service as DATABASE_URL environment variable

Configure Environment Variables

In web service Environment tab, add:

PYTHON_VERSION=3.11.9
DEBUG=False
SECRET_KEY=<generate-secure-key>
ALLOWED_HOSTS=.onrender.com,yourdomain.com
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=https://your-service.onrender.com
DATABASE_URL=<internal-database-url>

Deploy

Render automatically builds and deploys:

Runs build.sh
Executes migrations
Collects static files
Starts Gunicorn

Monitor in Logs tab.

Option 3: Traditional Server (Ubuntu)

Prepare Server

# Update system
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

# Install Python and dependencies
sudo apt install python3.11 python3.11-venv python3-pip postgresql nginx -y

Setup PostgreSQL

# Start PostgreSQL
sudo systemctl start postgresql
sudo systemctl enable postgresql

# Create database and user
sudo -u postgres psql

In PostgreSQL shell:

CREATE DATABASE inventario_db;
CREATE USER inventario_user WITH PASSWORD 'secure_password';
ALTER ROLE inventario_user SET client_encoding TO 'utf8';
ALTER ROLE inventario_user SET default_transaction_isolation TO 'read committed';
ALTER ROLE inventario_user SET timezone TO 'America/Bogota';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE inventario_db TO inventario_user;
\q

Deploy Application

# Create application directory
sudo mkdir -p /var/www/inventario
cd /var/www/inventario

# Clone repository
sudo git clone <repository-url> .

# Create virtual environment
sudo python3.11 -m venv venv
sudo chown -R $USER:$USER /var/www/inventario
source venv/bin/activate

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

Configure Environment

# Create .env file
nano .env

Add production configuration:

DEBUG=False
SECRET_KEY=<generate-secure-key>
ALLOWED_HOSTS=yourdomain.com,www.yourdomain.com
DATABASE_URL=postgresql://inventario_user:secure_password@localhost:5432/inventario_db
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=https://yourdomain.com,https://www.yourdomain.com

Initialize Database

# Run migrations
python manage.py migrate

# Collect static files
python manage.py collectstatic --no-input

# Create superuser
python manage.py createsuperuser

Configure Gunicorn

Create systemd service file:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/inventario.service

[Unit]
Description=Inventario Gunicorn Daemon
After=network.target

[Service]
User=www-data
Group=www-data
WorkingDirectory=/var/www/inventario
EnvironmentFile=/var/www/inventario/.env
ExecStart=/var/www/inventario/venv/bin/gunicorn \
          --workers 3 \
          --bind unix:/var/www/inventario/inventario.sock \
          --timeout 120 \
          inventario.wsgi:application

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Enable and start service:

sudo systemctl start inventario
sudo systemctl enable inventario
sudo systemctl status inventario

Configure Nginx

Create Nginx configuration:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/inventario

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name yourdomain.com www.yourdomain.com;
    
    client_max_body_size 10M;
    
    location = /favicon.ico { access_log off; log_not_found off; }
    
    location /static/ {
        alias /var/www/inventario/staticfiles/;
    }
    
    location /media/ {
        alias /var/www/inventario/media/;
    }
    
    location / {
        include proxy_params;
        proxy_pass http://unix:/var/www/inventario/inventario.sock;
    }
}

Enable site:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/inventario /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/
sudo nginx -t
sudo systemctl restart nginx

Setup SSL with Certbot

# Install Certbot
sudo apt install certbot python3-certbot-nginx -y

# Obtain SSL certificate
sudo certbot --nginx -d yourdomain.com -d www.yourdomain.com

# Test auto-renewal
sudo certbot renew --dry-run

Static Files Configuration

Inventario uses WhiteNoise for efficient static file serving in production:

# From inventario/settings.py:46,97-101
MIDDLEWARE = [
    'django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware',
    'whitenoise.middleware.WhiteNoiseMiddleware',  # Must be after SecurityMiddleware
    # ... other middleware
]

STATIC_URL = 'static/'
STATICFILES_DIRS = [BASE_DIR / 'static']
STATIC_ROOT = BASE_DIR / 'staticfiles'
STATICFILES_STORAGE = 'whitenoise.storage.CompressedManifestStaticFilesStorage'

Benefits:

Serves compressed static files (gzip/brotli)
Adds far-future cache headers
No CDN required for small to medium applications
Works seamlessly with Django’s collectstatic

Always run python manage.py collectstatic --no-input before deploying or after modifying static files.

Database Migrations

Inventario uses Django’s built-in migration system:

# Create new migrations after model changes
python manage.py makemigrations

# Apply migrations
python manage.py migrate

# Show migration status
python manage.py showmigrations

# Rollback to specific migration
python manage.py migrate app_name migration_name

Production Best Practices:

Always backup database before running migrations
Test migrations in staging environment first
Migrations run automatically during Railway/Render deployments
For manual deployments, run migrations before restarting application

Health Checks & Monitoring

Application Health

# Check if application is running
curl https://yourdomain.com/login/

# Check admin panel
curl https://yourdomain.com/admin/

Database Connection

# Test database connectivity
python manage.py dbshell

# Or check in Django shell
python manage.py shell
>>> from django.db import connection
>>> connection.ensure_connection()
>>> print("Database connected successfully!")

Common Issues

Static files not loading (404 errors)

Symptoms: CSS/JS files return 404 in productionSolution:

# Ensure static files are collected
python manage.py collectstatic --no-input --clear

# Verify STATIC_ROOT directory exists
ls -la staticfiles/

# Check WhiteNoise is in MIDDLEWARE (must be after SecurityMiddleware)

Database connection errors

Symptoms: django.db.utils.OperationalError: FATAL: password authentication failedSolution:

Verify DATABASE_URL format is correct
Check database credentials
Ensure database server is running and accessible
For PostgreSQL, verify pg_hba.conf allows connections

# Test PostgreSQL connection
psql $DATABASE_URL

CSRF verification failed

Symptoms: 403 Forbidden on form submissionsSolution:

# Ensure CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS includes your domain
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS = [
    'https://yourdomain.com',
    'https://www.yourdomain.com',
]

# For Railway: https://*.railway.app
# For Render: https://*.onrender.com

Google OAuth redirect mismatch

Symptoms: Google login fails with “redirect_uri_mismatch”Solution:

Go to Google Cloud Console
Navigate to APIs & Services → Credentials
Edit your OAuth 2.0 Client
Add authorized redirect URI: https://yourdomain.com/accounts/google/login/callback/
Update Site domain in Django admin:

python manage.py shell
>>> from django.contrib.sites.models import Site
>>> site = Site.objects.get(id=1)
>>> site.domain = 'yourdomain.com'
>>> site.name = 'Inventario'
>>> site.save()

Gunicorn worker timeout

Symptoms: 502 Bad Gateway or worker restart logsSolution: Increase timeout in Procfile or systemd service:

# Procfile
web: gunicorn inventario.wsgi:application --timeout 300 --workers 2

# For long-running reports/exports, increase to 300-600 seconds

Security Checklist

Before going to production, verify:

Performance Optimization

Database Connection Pooling

# Already configured in settings.py:79-84
DATABASES = {
    'default': dj_database_url.config(
        default=f'sqlite:///{BASE_DIR / "db.sqlite3"}',
        conn_max_age=600  # Reuse connections for 10 minutes
    )
}

Gunicorn Workers

Calculate optimal worker count:

# Formula: (2 x CPU cores) + 1
# For 1 CPU: 3 workers
# For 2 CPU: 5 workers

gunicorn inventario.wsgi:application --workers 3 --threads 2

Static File Compression

WhiteNoise automatically compresses static files. Verify:

# After collectstatic, check for .gz files
ls -la staticfiles/ | grep \.gz

Backup & Recovery

Database Backup

# Backup PostgreSQL database
pg_dump $DATABASE_URL > backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

# Restore from backup
psql $DATABASE_URL < backup_20260310.sql

Automated Backups (Ubuntu)

# Create backup script
sudo nano /usr/local/bin/backup-inventario.sh

#!/bin/bash
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/inventario"
DATE=$(date +%Y%m%d_%H%M%S)

mkdir -p $BACKUP_DIR
pg_dump inventario_db > $BACKUP_DIR/db_$DATE.sql

# Keep only last 7 days
find $BACKUP_DIR -name "db_*.sql" -mtime +7 -delete

# Make executable
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/backup-inventario.sh

# Add to crontab (daily at 2 AM)
sudo crontab -e
0 2 * * * /usr/local/bin/backup-inventario.sh

Updating the Application

Pull Latest Changes

cd /var/www/inventario
git pull origin main

Activate Virtual Environment

source venv/bin/activate

Update Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt --upgrade

Run Migrations

python manage.py migrate

Collect Static Files

python manage.py collectstatic --no-input

Restart Application

# Systemd service
sudo systemctl restart inventario

# Or if using supervisor
sudo supervisorctl restart inventario

Support & Resources

Django Documentation

Official Django 5.2 documentation

Railway Docs

Railway deployment guides

Render Docs

Render deployment documentation

Gunicorn Docs

Gunicorn configuration reference

Get Started

Core Features

User Management

Advanced

Installation & Deployment

Overview

System Requirements

Python

Database

Memory

Storage

Dependencies

Environment Variables

Configuration Breakdown

Local Development Setup

Production Deployment

Option 1: Railway Deployment

Option 2: Render Deployment

Option 3: Traditional Server (Ubuntu)

Static Files Configuration

Database Migrations

Health Checks & Monitoring

Application Health

Database Connection

Common Issues

Security Checklist

Performance Optimization

Database Connection Pooling

Gunicorn Workers

Static File Compression

Backup & Recovery

Database Backup

Automated Backups (Ubuntu)

Updating the Application

Support & Resources

Django Documentation

Railway Docs

Render Docs

Gunicorn Docs

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get Started

Core Features

User Management

Advanced

​Overview

​System Requirements

Python

Database

Memory

Storage

​Dependencies

​Environment Variables

​Configuration Breakdown

​Local Development Setup

​Production Deployment

​Option 1: Railway Deployment

​Option 2: Render Deployment

​Option 3: Traditional Server (Ubuntu)

​Static Files Configuration

​Database Migrations

​Health Checks & Monitoring

​Application Health

​Database Connection

​Common Issues

​Security Checklist

​Performance Optimization

​Database Connection Pooling

​Gunicorn Workers

​Static File Compression

​Backup & Recovery

​Database Backup

​Automated Backups (Ubuntu)

​Updating the Application

​Support & Resources

Django Documentation

Railway Docs

Render Docs

Gunicorn Docs

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

System Requirements

Dependencies

Environment Variables

Configuration Breakdown

Local Development Setup

Production Deployment

Option 1: Railway Deployment

Option 2: Render Deployment

Option 3: Traditional Server (Ubuntu)

Static Files Configuration

Database Migrations

Health Checks & Monitoring

Application Health

Database Connection

Common Issues

Security Checklist

Performance Optimization

Database Connection Pooling

Gunicorn Workers

Static File Compression

Backup & Recovery

Database Backup

Automated Backups (Ubuntu)

Updating the Application

Support & Resources