5 Django Commands Every Developer Should Know

django-admin startproject

This command is used to create a new Django project. It sets up the basic directory structure and configuration files for a Django project. For example, running django-admin startproject mylibrary will create a new project named "mylibrary" with the following directory structure:

mylibrary/
    manage.py
    mylibrary/
        __init__.py
        settings.py
        urls.py
        asgi.py
        wsgi.py

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python manage.py runserver

This command starts the development server, allowing you to run your Django application locally. It launches a web server on your local machine, enabling you to view and test your application in a web browser. When you run the python manage.py runserver command in your project directory, you should see the following output on the command line:

Performing system checks...

System check identified no issues (0 silenced).

You have unapplied migrations; your app may not work properly until they are applied.
Run 'python manage.py migrate' to apply them.

July 06, 2023 - 15:50:53
Django version 4.2, using settings 'mysite.settings'
Starting development server at http://127.0.0.1:8000/
Quit the server with CONTROL-C.

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python manage.py makemigrations
python manage.py migrate

These two commands are used to manage database migrations in Django. When you make changes to your models (such as adding a new field or table), running makemigrations generates the necessary migration files. Then, running migrate applies those migrations to the database, updating its schema.

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python manage.py createsuperuser

This command allows you to create a superuser account to access the Django admin interface. The admin interface provides a convenient way to manage your application's data. Running python manage.py createsuperuser prompts you to enter a username, email (this is optional), and password for the superuser. After this is created, you can now access the admin interface in your web browser.

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python manage.py startapp

This command creates a new Django app within your project. Django apps are modular components that encapsulate specific functionalities. Running python manage.py startapp mybooks generates the necessary files and folders to get started with a new app named "mybooks." This is what the directory structure should look like:

mybooks/
    __init__.py
    admin.py
    apps.py
    migrations/
        __init__.py
    models.py
    tests.py
    views.py

These are just a few essential commands in Django. There are many more commands available to perform various tasks, such as running tests, managing static files, and creating custom management commands. Happy coding!