Serving Django with Gunicorn and NGINX

In this article, we will explore the concept of serving Django applications using Gunicorn and NGINX. We will discuss the importance of using these tools, their use cases, and provide a step-by-step g …

In this article, we will explore the concept of serving Django applications using Gunicorn and NGINX. We will discuss the importance of using these tools, their use cases, and provide a step-by-step guide on how to set up your Django application with Gunicorn and NGINX. Serving Django with Gunicorn and NGINX

What is Gunicorn?

Gunicorn is a Python WSGI (Web Server Gateway Interface) server that allows you to run your Django application concurrently. It provides a robust and scalable solution for deploying your Django application. Gunicorn is designed to be used behind a reverse proxy server, such as NGINX.

What is NGINX?

NGINX is a popular open-source web server software that can also act as a reverse proxy server. In the context of serving Django applications, NGINX acts as a reverse proxy server that sits between the client and Gunicorn. NGINX receives incoming requests from clients and forwards them to Gunicorn, which then runs the Django application.

Why Use Gunicorn and NGINX?

Using Gunicorn and NGINX provides several benefits, including:

• Scalability: Gunicorn allows you to run multiple worker processes concurrently, making it easier to scale your application.
• Robustness: Gunicorn provides a robust solution for deploying your Django application. It can handle high traffic and unexpected crashes.
• Security: NGINX acts as a reverse proxy server that sits between the client and Gunicorn. This adds an extra layer of security to your application.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Install Gunicorn

To install Gunicorn, you can use pip:

pip install gunicorn

Step 2: Create a Systemd Service File for Gunicorn

Create a new file called gunicorn.service in the /etc/systemd/system directory:

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

Add the following code to the file:

[Unit]
Description=gunicorn daemon
Requires=gunicorn.socket
After=network.target

[Service]
User=<your_username>
RuntimeDirectory=gunicorn
ExecStart=/usr/bin/gunicorn --workers 3 --bind unix:gunicorn.sock -m 007 your_django_app.wsgi:application
Restart=always

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Replace <your_username> with your actual username and your_django_app with the name of your Django application.

Step 3: Create a Systemd Socket File for Gunicorn

Create a new file called gunicorn.socket in the /etc/systemd/system directory:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/gunicorn.socket

Add the following code to the file:

[Unit]
Description=gunicorn socket

[Socket]
ListenStream=/run/gunicorn.sock

[Install]
WantedBy=sockets.target

Step 4: Reload Systemd and Start Gunicorn

Reload systemd to pick up the new service files:

sudo systemctl daemon-reload

Start the Gunicorn service:

sudo systemctl start gunicorn

Enable the Gunicorn service to start automatically on boot:

sudo systemctl enable gunicorn

Step 5: Configure NGINX

Create a new file called django.conf in the /etc/nginx/sites-available directory:

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/django.conf

Add the following code to the file:

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com;

    location = /favicon.ico { access_log off; log_not_found off; }
    location /static/ {
        root /path/to/your/project;
    }

    location / {
        include proxy_params;
        proxy_pass http://unix:/run/gunicorn.sock;
    }
}

Replace example.com with your domain name and /path/to/your/project with the actual path to your project.

Create a symbolic link to the new configuration file:

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/django.conf /etc/nginx/sites-enabled/

Restart NGINX:

sudo service nginx restart

Conclusion

In this article, we explored the concept of serving Django applications using Gunicorn and NGINX. We discussed the importance of using these tools, their use cases, and provided a step-by-step guide on how to set up your Django application with Gunicorn and NGINX.

By following the steps outlined in this article, you can create a robust and scalable solution for deploying your Django application using Gunicorn and NGINX.