Uploading Files In Django

March 6, 2023, 7:58 a.m.

django python

Django provides a very simple way to upload files on server. It involves several steps. Here is a brief overview of the process:

1. Create a Django model to represent the data that will be uploaded, including a FileField or ImageField to store the uploaded file.

2. Create a form to allow users to upload files, using Django's built-in FileField or ImageField form fields.

3. Add a view that handles the form submission and saves the uploaded file to the appropriate location on the server.

4. Create a template that displays the form and any uploaded files.

If you haven't install python and django you can start from here Installing python and django

For Quick Setup

Create a virtual environment

python -m venv env

Activate virtual environment

source env/bin/activate

Installing Django

Install python using pip command

pip install django

Creating your first Project

django-admin startproject projectname

Creating your first App

Change to project directory: "cd projectname"

django-admin startapp appname

you see app have its own file structure, hence it is independent of the project. To work with app we need to include it in project

projectname/projectname/settings.py

# Application definition
INSTALLED_APPS = [
    "django.contrib.admin",
    "django.contrib.auth",
    "django.contrib.contenttypes",
    "django.contrib.sessions",
    "django.contrib.messages",
    "django.contrib.staticfiles",
    "whitenoise.runserver_nostatic",
    "django.contrib.sitemaps",
    "appname", # <-- add this 
]

Create Model

Create a model to represent the uploaded file:

projectname/appname/models.py

from django.db import models

class Document(models.Model):
    name = models.CharField(max_length=255)
    file = models.FileField(upload_to='uploads/')

Create Form

Create a form to allow users to upload files:

Create a file in app with name 'forms.py'

projectname/appname/forms.py

from django import forms
from .models import Document

class DocumentForm(forms.ModelForm):
    class Meta:
        model = Document
        fields = ('name', 'file')

Create View

Add a view to handle the form submission:

from django.shortcuts import render
from .forms import DocumentForm

def upload(request):
    if request.method == 'POST':
        form = DocumentForm(request.POST, request.FILES)
        
        if form.is_valid():
            form.save()
            return redirect('upload_success')
    else:
        form = DocumentForm()
    return render(request, 'upload.html', {'form': form})

Create Templates

Create a directory called templates within your Django app. This directory contains your html files.

Create an HTML file called index.html within the templates directory:

To learn about how to use django templates, You can learn from here

{% extends 'base.html' %}
{% block content %}
    <h1>Upload a Document</h1>
    <form method="post" enctype="multipart/form-data">
        {% csrf_token %}
        {{ form.as_p }}
        <button type="submit">Upload</button>
    </form>
{% endblock %}

This example should give you a basic understanding of how to upload files in Django. However, keep in mind that there are many variations and additional features that can be added depending on your specific needs.