Creating a Django project - Visual Walkthrough

Concept Flow - Creating a Django project

Open Terminal

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Run: django-admin startproject myproject

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Create myproject folder with files

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Navigate into myproject folder

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Run: python manage.py runserver

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Server starts, project ready

This flow shows the steps to create a new Django project, from running the command to starting the server.

Execution Sample

Django

django-admin startproject myproject
cd myproject
python manage.py runserver

Creates a new Django project folder and starts the development server.

Execution Table

Step	Command Run	Action	Result
1	django-admin startproject myproject	Create project folder and files	Folder 'myproject' with manage.py and settings created
2	cd myproject	Change directory to project folder	Terminal now inside 'myproject' folder
3	python manage.py runserver	Start Django development server	Server runs at http://127.0.0.1:8000/
4	Access http://127.0.0.1:8000/ in browser	View default Django welcome page	Page shows 'The install worked successfully!'
5	Stop server (Ctrl+C)	Terminate server process	Server stops running

💡 Server stops when user interrupts; project folder and files remain for development.

Variable Tracker

Variable	Start	After Step 1	After Step 2	After Step 3	Final
Current Directory	User home or terminal start	User home or terminal start	'myproject' folder	'myproject' folder	'myproject' folder
Project Folder	None	'myproject' created	'myproject' exists	'myproject' exists	'myproject' exists
Server Status	Stopped	Stopped	Stopped	Running	Stopped

Key Moments - 2 Insights

Why do we need to change directory into the project folder before running the server?

Because the 'manage.py' file that runs the server is inside the project folder. Running 'python manage.py runserver' outside won't work. See execution_table step 2 and 3.

What happens if you run 'django-admin startproject' with a folder name that already exists?

Django will raise an error because it does not want to overwrite existing files. You must choose a new folder name or delete the old one first.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution table, what is the result after running 'django-admin startproject myproject'?

A Server starts running

B Folder 'myproject' with manage.py and settings created

C Terminal changes directory

D Project deleted

💡 Hint

Check the 'Result' column in step 1 of the execution_table.

At which step does the Django development server start running?

A Step 3

B Step 2

C Step 1

D Step 4

💡 Hint

Look at the 'Action' and 'Result' columns in the execution_table.

If you forget to change directory into 'myproject' before running the server, what will happen?

A Server will start normally

B A new project will be created

C Terminal will show an error because 'manage.py' is not found

D Nothing happens

💡 Hint

Refer to key_moments about why changing directory is important.

Concept Snapshot

Creating a Django project:
1. Run 'django-admin startproject myproject' to create project folder.
2. Change directory into 'myproject' with 'cd myproject'.
3. Start server with 'python manage.py runserver'.
4. Access http://127.0.0.1:8000/ to see the welcome page.
Remember: Always run server inside project folder.

Full Transcript

To create a Django project, open your terminal and run the command 'django-admin startproject myproject'. This creates a new folder named 'myproject' with necessary files. Next, change your terminal directory into this folder using 'cd myproject'. Inside this folder, run 'python manage.py runserver' to start the development server. You can then open your browser and go to http://127.0.0.1:8000/ to see the default Django welcome page. When done, stop the server with Ctrl+C. Remember, running the server command outside the project folder will cause an error because the 'manage.py' file is not found there.