django-project-core-settings 0.1.3

Production-ready modular Django settings with strong security defaults

django-project-core-settings

Production-ready, modular, and secure Django settings package.

This package provides a clean, maintainable, and highly secure base configuration for Django projects. It follows Django best practices and OWASP recommendations, making it easy to start new projects with strong security defaults.

Features

• Fully environment-driven configuration using .env
• Modular architecture — settings split into logical components
• Multiple environments support: dev, prod, and local
• Strong security defaults:
  • HSTS with preload
  • Secure cookies (HttpOnly, SameSite=Strict)
  • CSP (Content Security Policy)
  • Argon2 password hashing
  • Brute-force protection (django-axes)
  • Rate limiting (django-ratelimit)
• Structured JSON logging (app, security, and error logs)
• WhiteNoise integration for static files
• Redis cache support
• Easy extensibility via EXTRA_INSTALLED_APPS and EXTRA_MIDDLEWARE
• DID_AUTH ready (custom authentication app) (https://pypi.org/project/django-did-auth/)

Installation

pip install django-project-core-settings

Create Django Project

django-admin startproject myproject

create user app

py manage.py startapp users

• create custom user model at users/models.py

Sample custom model

• your_project/users/models.py

from django.contrib.auth.models import AbstractUser
from django.db import models
from django.utils import timezone
from django.utils.translation import gettext_lazy as _
from django.contrib.auth.base_user import BaseUserManager
class UserManager(BaseUserManager):
    def create_user(self, email, password=None, **extra_fields):
        if not email:
            raise ValueError("Email is required")
        email = self.normalize_email(email)
        user = self.model(email=email, **extra_fields)
        user.set_password(password)
        user.save(using=self._db)
        return user
    def create_superuser(self, email, password=None, **extra_fields):
        extra_fields.setdefault('is_staff', True)
        extra_fields.setdefault('is_superuser', True)
        if not extra_fields.get('is_staff'):
            raise ValueError("Superuser must have is_staff=True")
        if not extra_fields.get('is_superuser'):
            raise ValueError("Superuser must have is_superuser=True")
        return self.create_user(email, password, **extra_fields)
class CustomUser(AbstractUser):
    username = None
    # Role choices (easy to extend)
    ROLE_CHOICES = [
        ('admin', 'Administrator'),
        ('staff', 'Staff Member'),
        ('moderator', 'Moderator'),
        ('user', 'Regular User'),
    ]
    # Core fields
    email = models.EmailField(_('email address'), unique=True, db_index=True)
    first_name = models.CharField(_('first name'), max_length=150, blank=True)
    last_name = models.CharField(_('last name'), max_length=150, blank=True)
    # Role & profile
    role = models.CharField(
        _('role'), 
        max_length=20, 
        choices=ROLE_CHOICES, 
        default='user',
        db_index=True
    )
    is_staff = models.BooleanField(default=False)
    is_active = models.BooleanField(default=True)  # Will be False until email verified
    date_joined = models.DateTimeField(default=timezone.now)
    activation_token_created = models.DateTimeField(
        _('activation token created'),
        null=True,
        blank=True
    )
    objects = UserManager()
    USERNAME_FIELD = 'email'
    REQUIRED_FIELDS = ['first_name', 'last_name']
    def __str__(self):
        return self.email

Quick Start

Create your project settings file:

# myproject/settings.py
from django_project_core_settings import *

from django_project_core_settings.utils.env import get_list_env

# === Extend with your apps ===
INSTALLED_APPS += [
    'users', # register your user app
    # 'blog',
    # 'portfolio',
    # 'ckeditor',
]

AUTH_USER_MODEL = 'users.CustomUser'

MIDDLEWARE += [
    # 'your.middleware.Class',
]

# === Common overrides ===
# LOGIN_REDIRECT_URL = '/dashboard/' # already in DID_AUTH
ROOT_URLCONF = 'config.urls'
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'config.wsgi.application'

# === Security & Domain ===
ALLOWED_HOSTS = get_list_env("ALLOWED_HOSTS", ["localhost", "127.0.0.1"])

# Add frontend domains if needed
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS += [
    "https://your-frontend.com",
]

# === default DID_AUTH config (can be overridden in dev/prod) ===
# https://pypi.org/project/django-did-auth/
DID_AUTH = {
    # "LOGIN_REDIRECT": "/dashboard/", # already redirect based on the roles below
    "LOGOUT_REDIRECT": "/login/",
    
    "ADMIN_URL": "admin/",
    "ADMIN_IP_WHITELIST": get_list_env("ADMIN_IP_WHITELIST", default=['127.0.0.1', '::1']),  # Localhost by default

    # on your URL
    # from django_did_auth.config.loader import get_admin_url
    # urlpatterns = [
    #     path(get_admin_url(), admin.site.urls),
    # ]

    # redirect based on roles
    "ROLES": { 
        "admin": "/admin-dashboard/",
        "staff": "/staff-dashboard/",
        "moderator": "/moderator-dashboard/",
        "user": "/dashboard/",
    },
    # make sure it matches your models.py roles
    # ROLE_CHOICES = [
    #     ('admin', 'Administrator'),
    #     ('staff', 'Staff User'),
    #     ('moderator', 'Moderator User'),
    #     ('user', 'Regular User'),
    # ]

    "DENY_BEHAVIOR": "redirect",  # or "forbidden"

    "EMAIL": {
        "VERIFY_EXPIRY_HOURS": 24,
        "RESET_EXPIRY_HOURS": 1,
        "FROM_EMAIL": None,  # Will use DEFAULT_FROM_EMAIL
    },

    "RATE_LIMIT": {
        "LOGIN": "10/m",
        "REGISTER": "5/m",
        "PASSWORD_RESET": "5/m",
    },

    "UI_FRAMEWORK": "tailwind",  # "tailwind" or "bootstrap"

    "ENABLE_AUDIT": True,
    "TRUST_PROXY": False,
    
    "SECURITY": {
        "PASSWORD_MIN_LENGTH": 12,
        "ENABLE_AXES": True,
        "LOCKOUT_AFTER_ATTEMPTS": 5,
        "LOCKOUT_DURATION_MINUTES": 30,
        "REQUIRE_HTTPS": True,          # Enforce in production
    },
    "AUDIT": {
        "ENABLED": True,
        "LOG_SENSITIVE": False,         # Don't log passwords
    }
    
}
# === DID_AUTH Customization ===
# DID_AUTH['ROLES'].update({
#     'editor': '/dashboard/editor/',
#     'author': '/dashboard/author/',
# })
# make sure it matches your models.py roles
# ROLE_CHOICES = [
#     ('editor', 'Editor'),
#     ('author', 'Author'),
# ]


# Additinal settings can be added here as needed
# E.g.
# Admin security
MIDDLEWARE.insert(0, 'django_did_auth.security.admin.ipwhitelist.AdminIPWhitelistMiddleware')

Short Example

from django_project_core_settings import *
from django_project_core_settings.utils.env import get_list_env
# === Extend with your apps ===
INSTALLED_APPS += [
    # Third-party
    'rest_framework',
    # Local apps
    'accounts',
]
AUTH_USER_MODEL = 'accounts.CustomUser'
MIDDLEWARE += [
    # 'your.middleware.Class',
]
ROOT_URLCONF = 'core_system.urls'
WSGI_APPLICATION = 'core_system.wsgi.application'
ALLOWED_HOSTS = get_list_env("ALLOWED_HOSTS", ["localhost", "127.0.0.1"])
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS += [
    "https://your-frontend.com",
]
DID_AUTH = {
    "LOGOUT_REDIRECT": "/auth/login/",
    "ADMIN_URL": "secret-admin/",
    "ADMIN_IP_WHITELIST": get_list_env("ADMIN_IP_WHITELIST", default=['127.0.0.1', '::1']),
    # redirect based on roles
    "ROLES": {
        "owner": "/dashboard/owner/",
        "manager": "/dashboard/manager/",
        "staff": "/dashboard/staff/",
    },
    "DENY_BEHAVIOR": "forbidden",  # or "redirect"
}
# Admin security
MIDDLEWARE.insert(0, 'django_did_auth.security.admin.ipwhitelist.AdminIPWhitelistMiddleware')

Environment Variables (.env)

# dev | prod | local
DJANGO_ENV=dev                    
SECRET_KEY='your-secret-key'
ALLOWED_HOSTS=localhost,127.0.0.1,yourdomain.com
CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS=http://localhost:8000,https://yourdomain.com
REDIS_URL=redis://127.0.0.1:6379/1

EMAIL_HOST=smtp.gmail.com
EMAIL_USER=[e-mail]
EMAIL_PASS=your-app-password

ADMIN_IP_WHITELIST=127.0.0.1,192.168.68.100

Run Commands

# Development
DJANGO_ENV=dev python manage.py runserver

# Production check
DJANGO_ENV=prod python manage.py check

# Local development with debug tools
DJANGO_ENV=local python manage.py runserver

What You Can Override

Safe to override:

• ALLOWED_HOSTS, CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS
• DID_AUTH['ROLES']
• LOGIN_REDIRECT_URL, ROOT_URLCONF, etc.

Do NOT override directly:

• SECRET_KEY
• AUTHENTICATION_BACKENDS
• Core security headers (HSTS, secure cookies, etc.)
• MIDDLEWARE and INSTALLED_APPS base lists (use MIDDLEWARE += [], INSTALLED_APPS += [] instead)

Logging

The package provides three log files in the logs/ directory:

• app.log — General application logs
• security.log — Authentication, rate limiting, and security events (JSON in production)
• error.log — Error tracking

Requirements

dependencies = [
    "Django>=4.2",
    "python-dotenv>=1.0",
    "whitenoise>=6.0",
    "django-axes>=6.0",
    "django-ratelimit>=4.0",
    "django-redis>=5.0",
    "python-json-logger>=2.0",
    "django-did-auth>=0.1",
]

• Use pip install django-debug-toolbar for local (DJANGO_ENV=local)

---

From Django-DID-Auth (A secure, pluggable authentication framework for Django)

---

Role-Based Redirection (already in Settings above)

DID_AUTH = {
    "ROLES": {
        "admin": "/dashboard/admin/",
        "staff": "/dashboard/staff/",
        "user": "/dashboard/",
    }
}

---

Email Integration

• you can use in your project the email sending function using:

from django_did_auth.core.flows.email_flow import send_general_email

send_general_email(
    request,
    user,
    "Welcome!",
    "emails/welcome.html",
    {"name": user.first_name}
)

create the templates/emails/welcome.html

---

Audit Logging

• to use the audit log feature inside your project:

from django_did_auth.security.audit.logger import log_event

log_event(request, "login_success", user=request.user)

log_event(
    request=None,
    event="manual_test_error",
    level="error",
    extra={"info": "testing"}
)

Templates Overiding

Create the following files:

• templates/did_auth/login.html

<form method="post" class="space-y-6">
    {% csrf_token %}
    <div>
        <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Email address</label>
        {{ form.email }}
        {% if form.email.errors %}
            <p class="mt-1 text-red-500 text-sm">{{ form.email.errors.0 }}</p>
        {% endif %}
    </div>
    <div>
        <div class="flex justify-between items-center">
            <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Password</label>
            <a href="{% url 'did_auth:password_reset_request' %}" class="text-sm text-blue-600 hover:text-blue-500">Forgot password?</a>
        </div>
        {{ form.password }}
        {% if form.password.errors %}
            <p class="mt-1 text-red-500 text-sm">{{ form.password.errors.0 }}</p>
        {% endif %}
    </div>
    <button type="submit"
            class="w-full bg-blue-600 hover:bg-blue-700 text-white font-semibold py-3.5 rounded-2xl transition-all duration-200 focus:outline-none focus:ring-2 focus:ring-blue-500 focus:ring-offset-2">
        Sign in
    </button>
</form>

• templates/did_auth/register.html

<form method="post" class="space-y-6">
    {% csrf_token %}
    <div class="grid grid-cols-2 gap-4">
        <div>
            <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">First name</label>
            {{ form.first_name }}
        </div>
        <div>
            <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Last name</label>
            {{ form.last_name }}
        </div>
    </div>
    <div>
        <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Email address</label>
        {{ form.email }}
    </div>
    <div>
        <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Password</label>
        {{ form.password1 }}
    </div>
    <div>
        <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Confirm password</label>
        {{ form.password2 }}
    </div>
    <button type="submit"
            class="w-full bg-indigo-600 hover:bg-indigo-700 text-white font-semibold py-3.5 rounded-2xl transition-all duration-200">
        Create account
    </button>
</form>

• templates/did_auth/lockout.html

<div class="text-center py-12 space-y-6">
    <h2 class="text-3xl font-bold text-red-600">Account Temporarily Locked</h2>
    <p class="text-gray-600">Too many failed login attempts from this IP or account.</p>
    <p>Please try again later or contact support.</p>
    
    <a href="{% url 'did_auth:login' %}" 
       class="inline-block px-6 py-3 bg-gray-800 text-white rounded-2xl hover:bg-gray-900">
        Back to Login
    </a>
</div>

• templates/did_auth/password_reset_confirm.html

{% if valid_link and form %}
    <form method="post" class="space-y-6">
        {% csrf_token %}
        <div>
            <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">New password</label>
            {{ form.new_password }}
        </div>
        <div>
            <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Confirm new password</label>
            {{ form.confirm_password }}
        </div>
        <button type="submit"
                class="w-full bg-green-600 hover:bg-green-700 text-white font-semibold py-3.5 rounded-2xl">
            Reset password
        </button>
    </form>
{% else %}
    <div class="text-center text-red-600 py-8">
        This password reset link is invalid or has expired.
    </div>
    <a href="{% url 'did_auth:password_reset_request' %}" 
        class="block text-center text-blue-600 hover:text-blue-500">
        Request a new reset link
    </a>
{% endif %}

• templates/did_auth/password_reset_request.html

<form method="post" class="space-y-6">
    {% csrf_token %}
    <div>
        <label class="block text-sm font-medium text-gray-700 mb-1">Email address</label>
        {{ form.email }}
    </div>
    <button type="submit"
            class="w-full bg-blue-600 hover:bg-blue-700 text-white font-semibold py-3.5 rounded-2xl transition-all">
        Send reset link
    </button>
</form>

• templates/did_auth/verification_sent.html

<h2 class="text-3xl font-semibold text-gray-900">Check your email</h2>
<p class="text-gray-600 max-w-sm mx-auto">
    We've sent a verification link to your email address. 
    Please click the link to activate your account.
</p>

• templates/did_auth/email/activation.html

<h2>Hi {{ user.first_name|default:user.email }},</h2>
<p>Thank you for registering! Please click the button below to activate your account:</p>
<a href="{{ activation_link }}" 
    style="display: inline-block; background: #4f46e5; color: white; padding: 14px 28px; 
            text-decoration: none; border-radius: 8px; font-weight: 600; margin: 20px 0;">
    Activate My Account
</a>
<p style="color: #666; font-size: 0.95rem;">
    This link will expire in {{ expiry|default:24 }} hours.
</p>

• templates/did_auth/email/password_reset.html

<h2>Hi {{ user.first_name|default:user.email }},</h2>
<p>You requested a password reset. Click the link below to set a new password:</p>
<a href="{{ reset_link }}" 
    style="display: inline-block; background: #4f46e5; color: white; padding: 14px 28px; 
            text-decoration: none; border-radius: 8px; font-weight: 600; margin: 20px 0;">
    Reset My Password
</a>
<p style="color: #666;">This link will expire soon.</p>
<p>If you didn't request this, please ignore this email.</p>

• templates/profile/change_password.html

<form method="post">
    {% csrf_token %}
    {{ form.non_field_errors }}
    <div class="space-y-4">
        {{ form.current_password.label_tag }}
        {{ form.current_password }}

        {{ form.new_password.label_tag }}
        {{ form.new_password }}

        {{ form.confirm_password.label_tag }}
        {{ form.confirm_password }}
    </div>
    <button class="mt-6 w-full bg-blue-600 text-white py-2 rounded">
        Update Password
    </button>
</form>

---

Sample custom model

• your_project/users/models.py

from django.contrib.auth.models import AbstractUser
from django.db import models
from django.utils import timezone
from django.utils.translation import gettext_lazy as _
from django.contrib.auth.base_user import BaseUserManager
class UserManager(BaseUserManager):
    def create_user(self, email, password=None, **extra_fields):
        if not email:
            raise ValueError("Email is required")
        email = self.normalize_email(email)
        user = self.model(email=email, **extra_fields)
        user.set_password(password)
        user.save(using=self._db)
        return user
    def create_superuser(self, email, password=None, **extra_fields):
        extra_fields.setdefault('is_staff', True)
        extra_fields.setdefault('is_superuser', True)
        if not extra_fields.get('is_staff'):
            raise ValueError("Superuser must have is_staff=True")
        if not extra_fields.get('is_superuser'):
            raise ValueError("Superuser must have is_superuser=True")
        return self.create_user(email, password, **extra_fields)
class CustomUser(AbstractUser):
    username = None
    # Role choices (easy to extend)
    ROLE_CHOICES = [
        ('admin', 'Administrator'),
        ('staff', 'Staff Member'),
        ('moderator', 'Moderator'),
        ('user', 'Regular User'),
    ]
    # Core fields
    email = models.EmailField(_('email address'), unique=True, db_index=True)
    first_name = models.CharField(_('first name'), max_length=150, blank=True)
    last_name = models.CharField(_('last name'), max_length=150, blank=True)
    # Role & profile
    role = models.CharField(
        _('role'), 
        max_length=20, 
        choices=ROLE_CHOICES, 
        default='user',
        db_index=True
    )
    is_staff = models.BooleanField(default=False)
    is_active = models.BooleanField(default=True)  # Will be False until email verified
    date_joined = models.DateTimeField(default=timezone.now)
    activation_token_created = models.DateTimeField(
        _('activation token created'),
        null=True,
        blank=True
    )
    objects = UserManager()
    USERNAME_FIELD = 'email'
    REQUIRED_FIELDS = ['first_name', 'last_name']
    def __str__(self):
        return self.email

Re-used Register flow on your Views

from django_did_auth.core.flows.register_flow import register_user

if request.method == "POST":
        form = FormClass(request.POST)
        if form.is_valid():
            user = register_user(request, form)

• this will save as user.is_active = False

Role-aware Access Control

from django_did_auth.security.decorators.roles import role_required

@role_required("owner") # Supported: @role_required("admin", "owner")
def dashboard(request):
    ...

If user is:

• ✅ owner → allow
• ❌ not owner → redirect or forbidden if you have DID_AUTH["DENY_BEHAVIOR"] = "redirect", in settings it redirect to their dashboard, if DID_AUTH["DENY_BEHAVIOR"] = "forbidden", in setting it show error 403 instead

---

How to use handler404

In PROJECT urls.py

handler404 = "django_did_auth.core.utils.errors.handle_404"

---

Overried Error Templates

Template override only

Create the following templates

• Templates/did_auth/errors/401.html

<div class="bg-white shadow-lg rounded-2xl p-8 max-w-md text-center">
    <div class="text-red-500 text-6xl font-bold">401</div>
    <h1 class="text-2xl font-semibold mt-4 text-gray-800">
        Authentication Required
    </h1>
    <p class="text-gray-600 mt-2">
       {{ message|default:"You do not have permission." }}
    </p>
    <p class="text-sm text-gray-400 mt-3">
        If you believe this is an error, contact your administrator.
    </p>
    <a href="/" 
       class="inline-block mt-6 px-5 py-2 bg-blue-600 text-white rounded-lg hover:bg-blue-700 transition">
        Go Home
    </a>
</div>

• Templates/did_auth/errors/403.html

<div class="bg-white shadow-lg rounded-2xl p-8 max-w-md text-center">
    <div class="text-red-500 text-6xl font-bold">Error 403</div>
    <h1 class="text-2xl font-semibold mt-4 text-gray-800">
        Access Denied
    </h1>
    <p class="text-gray-600 mt-2">
       {{ message|default:"You do not have permission." }}
    </p>
    <p class="text-sm text-gray-400 mt-3">
        If you believe this is an error, contact your administrator.
    </p>
    <a href="/" 
       class="inline-block mt-6 px-5 py-2 bg-blue-600 text-white rounded-lg hover:bg-blue-700 transition">
        Go Home
    </a>
</div>

• Templates/did_auth/errors/404.html

<div class="bg-white shadow-lg rounded-2xl p-8 max-w-md text-center">
    <div class="text-red-500 text-6xl font-bold">404</div>
    <h1 class="text-2xl font-semibold mt-4 text-gray-800">
        Page Not Found
    </h1>
    <p class="text-gray-600 mt-2">
       {{ message|default:"You do not have permission." }}
    </p>
    <p class="text-sm text-gray-400 mt-3">
        If you believe this is an error, contact your administrator.
    </p>
    <a href="/" 
       class="inline-block mt-6 px-5 py-2 bg-blue-600 text-white rounded-lg hover:bg-blue-700 transition">
        Go Home
    </a>
</div>

• Templates/did_auth/errors/423.html

<div class="bg-white shadow-lg rounded-2xl p-8 max-w-md text-center">
    <div class="text-red-500 text-6xl font-bold">423</div>
    <h1 class="text-2xl font-semibold mt-4 text-gray-800">
        Account Locked
    </h1>
    <p class="text-gray-600 mt-2">
       {{ message|default:"You do not have permission." }}
    </p>
    <p class="text-sm text-gray-400 mt-3">
        If you believe this is an error, contact your administrator.
    </p>
    <a href="/" 
       class="inline-block mt-6 px-5 py-2 bg-blue-600 text-white rounded-lg hover:bg-blue-700 transition">
        Go Home
    </a>
</div>

• templates/did_auth/errors/429.html

<div class="bg-white shadow-lg rounded-2xl p-8 max-w-md text-center">
    <div class="text-red-500 text-6xl font-bold">429</div>
    <h1 class="text-2xl font-semibold mt-4 text-gray-800">
        Too Many Requests
    </h1>
    <p class="text-gray-600 mt-2">
       {{ message|default:"You do not have permission." }}
    </p>
    <p class="text-sm text-gray-400 mt-3">
        If you believe this is an error, contact your administrator.
    </p>
    <a href="/" 
       class="inline-block mt-6 px-5 py-2 bg-blue-600 text-white rounded-lg hover:bg-blue-700 transition">
        Go Home
    </a>
</div>

Other overried technuiqes

If you don't want to create/overide the html above, in templates/did_auth/errors/, then use the approach below:

• Add in settings.py (SETTINGS — PLUGGABLE OVERRIDE)

DID_AUTH["ERROR_HANDLERS"] = {
        "403": "myproject.errors.custom_403",
        "404": "myproject.errors.custom_404",
        "429": "myproject.errors.custom_429",
    }

• PROJECT OVERRIDE EXAMPLE (myproject/errors.py)

from django.shortcuts import render

def custom_403(request, message=None):
    return render(request, "custom/403.html", {"message": message}, status=403)

How it works

role_required()
    ↓
handle_403()
    ↓
check settings.DID_AUTH["ERROR_HANDLERS"]["403"]
    ↓
IF exists → use project function
ELSE → fallback to framework default

How to use error handling in project

• example: my_project/app_name/views.py

from django_did_auth.core.utils.errors import handle_error

return handle_error(request, 403, "You are not allowed to access this page.")
return handle_error(request, 429, "Too many attempts. Please try again later.")
return handle_error(request, 401, "Please login first.")

• A) Role-based dashboard

@login_required
def staff_dashboard_view(request):

    if request.user.role != "staff":
        return handle_error(request, 403, "Staff access only.")

    return render(request, "staff/dashboard.html")

• B) Profile ownership

def profile_view(request, user_id):

    if request.user.id != user_id:
        return handle_error(request, 403, "You cannot view this profile.")

    ...

• C) API-style auth check

def api_view(request):

    if not request.user.is_authenticated:
        return handle_error(request, 401, "Authentication required.")

    ...

• Object not found (manual 404)

obj = MyModel.objects.filter(id=pk).first()

if not obj:
    return handle_error(request, 404, "Item not found.")

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License

MIT License

Author

Wilfred