Prerequisites

Ensure you have Python3.12 and pip installed on your machine. You can verify your installation by running:

python --version pip --version

Setting Up a Virtual Environment

Using a virtual environment is recommended to manage the project dependencies separately. Here's how you can set it up:

Install virtualenv

If you do not have virtualenv installed, you can install it using pip:

pip install virtualenv

Create and Activate a Virtual Environment

Navigate to your project directory and create a new virtual environment:

virtualenv venv

Activate the virtual environment:

• On Windows:

  venv\Scripts\activate

• On macOS and Linux:

  source venv/bin/activate

Install Dependencies

With the virtual environment activated, install the project dependencies from the requirements.txt file:

pip install -r requirements.txt

Database Migrations

Before you can run the server, ensure that your database is up to date with the latest migrations:

1. Navigate to the directory containing manage.py.
2. Run the following commands to make and apply migrations:

python manage.py makemigrations python manage.py migrate

Running the Django Server

To start the Django development server, execute:

python manage.py runserver

This command starts the server on the default port 8000. If you want to use a different port:

python manage.py runserver 8080

Accessing the Application

Open your web browser and navigate to http://127.0.0.1:8000/ to view the application.