103 lines
4.5 KiB
Plaintext
103 lines
4.5 KiB
Plaintext
.. _faq-install:
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FAQ: Installation
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=================
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How do I get started?
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---------------------
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#. `Download the code`_.
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#. Install Django (read the :ref:`installation guide <intro-install>`).
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#. Walk through the :ref:`tutorial <intro-tutorial01>`.
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#. Check out the rest of the :ref:`documentation <index>`, and `ask questions`_ if you
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run into trouble.
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.. _`Download the code`: http://www.djangoproject.com/download/
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.. _ask questions: http://www.djangoproject.com/community/
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What are Django's prerequisites?
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--------------------------------
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Django requires Python_, specifically any version of Python from 2.4
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through 2.6. No other Python libraries are required for basic Django
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usage.
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For a development environment -- if you just want to experiment with Django --
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you don't need to have a separate Web server installed; Django comes with its
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own lightweight development server. For a production environment, Django
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follows the WSGI_ spec, which means it can run on a variety of server
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platforms. See :ref:`Deploying Django <howto-deployment-index>` for some
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popular alternatives. Also, the `server arrangements wiki page`_ contains
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details for several deployment strategies.
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If you want to use Django with a database, which is probably the case, you'll
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also need a database engine. PostgreSQL_ is recommended, because we're
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PostgreSQL fans, and MySQL_, `SQLite 3`_, and Oracle_ are also supported.
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.. _Python: http://www.python.org/
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.. _WSGI: http://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0333/
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.. _server arrangements wiki page: http://code.djangoproject.com/wiki/ServerArrangements
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.. _PostgreSQL: http://www.postgresql.org/
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.. _MySQL: http://www.mysql.com/
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.. _`SQLite 3`: http://www.sqlite.org/
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.. _Oracle: http://www.oracle.com/
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Do I lose anything by using Python 2.4 versus newer Python versions, such as Python 2.5 or 2.6?
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-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Not in the core framework. Currently, Django itself officially supports any
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version of Python from 2.4 through 2.6, inclusive. However, newer versions of
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Python are often faster, have more features, and are better supported.
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Third-party applications for use with Django are, of course, free to set their
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own version requirements.
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Over the next year or two Django will begin dropping support for older Python
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versions as part of a migration which will end with Django running on Python 3
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(see below for details).
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All else being equal, we recommend that you use the latest 2.x release
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(currently Python 2.6). This will let you take advantage of the numerous
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improvements and optimizations to the Python language since version 2.4, and
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will help ease the process of dropping support for older Python versions on
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the road to Python 3.
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Can I use Django with Python 2.3?
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---------------------------------
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Django 1.1 (and earlier) supported Python 2.3. Django 1.2 and newer does not.
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We highly recommend you upgrade Python if at all possible, but Django 1.1 will
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continue to work on Python 2.3.
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Can I use Django with Python 3?
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-------------------------------
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Not at the moment. Python 3.0 introduced a number of
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backwards-incompatible changes to the Python language, and although
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these changes are generally a good thing for Python's future, it will
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be a while before most Python software catches up and is able to run
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on Python 3.0. For larger Python-based software like Django, the
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transition is expected to take at least a year or two (since it
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involves dropping support for older Python releases and so must be
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done gradually).
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In the meantime, Python 2.x releases will be supported and provided
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with bug fixes and security updates by the Python development team, so
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continuing to use a Python 2.x release during the transition should
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not present any risk.
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Will Django run under shared hosting (like TextDrive or Dreamhost)?
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-------------------------------------------------------------------
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See our `Django-friendly Web hosts`_ page.
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.. _`Django-friendly Web hosts`: http://code.djangoproject.com/wiki/DjangoFriendlyWebHosts
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Should I use the official version or development version?
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---------------------------------------------------------
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The Django developers improve Django every day and are pretty good about not
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checking in broken code. We use the development code (from the Subversion
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repository) directly on our servers, so we consider it stable. With that in
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mind, we recommend that you use the latest development code, because it
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generally contains more features and fewer bugs than the "official" releases.
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