Understanding and Resolving WSGI Application Not Found Error

Using Django Deployment
1

Hi everyone,

I’m new to Django and have recently set up my first project. While attempting to deploy my Django application using Apache and mod_wsgi, I encountered the following error message:

Target WSGI script '/path/to/myproject/wsgi.py' does not contain WSGI application 'application'

This error has been a roadblock in getting my site up and running, and despite searching through various resources, I haven’t been able to resolve it. Here’s the setup I followed:

  1. Project Structure:

    myproject/
    ├── myproject/
    │   ├── __init__.py
    │   ├── settings.py
    │   ├── urls.py
    │   └── wsgi.py
    ├── manage.py
    └── app/
        ├── __init__.py
        ├── models.py
        ├── views.py
        └── ...

  2. Apache Configuration:

    <VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerAdmin admin@example.com
    ServerName example.com
    ServerAlias www.example.com

    DocumentRoot /path/to/myproject
    WSGIScriptAlias / /path/to/myproject/myproject/wsgi.py

    <Directory /path/to/myproject/myproject>
        <Files wsgi.py>
            Require all granted
        </Files>
    </Directory>

    Alias /static /path/to/myproject/static
    <Directory /path/to/myproject/static>
        Require all granted
    </Directory>

    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

  3. wsgi.py File:

    import os
from django.core.wsgi import get_wsgi_application

os.environ.setdefault('DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE', 'myproject.settings')
application = get_wsgi_application()

Troubleshooting Steps I’ve Taken:

  • Verified that the DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE is correctly pointing to myproject.settings.
  • Ensured that wsgi.py is correctly placed in the project directory.
  • Checked that all necessary permissions are set for the project directory and files.
  • Restarted the Apache server multiple times after making configuration changes.

Despite these efforts, the error persists. I suspect that there might be a misconfiguration or a missing step that I have overlooked. I would appreciate any guidance or suggestions on how to resolve this issue.

Questions:

  1. Could there be an issue with how my project directory is structured?
  2. Are there any additional configurations needed in the wsgi.py file?
  3. Have I missed any crucial steps in setting up the Apache configuration?

Idioms Thank you in advance for your help!
Looking forward to your insights!

Best regards,
Emily

2

Welcome @modismos !

First, I suggest you use the real file contents involved here and not try to edit them. (e.g., use the real directories instead of trying to anonymizing them by using names like /path/to/.) This avoids having to go back-and-forth to correct typos that may occur. Using the real names also sometimes reveal other issues that may not otherwise be obvious.

Specifically:

Keep in mind that Apache needs to walk the complete directory tree starting from root (/) in order to locate these files. Setting up these projects in /home directories generally ends up being problematic as a result. My recommendation is that projects get deployed to something in /var/www or /opt to ensure no issues are created by the use of higher-level directories.

Side note: I don’t see any configuration for either a virtual environment or for using it in daemon mode. I always recommend both of these as part of any deployment. (While I consider them important, I don’t believe either of these would be causing this specific issue. I suggest you do them both, but as a general practice and not as an attempt to get this deployment up-and-running.)