What should be the folder structure of django app for large projects.

When structuring a Django app for a large project, the goal is to maintain a clean, organized, and scalable architecture. This helps in managing complexity, promoting reusability, and ensuring maintainability as the project grows. Below is a suggested folder structure along with explanations for each component.

1. Root Directory

The root directory should house essential project files and the main application folder.

myproject/
│
├── config/
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── settings.py
│   ├── urls.py
│   ├── wsgi.py
│   └── asgi.py
│
├── apps/
│   ├── __init__.py
│   ├── app1/
│   │   ├── migrations/
│   │   ├── models.py
│   │   ├── views.py
│   │   ├── urls.py
│   │   ├── admin.py
│   │   ├── forms.py
│   │   ├── tests.py
│   │   ├── signals.py
│   │   └── serializers.py
│   │
│   └── app2/
│       └── ...
│
├── static/
│   ├── css/
│   ├── js/
│   ├── images/
│   └── ...
│
├── templates/
│   ├── base.html
│   └── ...
│
├── manage.py
└── requirements.txt
        

2. Root-Level Files and Folders

• manage.py: The script used to interact with the Django project from the command line.
• requirements.txt: Lists all the Python dependencies. Keeping this file up-to-date ensures the environment can be recreated consistently.
• static/: A folder that contains all the static files such as CSS, JavaScript, and images that are used across the application.
• templates/: This directory holds the HTML templates that are shared across different apps.

3. Configuration Directory (config/)

• __init__.py: Marks the directory as a Python package.
• settings.py: Split settings across multiple files for large projects (e.g., base.py, development.py, production.py). This allows for environment-specific configurations.
• urls.py: The main URL configuration file. It should include URL patterns for the project.
• wsgi.py & asgi.py: Configuration files for WSGI and ASGI servers, necessary for deploying Django applications.

4. Application Directory (apps/)

For large projects, it’s better to split functionality into multiple Django apps. Each app should be modular, responsible for a specific function, and self-contained.

• migrations/: Django-generated migration files are stored here. They should not be manually edited.
• models.py: Contains the data models. For very large models, consider breaking this into multiple files within a models/ directory.
• views.py: Contains view functions or class-based views that handle the logic of the application.
• urls.py: The app’s URL configuration. It should include URL patterns specific to this app.
• admin.py: Configures the app’s models for the Django admin interface.
• forms.py: Holds form classes, ensuring that forms are decoupled from views.
• tests.py: Contains unit tests for the app.
• signals.py: Handles signals, which allow decoupled applications to get notified when certain actions occur elsewhere in the system.
• serializers.py: If using Django REST Framework (DRF), this file will contain serializers that translate models into JSON and vice versa.

5. Additional Considerations

• media/: For projects handling file uploads, the media/ directory should be designated for user-uploaded content.
• locale/: If the project supports multiple languages, the locale/ directory stores translation files.
• docs/: For documentation, including architecture decisions, API documentation, and usage guides.

6. Apps Division

For even larger projects, consider breaking the app structure further:

apps/
└── app1/
    ├── api/
    ├── services/
    ├── templates/
    ├── static/
    └── ...
        

• api/: Houses DRF views and viewsets.
• services/: Contains business logic or utility functions that are not directly tied to a model or view.

7. Scalability and Maintenance

As your project grows:

• Use reusable components across apps to reduce redundancy.
• Apply consistent naming conventions and follow Django best practices.
• Consider splitting your settings and deploying using Docker or similar containerization technology to manage complex environments.

This structure is flexible and should be tailored based on project-specific needs, ensuring that it remains clean, organized, and scalable as your Django project evolves.