Installing django CMS

This is a short setup chapter. Its only goal is to get you to a running python -m manage runserver with the CMS welcome screen visible at http://localhost:8000/. Everything after this is the real tutorial.

Prerequisites

You need:

• Python ≥ 3.10 and pip working from your shell.

• Django familiarity at the level of the Django tutorial — settings files, manage.py, apps, templates.

• A text editor and a terminal.

You do not need: prior django CMS experience, a database server, or any frontend tooling. The tutorial uses SQLite.

Install django CMS

Open a terminal and run:

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: .venv\Scripts\activate
pip install django-cms
djangocms coffeesite

The djangocms command is a shortcut that creates a fully wired django CMS project. Behind the scenes it:

1. Runs django-admin startproject coffeesite with the official cms-template project template.

2. Installs the packages the template depends on: djangocms-text (rich-text editor), djangocms-frontend (Bootstrap 5 support), django-filer (media files), djangocms-versioning (draft / published versions), djangocms-alias (reusable content blocks), djangocms-simple-admin-style (admin theming).

3. Runs python -m manage migrate to create the SQLite database.

4. Prompts you to create a superuser.

5. Runs python -m manage cms check to verify the install.

The tutorial uses the project name coffeesite. If you pick a different name, substitute it everywhere you see coffeesite below.

Run the development server

cd coffeesite
python -m manage runserver

Open http://localhost:8000/ in your browser. You should see the django CMS welcome page with the toolbar across the top. Log in with the superuser credentials you created during the install.

Your project layout

The coffeesite/ directory now contains a working Django project:

coffeesite/
    LICENSE
    README.md
    db.sqlite3
    coffeesite/
        static/
        templates/
            base.html
        __init__.py
        asgi.py
        settings.py
        urls.py
        wsgi.py
    manage.py
    requirements.in

You can delete or replace LICENSE and README.md for your own project. requirements.in is where you add new dependencies — we will add one in chapter 3.

The tutorial assumes:

• the project package is called coffeesite,

• a Django app called coffeeshop that you will create in chapter 3,

• DEBUG = True while you work.

Want to install by hand?

If you’d rather see every line of settings that the djangocms shortcut writes for you, work through Install django CMS manually (“Install django CMS manually”) instead. You will arrive at the same place; the rest of this tutorial works identically with either install path.

In the next chapter you will create your first CMS page.