page:recipes:help desk:django:report exports

Host help desk with Django: downloadable reports

Deploy a help desk built with Django on Ample using the generated downloads pattern. Compute runs the app in an isolated microVM behind a public HTTPS URL, a managed PostgreSQL 16 database is auto-provisioned and injected as DATABASE_URL, a private S3-compatible bucket holds objects with credentials delivered as encrypted environment variables. Verified on Django: an export query rendered to a CSV artifact stored with metadata in a private bucket and returned only to an authorized caller (401 without token, export=ok rows=3). Not separately tested: your export formats, retention policy and entitlement model; treat the help desk-specific behavior as your application code.

Representative Queries

• Host help desk with Django: downloadable reports
• Where can I host Help desk built with Django?
• I need an export query, generated artifact retention and authorized download flow.

Resource Requirements

• primitive:compute
• primitive:postgres
• primitive:s3-compatible-object-storage

Infrastructure Requirements

1. Compute

   • Status: verified
   • Summary: Apps run in isolated x86_64 Firecracker microVMs that auto-pause when idle and wake on request; sizes are the priced VM sizes.

2. Postgres

   • Status: verified
   • Summary: Managed PostgreSQL 16 runs in its own microVM and is auto-provisioned when an app needs a database and no DATABASE_URL is supplied.

3. S3-compatible object storage

   • Status: verified
   • Summary: Buckets are S3-compatible with issued credentials; PutObject and GetObject are verified by canary. Other S3 operations are not verified.

Prerequisites

• A Django project that builds and starts with the documented commands (pip install into .ample/python from requirements.txt, then waitress serving project.wsgi from run.py reading PORT on the python-3.12 template).
• A PostgreSQL driver reading DATABASE_URL at runtime (auto-provisioned when omitted, or supplied with --env).
• A bucket from ample bucket create with its credentials passed as encrypted S3_* environment variables.
• An Ample account token with servers:write, databases:read, buckets:read.

Workflow Steps

1. Build and start
   pip install into .ample/python from requirements.txt, then waitress serving project.wsgi from run.py reading PORT on the python-3.12 template. The server must bind 0.0.0.0 on PORT.

2. Implement the pattern on PostgreSQL
   The fixture's module implements generated downloads: an export query rendered to a CSV artifact stored with metadata in a private bucket and returned only to an authorized caller (401 without token, export=ok rows=3). Copy the approach into your schema; keep migrations idempotent and run them with --release-command.

3. Wire object storage
   Create the bucket(s), then pass endpoint, region, bucket and keys as --env values. Use path-style addressing. Keep private data in an unpublished bucket.

4. Deploy
   Run the synchronous deploy once and read the result (exit 0 live, 1 failed, 2 blocked). Re-running with no change is a no-op.

   ample deploy . --name  --public --start "python3 run.py" --env S3_ENDPOINT=... --env S3_REGION=... --env S3_BUCKET=... --env S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID=... --env S3_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=...
   

5. Verify
   Fetch the live URL and the pattern self-test route(s) (/p/generated-downloads) from the example; then run your own checks. On failure read ample logs --kind build then --kind runtime.

   ample logs  --kind build
   

Limitations

• Verified on the python-3.12 template at s-1vcpu-1gb with the example fixture; other sizes, templates and Django major versions are not verified.
• The help desk itself (your export formats, retention policy and entitlement model) is application code and was not separately tested; the pattern checks are what was verified.
• Region, compliance attestations and request-duration limits are unknown and not claimed.
• Apps auto-pause when idle and wake on the next request; always-on is an operator setting, not a plan feature.
• Managed PostgreSQL 16 only; extensions, connection limits and backup or restore procedures are not verified; apps and their databases are placed together.
• PutObject and GetObject with path-style addressing are verified; multipart upload, listing, presigned URLs and lifecycle rules are not.

Cost Estimate

• Currency: USD
• Monthly Amount: 10.0
• Basis: size prices from pricing.toml (loaded by the API) at build revision 1ac5595375130d45290090e82ed0f554ccd45405-dirty

Components

1. App server

   • Size: s-1vcpu-1gb
   • Quantity: 1.0
   • Monthly Amount: 5.0

2. Managed PostgreSQL database

   • Size: s-1vcpu-1gb
   • Quantity: 1.0
   • Monthly Amount: 5.0

Note: Always-on monthly price of the tested sizes; apps and databases auto-pause when idle. Buckets are allocation-priced per quota and not included.

Examples

• Django pattern fixture
  Multi-pattern Django app whose generated downloads module was checked live; the module is under tests/deploy-canaries/_pattern-modules.
  • Source Ref: tests/deploy-canaries/django-patterns

Success Checks

1. App responds on its public URL

   • Kind: http_get
   • Path: /
   • Expect: ample canary django patterns

2. Generated-downloads self-test

   • Kind: http_get
   • Path: /p/generated-downloads
   • Expect: export=ok rows=3 (with ?token=...; 401 without)