Portal Configuration

Last Updated: September 2024

The portal_config.yml is the primary configuration file for Tethys Portal. As of version 3.0, you should not edit the settings.py file directly. Instead add any Django settings that you need to the settings section of the portal_config.yml. This can be done by manually editing the file, or you can use the tethys settings command to add settings to it.

This part of the installation guide will show you how to create the portal_config.yml and highlights a few of the settings that you should configure when setting up Tethys Portal for production. The following sections of the production installation guide will walk you through other important settings as well.

1. Prepare the TETHYS_HOME Directory

The TETHYS_HOME directory is the directory where the portal_config.yml file is generated. This directory is also used to store other configuration files and logs for Tethys Portal. The default location of the TETHYS_HOME directory is ~/.tethys/ or /home/<username>/.tethys/ if your environment is named Tethys, otherwise it is ~/.tethys/<env_name>/.

In a production environment, it is better to define the location of TETHYS_HOME to be outside of a user's home directory. The TETHYS_HOME directory should be on a disk with plenty of space and should be backed up regularly.

  1. Decide where to store the TETHYS_HOME directory and create that directory:

    sudo mkdir -p <TETHYS_HOME>
sudo chown -R $USER <TETHYS_HOME>

  2. Create a new tethys.sh script in /etc/profile.d to set the TETHYS_HOME environment variable for all users:

    sudo touch /etc/profile.d/tethys.sh
sudo chmod +x /etc/profile.d/tethys.sh
sudo echo "export TETHYS_HOME=<TETHYS_HOME>" > /etc/profile.d/tethys.sh

Note

Replace <TETHYS_HOME> with the path to the directory where you would like to store the Tethys configuration files.

2. Generate Tethys Configuration

Generate the portal configuration file with the following command:

tethys gen portal_config

Note

This file is generated in your TETHYS_HOME directory. It can be edited directly or using the tethys settings command. See: Tethys Portal Configuration and settings command.

3. Set Required Production Settings

The following settings should be set for a production installation of Tethys Portal.

ALLOWED_HOSTS

The ALLOWED_HOSTS setting is used to specify a list of host/domain names that this Django site can serve. If a request comes in with a host/domain name that is not listed here, it will be rejected. You should set this to the domain(s) of your server. For example, you can set this setting using the tethys settings command as follows:

tethys settings --set ALLOWED_HOSTS "['<SERVER_DOMAIN_NAME>']"

Note

Replace <SERVER_DOMAIN_NAME> with the domain name you identified during the Preparation step.

Important

The first entry in ALLOWED_HOSTS will be used to set the server name in the NGINX configuration file in one of the following sections of this guide.

CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS

The CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS setting is used to specify a list of trusted origins for unsafe requests (e.g. POST). Beginning with Django 4.0 the list of origins must be fully qualified domain names (e.g. https://example.com). You should set this to the domain(s) of your server. For example, you can set this setting using the tethys settings command as follows:

tethys settings --set CSRF_TRUSTED_ORIGINS "['<SCHEME><SERVER_DOMAIN_NAME>']"

Note

Replace <SCHEME> with http:// or https:// as appropriate for your deployment. Replace <SERVER_DOMAIN_NAME> with the domain name you identified during the Preparation step.

DEBUG

The DEBUG settings is used to enable debug mode. You should never deploy a site into production with DEBUG turned on. You should set this setting to False as follows:

tethys settings --set DEBUG False

4. Review the Django Deployment Checklist

Review the Django Deployment Checklist carefully.

Important

Remember, do not edit the settings.py file directly, instead use the tethys settings command or edit the settings section of the portal_config.yml to change Django settings.