Run manage.py from AWS EB Linux instance

Question

How to run manage.py from AWS EB (Elastic Beanstalk) Linux instance?

If I run it from '/opt/python/current/app', it shows the below exception.

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "./manage.py", line 8, in <module>
    from django.core.management import execute_from_command_line
ImportError: No module named django.core.management

I think it's related with virtualenv. Any hints?

Fuegian

You don't have django available for python interpreter used. Search the docs for more info about where the dependencies are installed. Are you sure they're installed at all? – Kyd

Yes. it's AWS EB Python 2.7 environment with Django 1.5.5 installed. In fact, Django web application itself running well and I can see it from browser. But, I want to run custom command from Linux shell through SSH. In this case, I can see the error like the above. – Fuegian

Try to figure out the HTTP server does initialize the environments/setup paths then. – Kyd

Answer 1

How to run manage.py from AWS Elastic Beanstalk AMI.

• SSH login to Linux (eb ssh)
  • (optional may need to run sudo su - to have proper permissions)
• source /opt/python/run/venv/bin/activate
• source /opt/python/current/env
• cd /opt/python/current/app
• python manage.py <commands>

Or, you can run command as like the below:

• cd /opt/python/current/app
• /opt/python/run/venv/bin/python manage.py <command>

Fuegian

Even more compact: /opt/python/run/venv/bin/python /opt/python/current/app/manage.py <command> – Stroup

It gives Permission denied – Leonardoleoncavallo

@RoNiT, you can use "sudo su -" to get root access, then you'll have the permission. – Doubleedged

This is not the best answer. The whole point of EB is to automate deployment and not have to SSH into a machine. – Gramps

@Gramps - its very common with django systems to use the manage.py shell command to interrogate data using the ORM rather than raw SQL, when its to do with data rather than changes to the filesystem this is completely fine – Pintsize

This is unfortunately no longer valid response in the new Python3.7 and Amazon Linux 2 platform. – Nudicaul

Answer 2

With the new version of Python paths seem to have changed.

• The app is in /var/app/current
• The virtual environment is in /var/app/venv/[KEY]

So the instructions are:

1. SSH to the machine using eb shh
2. Check the path of your environment with ls /var/app/venv/. The only folder should be the [KEY] for the next step
3. Activate the environment with source /var/app/venv/[KEY]/bin/activate
4. Execute the command python3 /var/app/current/manage.py <command>

Of course Amazon can change it anytime.

Paulita

Wow - why was this so hard to find - thanks very much! – Equivalence

can you please clarify what [KEY] is above? it's not clear to me... – Subsidize

@Subsidize As described above KEY is the name of the only folder in /var/app/vent/ – Paulita

You can replace the [key] with * and this works – Cadastre

Answer 3

As of February 2022 the solution is as follows:

$ eb ssh
$ sudo su -
$ export $(cat /opt/elasticbeanstalk/deployment/env | xargs)
$ source /var/app/venv/*/bin/activate
$ python3 /var/app/current/manage.py <command name>

$ export $(cat /opt/elasticbeanstalk/deployment/env | xargs) is needed to import your environment variables if you have a database connection (most likely you will)

Metonym

This is confirmed working as of TODAY; can we go a step further? PSQL does not seem to work.. – Standish

Answer 4

TL;DR

This answer assumes you have installed EB CLI. Follow these steps:

1. Connect to your running instance using ssh.

eb ssh <environment-name>

2. Once you are inside your environment, load the environment variables (this is important for database configuration)

. /opt/python/current/env

If you wish you can see the environment variables using printenv.

3. Activate your virtual environment

source /opt/python/run/venv/bin/activate

4. Navigate to your project directory (this will depend on your latest deployment, so use the number of your latest deployment instead of XX)

cd /opt/python/bundle/XX/app/

5. Run the command you wish:

python manage.py <command_name>

Running example

Asumming that your environment name is my-env, your latest deployment number is 13, and you want to run the shell command:

eb ssh my-env # 1
. /opt/python/current/env # 2
source /opt/python/run/venv/bin/activate # 3
cd /opt/python/bundle/13/app/ # 4
python manage.py shell # 5

Attack

Hey this doesnt seem to be working for me after ssh - ". /opt/python/current/env" doesnt exists for me. Infact even opt/python doesnt. Please help! – Caprine