DataSpace Backend

Overview

DataSpace is a platform for sharing and managing datasets. This repository contains the backend code for the DataSpace platform, built with Django and GraphQL.

Key Features

• Secure Authentication: Integration with Keycloak for robust authentication
• Role-Based Access Control: Fine-grained permissions based on user roles
• GraphQL API: Modern API with efficient data fetching
• REST API: Traditional REST endpoints for specific operations
• Data Management: Tools for dataset management and organization

Authentication System

The backend uses Keycloak for authentication, providing a secure and scalable solution. Key aspects of the authentication system include:

• Token-Based Authentication: All requests require a valid Keycloak JWT token
• Direct Validation: Tokens are validated directly with Keycloak
• User Synchronization: User data is synchronized from Keycloak to the Django database
• No Development Mode: The system only works with real Keycloak tokens, with no fallback mechanisms

For detailed information about the Keycloak integration, see the Keycloak Integration Documentation.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Python 3.8+
• PostgreSQL
• Keycloak server

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/CivicDataLab/DataSpaceBackend.git
   cd DataSpaceBackend

2. Create a virtual environment and install dependencies:

   python -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate
   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Set up environment variables (create a .env file in the project root):

   DEBUG=True
   SECRET_KEY=your-secret-key
   DB_ENGINE=django.db.backends.postgresql
   DB_NAME=dataspace
   DB_USER=postgres
   DB_PASSWORD=postgres
   DB_HOST=localhost
   DB_PORT=5432
   KEYCLOAK_SERVER_URL=https://your-keycloak-server/auth
   KEYCLOAK_REALM=your-realm
   KEYCLOAK_CLIENT_ID=your-client-id
   KEYCLOAK_CLIENT_SECRET=your-client-secret
   

4. Run migrations:

   python manage.py migrate

5. Initialize roles:

   python manage.py init_roles

6. Start the development server:

   python manage.py runserver

API Documentation

API documentation is available at the following endpoints when the server is running:

• Swagger UI: /swagger/
• ReDoc: /redoc/
• GraphQL Playground: /graphql/

Directory Structure

• api/: Main API application with models, views, and GraphQL schema
• authorization/: Authentication and authorization components
• DataSpace/: Project settings and configuration
• docs/: Documentation files
• search/: Search functionality and Elasticsearch integration

Contributing

1. Create a feature branch from the main branch
2. Make your changes
3. Submit a pull request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License.