DEPLOYMENT.md

Deployment Guide

This document covers the Makeability Lab website's production infrastructure, deployment pipeline, and server administration.

Table of Contents

• Deployment Guide
  • Table of Contents
  • Server Overview
  • Deployment Pipeline
    • Deploying to Test
    • Deploying to Production
    • Verifying Deployment
  • Versioning
    • Creating a Release
  • Server Configuration
    • Configuration File
    • Environment Variables
  • Debugging & Logging
    • Log Files
    • Accessing Logs via Web
    • Accessing Logs via SSH
    • Windows Network Drive Access
  • Data Management
    • Uploaded Files
    • Database Access

Server Overview

The Makeability Lab website runs on two UW CSE servers:

Server	URL	Purpose
Test	https://makeabilitylab-test.cs.washington.edu	Staging environment for testing changes
Production	https://makeabilitylab.cs.washington.edu	Live public-facing website

Each server has its own:

• PostgreSQL database
• File storage backend
• Log files

Important: Content added to the test server does not affect production, and vice versa. They are completely independent environments.

Deployment Pipeline

Deployments are automated via GitHub webhooks:

graph LR
    A[Push to<br/>master] --> B(Webhook fires)
    B --> C[makeabilitylab-test<br/>auto-deploys]

    D[Push a tag<br/>e.g. 2.1.0] --> E(Webhook fires)
    E --> F[makeabilitylab<br/>production]

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Deploying to Test

Any push to master automatically deploys to the test server:

git push origin master

Deploying to Production

Production deployments require a version tag:

git tag 2.1.0
git push --tags

Verifying Deployment

Check the build log to confirm deployment succeeded:

• Test: https://makeabilitylab-test.cs.washington.edu/logs/buildlog.txt
• Production: https://makeabilitylab.cs.washington.edu/logs/buildlog.txt

Versioning

We use Semantic Versioning for production releases.

Change Type	Version Component	Example
First release	Start at 1.0.0	1.0.0
Bug fixes, minor patches	Increment PATCH (third digit)	1.0.0 → 1.0.1
New features (backward compatible)	Increment MINOR (second digit)	1.0.1 → 1.1.0
Breaking changes	Increment MAJOR (first digit)	1.1.0 → 2.0.0

View current and past versions on the Releases page.

Creating a Release

1. Ensure all changes are merged to master and tested on the test server

2. Determine the appropriate version number based on the changes

3. Create and push the tag:

   git tag 2.1.0
   git push --tags

4. Verify deployment via the production build log

Server Configuration

The production server was configured by UW CSE's IT team (Jason Howe).

Configuration File

Django reads database credentials and secret keys from config.ini. This file:

• Is not stored in Git (for security)
• Is mounted as a Docker volume on the production server
• Contains PostgreSQL connection strings and Django secret keys

Environment Variables

Production-specific settings are configured in settings.py using values from config.ini. Local development uses different defaults specified in docker-compose-local-dev.yml.

Debugging & Logging

Log Files

Logs are available via SSH or the web:

Log	Description
debug.log	Django application logs
buildlog.txt	Deployment build output
httpd-access.log	HTTP request logs
httpd-error.log	HTTP error logs

Accessing Logs via Web

• Test: https://makeabilitylab-test.cs.washington.edu/logs/
• Production: https://makeabilitylab.cs.washington.edu/logs/

Accessing Logs via SSH

1. SSH into the server:

   ssh recycle.cs.washington.edu

2. Navigate to the log directory:

   # Test server
   cd /cse/web/research/makelab/www-test
   
   # Production server
   cd /cse/web/research/makelab/www

3. View recent log entries:

   # Last 100 lines
   tail -n 100 debug.log
   
   # Save to file
   tail -n 100 debug.log > last100lines.log
   
   # Follow log in real-time
   tail -f debug.log

Windows Network Drive Access

If you have Windows directory mapping configured, logs are accessible at:

O:\cse\web\research\makelab\www        # Production
O:\cse\web\research\makelab\www-test   # Test

Data Management

Uploaded Files

Files uploaded via the Django admin (publications, talks, images, etc.) are stored in the /media folder:

Server	Path
Test	/cse/web/research/makelab/www-test/media
Production	/cse/web/research/makelab/www/media

To browse uploaded files:

ssh recycle.cs.washington.edu
cd /cse/web/research/makelab/www/media  # or www-test for test server
ls -la

Database Access

The production PostgreSQL database runs on grabthar.cs.washington.edu.

Note: Direct database access is rarely needed. In the uncommon case you need to query PostgreSQL directly, you must connect through recycle.cs.washington.edu:

ssh recycle.cs.washington.edu
# Then connect to PostgreSQL from there

For routine data management, use the Django admin interface instead.